Despite their setback at the polls last November, New Hampshire Democrats continue to defend positions on families and children that polls show voters have rejected. On Monday, they loudly voiced their support for allowing biological males to play girls sports.
On Tuesday, every Democrat on the House Children and Family Law Committee voted against a parental bill of rights, a top priority of Republican leadership, including Gov. Kelly Ayotte. The bill was sent on to the full House with an “Ought To Pass” recommendation from the committee in a 9-7 party-line vote.
The proposal, HB 10, would affirm a parent’s right to have information about their child, including the right to know what materials are being taught in class, what’s in their child’s school records, and the right to control non-emergency medical treatment given to their children.
Additionally, the legislation also affirms broad principles of parental rights, including parents’ right to make medical decisions for their children, and to direct their child’s education.
“Parents deserve transparency and honesty when it comes to their children’s well-being,” House Republicans said in a statement.
In a sign of how important this legislation is to the Republican leadership, the prime sponsor is Speaker of the House Sherman Packard (R-Londonderry).
HB 10 is an updated version of a parents rights bill that was blocked by House Democrats in the last legislative session.
“I think it’s more inclusive and encompassing,” said state Rep. Lori Korzen (R-Berlin) of the new version. “One thing that I love about your amendment is that it includes the health care practitioners.
“The parents I talk to are worried about all of their parental rights.”
Democrats argue parents can’t be trusted with this much power over their children, and school employees should have more sway.
“What bothers me is we talk a lot about the rights of parents, but we don’t set the expectation of their responsibility,” said Rep. Rosemarie Rung (D-Merrimack).
“I once talked to a father who, four or five months into the school year, didn’t even know the building where his child went to school. I consider that irresponsible. Is it illegal? No. But I think if we’re going to establish rights we need to put equal weight into responsibility.”
Limiting the extent to which parents have access to school-based information concerning their children marked a common theme for Democratic members of the committee during Tuesday’s executive session.
State Rep. Mary Georges (D-Manchester), a former Manchester school board member, said when parents become “too involved,” then “the kids don’t respect the teachers because the parents are all over everything.”
In a sign that Democrats understand the problematic politics of this issue, after the vote Rep. Heather Raymond (D-Nashua) insisted she and her Democratic colleagues, despite concerns, “are for parental rights.”
“We understand that,” she added. “I’m a mama bear, full tilt.
“To be able to have rights and always know I can go into my child’s school, even if it’s a private school, and look at their curriculum is incredibly important to me and all of us,” Raymond said.
Rep. Kim Kofalt (R-Wilton) serves as an advisor to Speaker Sherm Packard, and in a recent interview on WFEA radio, he said Republicans have a simple goal with this legislation.
“We want to make sure that we are very clear as a state who is in charge,” Kofalt said. “The parents are in charge — period.
“While we respect and appreciate educators, we need to set that baseline expectation that parents are in charge.”
