Bill Description: House Bill 822 (H822) is related to House Bill 71 signed into law in 2023, and would create the Pediatric Secretive Transition Parental Rights Act. The bill aims to reinforce parental rights and protect children from being medically or socially transitioned by a covered entity without the knowledge and informed consent of a parent or guardian.
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Does it violate the spirit or the letter of either the United States Constitution or the Idaho Constitution? Examples include restrictions on speech, public assembly, the press, privacy, private property, or firearms. Conversely, does it restore or uphold the protections guaranteed in the US Constitution or the Idaho Constitution?
House Bill 822 reinforces the principle that parents have a fundamental right to direct the upbringing of their children, a doctrine long-held in constitutional jurisprudence. H822 ensures “covered entities” — “a primary or secondary educational institution, a child care provider, or a medical, behavioral, or mental health care provider” — cannot facilitate medical or “social transitions” for a minor without the awareness or informed, “written” consent of a parent or guardian.
H822 primarily acts to restore parental rights in situations where defined covered entities may keep critical decision-making from parents regarding their children’s physical and mental health. This bill codifies statutory protections that would disallow teachers, child care providers, or health care providers from intervening in matters involving the physical or social transition of a minor while withholding that information from parents. The bill states, “A covered entity shall notify a minor student’s parent within seventy-two (72) hours of receiving any request by the minor student to participate in or facilitate the social transition of the minor student, including any request by the minor student to: (a) Be referred to by pronouns or titles that do not correspond to the minor student’s biological sex; (b) Be referred to using names other than the minor student’s legal name, or a nickname or derivative thereof, either in school records or otherwise; (c) Use restrooms, locker rooms, changing rooms, or overnight lodging designated for the opposite biological sex; or (d) Participate on an athletic team or any other sex-separated school activity designated for the opposite sex.”
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This legislation provides a civil cause of action for parents to recover damages in the case of a child being socially transitioned without their knowledge or consent. The bill states, “(10) If an aggrieved person proves that a covered entity violated the provisions of this section, such aggrieved person is entitled to recover: (a) Declaratory relief; (b) Injunctive relief; (c) Compensatory damages; and (d) Reasonable costs and attorney’s fees as allowed by statute or court rule.” Additionally, this legislation creates a provision for the attorney general to “investigate allegations of violations,” levy civil penalties, and file suit for a “writ of mandamus.” Additionally, “The attorney general may refer a covered entity that has violated this section to any licensing board that has issued a professional license to the covered entity” for possible disciplinary action.
This safeguard discourages the secretive facilitation of a child socially transitioning, and ensures families remain involved in matters that have long-term emotional, psychological, and social implications for children.
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Does it promote the breakdown of the traditional family or the deconstruction of societal norms? Examples include promoting or incentivizing degeneracy, violating parental rights, and compromising the innocence of children. Conversely, does it protect or uphold the structure, tenets, and traditional values of Western society?
House Bill 822 has a significant flaw in the language. The bill ensures parents are informed of their children’s request to be socially transitioned; however, it inadvertently affirms social transitions for children if their parents are informed and provide written consent. The bill states, “(7) A covered entity shall not aid or abet a child’s efforts to socially transition without first obtaining written consent from the child’s parent.” There should be no allowance — even with the written consent of a parent — for a child’s mental health issues to be affirmed in the facilitation of a sex change, even if only socially.
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