Effort to revive stalled bill with sex ed provisions falters

JUNEAU — An effort to revive a stalled education bill that limits who can teach sex education in public schools faltered in the Alaska House on Wednesday.

It marked the third time the House rejected a Senate rewrite of Rep. Wes Keller’s bill dealing with parental involvement in education, greater local control and student testing.

Perhaps the most contentious piece of the Senate rewrite was that it called for sex education to be taught by certified teachers under contract with a given school or someone under a teacher’s supervision who has been approved by the local school board and whose credentials are made available for parental review.

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

A spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood Votes Northwest and Hawaii, Jessica Cler, said Tuesday that this would create further barriers for students to receive comprehensive sex education.

In a floor speech Wednesday, Keller, R-Wasilla, said there was misunderstanding surrounding the contentious provisions. He said they wouldn’t add to or take away from the sex education training that happens in schools.

The addition of the provisions came on the heels of heated debate during the regular session over separate, stalled proposals that would have barred Planned Parenthood from teaching sex education in public schools.

The House rejected the Senate rewrite of Keller’s bill twice, but Keller got another chance to try to get the bill passed when the Senate agreed to set up a conference committee. Senate President Kevin Meyer had said that if it failed again, “then we’re done.”

The committee comprised of House and Senate members advanced the Senate version Tuesday. Keller said he thought he had the votes necessary for the bill to clear the House.

But it failed by one vote during a floor session early Wednesday afternoon. It failed by one vote during the prior two attempts as well.

Meyer said the House has the option of rescinding its vote and voting again, if it chooses to do so.

More in News

Kenai City Manager Terry Eubank speaks during Kenai’s State of the City presentation at the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center in Kenai, Alaska, on Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Services, projects spotlighted at Kenai’s State of the City

Mayor Brian Gabriel and City Manager Terry Eubank delivered the seventh annual address.

The Homer Public Library. File photo
In wake of executive order, peninsula libraries, museums brace for funding losses

Trump’s March 14 executive order may dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services “to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law.”

Cracks split the siding outside of Soldotna High School on Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2022 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
SoHi siding, Hope roof repair projects move forward

The Soldotna project has been reduced from its original scope.

Jacob Caldwell, chief executive officer of Kenai Aviation, stands at the Kenai Aviation desk at the Kenai Municipal Airport on Thursday, Sept. 13, 2022, in Kenai, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Kenai Aviation selected to provide air service to Seward

Scheduled flights between Seward and Anchorage will begin May 1.

Monte Roberts, left, and Greg Brush, right, raise their hands during an emergency meeting of the Kenai River Special Management Area Advisory Board’s guide committee at the Kenai Peninsula Region Office of Alaska State Parks near Soldotna, Alaska, on Feb. 25, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
KRSMA board pushes back on new guide stipulations, calls for public process

Stipulations 32 and 40 were included in an updated list emailed to Kenai River guides.

KPBSD Board of Education member Patti Truesdell speaks during a town hall meeting hosted by three Kenai Peninsula legislators in the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly Chambers in Soldotna, Alaska, on Saturday, March 29, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Education hot topic at local legislative town hall

More than 100 people attended a three-hour meeting where 46 spoke.

The Soldotna Field House is seen on a sunny Monday, March 31, 2025, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Field house work session set for April 9

A grand opening for the facility is slated for Aug. 16.

HEX President and CEO John Hendrix is photographed at Furie’s central processing facility in Nikiski, Alaska, on Wednesday, July 10, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Furie announces new lease to use Hilcorp rig, will drill this spring

A jack-up rig is a mobile platform that can be transported and deployed in different areas.

The ORPC proposed American Tidal Energy Project site is located at East Forland, Cook Inlet, just north of Nikiski, Alaska. Photo provided by ORPC
Marine energy developer pursues Cook Inlet tidal project

ORPC recently filed a draft pilot license application for a tidal energy project site near Nikiski.

Most Read