Amends existing law to revise provisions regarding parental rights in education.
House Bill 352 revises Idaho’s parental-rights-in-education statute, Idaho Code section 33-6001. The bill expands and clarifies parents’ and legal guardians’ rights to access school records, receive notice about changes in a child’s mental, emotional, or physical well-being, review learning materials, and be informed about health services, surveys, screenings, and law-enforcement questioning. It also requires school districts and charter schools to adopt policies for parent involvement, complaint handling, and procedures for notifying parents about certain student matters.
The bill also adds a new prohibition on classroom instruction by public school personnel on sexual orientation or gender identity from kindergarten through grade 12, or in a manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate under state standards. It creates a private right of action if a school does not remedy a complaint, allowing parents to seek injunctive relief, damages, and other legal remedies. The act is declared an emergency and takes effect July 1, 2025.
H0352 would amend Idaho’s existing parental rights law in education by imposing additional duties on public schools and charter schools, including policy adoption, parental notification, record-access timelines, consent requirements for certain surveys and screenings, and limits on instruction related to sexual orientation and gender identity. It would affect school districts, public charter schools, school personnel, parents and legal guardians, and potentially school resource officers and other law-enforcement officials interacting with students. The bill also exposes schools to litigation through a private cause of action if parental-rights complaints are not resolved.
The voting history suggests the bill had substantial support in both chambers, passing the House 58-11 and the Senate 29-6. That margin indicates broad legislative approval, likely reflecting strong support among lawmakers favoring expanded parental control and transparency in schools. The absence of committee transcript material limits insight into detailed debate, but the recorded votes show the bill was generally well received.
The most notable point of contention is the bill’s restriction on classroom instruction concerning sexual orientation and gender identity, which is likely to be the most debated provision because it directly affects curriculum and classroom discussion. Another potential area of dispute is the breadth of parental access and notification requirements, especially where schools must balance parental rights against student privacy, staff workload, safety, and existing legal obligations. Schools may also be concerned about the new private right of action and the operational burden of implementing complaint procedures, record deadlines, and notification policies.