Text of NY A 808 (2022)

STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 808 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY (Prefiled) January 6, 2021 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. O'DONNELL, SEAWRIGHT -- read once and referred to the Committee on Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to inclusive instruction and instructional materials; and providing for the repeal of certain provisions upon expiration thereof The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section 804-e 2 to read as follows: 3 § 804-e. Inclusive curriculum or instruction. 1. School districts and 4 charter schools shall include instruction on the political, economic, 5 and social contributions, and lifeways of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans- 6 gender, and queer people, in an appropriate place in the curriculum of 7 middle school and high school students. 8 2. School districts and charter schools shall have policies and proce- 9 dures in place pertaining to the selection of instructional materials to 10 implement the requirements of subdivision one of this section. When 11 adopting instructional materials for use in the schools of the district, 12 school districts and charter schools shall adopt inclusive instructional 13 materials that portray the cultural and economic diversity of society 14 including the political, economic, and social contributions, and life- 15 ways of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people, where 16 appropriate. 17 3. For the purposes of this section: 18 a. The term "gay" means a man or a male individual whose enduring 19 physical, romantic, or emotional attraction is to another man or male 20 individual. 21 b. The term "lesbian" means a woman or female individual whose endur- 22 ing physical, romantic, or emotional attraction is to another woman or 23 female individual. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD02376-01-1 A. 808 2 1 c. The term "bisexual" means an individual who has the capacity to 2 form enduring physical, romantic, or emotional attraction to another 3 individual of the same sex or gender or to another individual of a 4 different sex or gender. Bisexual individuals may experience such 5 attraction in differing ways and degrees over their lifetime. Bisexual 6 individuals do not need to have specific sexual experiences or have had 7 any sexual experience at all to have a sexual orientation of bisexual. 8 d. The term "assigned gender" means the binary gender classification 9 of male or female that corresponds to the sex of male or female. 10 e. The term "transgender" means an individual whose identified gender 11 does not match their assigned gender. 12 f. The term "queer" means an individual that does not conform to 13 social gender norms or social sexuality norms including, but not limited 14 to, gender expression and identity, and gay, lesbian, bisexual, or 15 transgender sexual orientations. 16 g. The term "lifeways" means the customary manner of living or way of 17 life. 18 § 2. Section 804-e of the education law, as added by section one of 19 this act, is amended by adding a new subdivision 4 to read as follows: 20 4. a. There is hereby created a task force to study and make recommen- 21 dations on policies, procedures and best practices for the selection and 22 adoption of inclusive instructional materials. 23 b. The task force shall be composed of eleven members to be appointed 24 as follows: 25 (i) two members shall be appointed by the governor; 26 (ii) two members shall be appointed by the temporary president of the 27 senate; 28 (iii) two members shall be appointed by the speaker of the assembly; 29 (iv) one member shall be appointed by the minority leader of the 30 senate; 31 (v) one member shall be appointed by the minority leader of the assem- 32 bly; 33 (vi) two members shall be appointed by the chancellor of the board of 34 regents; and 35 (vii) one member shall be the commissioner or appointed designee ther- 36 eof who shall serve as chairperson of the task force. 37 c. All appointments to the task force shall be submitted no later than 38 one hundred twenty days after the effective date of this subdivision. 39 Vacancies in the membership of the task force shall be filled within 40 thirty days in the same manner provided for original appointments. 41 Appointed members shall be chosen with due regard to broad ethnic diver- 42 sity and shall have a demonstrated educational background in the history 43 of the political, economic, and social contributions, and lifeways of 44 lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people. 45 d. The members of the task force shall serve without compensation but 46 shall be reimbursed for necessary expenses incurred in the performance 47 of their duties. 48 e. The task force shall study and prepare a report on policies, proce- 49 dures and best practices to provide an inclusive curriculum on the poli- 50 tical, economic, and social contributions, and lifeways of lesbian, gay, 51 bisexual, transgender, and queer people. The report prepared by the 52 task force shall be used by school districts and charter schools to 53 create the policies and procedures required pursuant to subdivision two 54 of this section to select instructional materials to implement an inclu- 55 sive curriculum on the political, economic, and social contributions, 56 and lifeways of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people. A. 808 3 1 The report shall be submitted to the governor, the temporary president 2 of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the chairperson of the 3 senate committee on education, the chairperson of the senate committee 4 on New York City education, the chairperson of the assembly committee on 5 education, the board of regents, and the commissioner and shall be made 6 available to all school districts and charter schools within the state, 7 no later than one year after all initial appointments to the task force 8 have been made. 9 § 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021 and shall apply to school 10 years commencing on or after such date, provided, however, that the 11 amendments to section 804-e of the education law made by section two of 12 this act shall expire and be deemed repealed 2 years after such date. 13 Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule 14 or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effec- 15 tive date are authorized and directed to be made and completed on or 16 before such effective date.