BlueTooth Reviews: March 2021 Legislative Update

BILL TRACKER

We are currently tracking two bills that can have a profound impact on our families.

AB19: Like we mentioned in our last newsletter, AB19 is a proposed bill that seeks to dictate curriculum taught to our homeschoolers, and negatively influence the tremendous educational environment our Nevada homeschoolers and their families enjoy.

The Nevada Homeschool Network has fought arduously against this piece of legislation, you can learn more about their efforts HERE.

As of today, there is still no work session scheduled for AB19. However, we are monitoring this closely and will keep you updated if anything at all changes.

We are continuing to have conversations with legislators and NDE, (Nevada Dept. of Education) and we remain hopeful that we can agree on an amendment that would strike out homeschool language. Here at P2P we believe strongly in allowing parents who have decided to direct their own child's education to remain autonomous.

SB143: This bill revises provisions relating to the abuse, neglect and endangerment of a child.

Section 1: Prohibits certain persons who are responsible for the safety or welfare of a child from permitting or allowing the child to be placed in a situation where the child is likely to, rather than may, suffer physical pain or mental suffering as the result of abuse or neglect.

Section 2: Defines the term “neglectful supervision” and provides that the term does not include allowing a child who is of sufficient maturity, physical condition and mental ability to avoid substantial risk of physical harm to engage in independent activities alone or with other children, including: traveling to and from school or nearby commercial or recreational facilities; engaging in outdoor play; and remaining at home unattended in certain circumstances.

Here at P2P, we are fervent supporters of this bill due to the fact that it makes "reasonable independence for kids" legal under Nevada neglect laws. We believe that parents know their child best an should have the ability to raise and direct them how they see fit.

Parents, we need your help

This Monday, March 8th at 1PM the Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing on SB143. We ALL need to be there to testify in support of the bill. To find out how access the hearing, click HERE.

STAYING INVOLVED

Here's how else you can let legislators know how you feel during this virtual session:

1. Find out who represents you.

Visit http://www.leg.state.nv.us/whosmylegislator/. Type in your address and you will get a list of which senate, assembly, congressional and board of regents district you are in, as well as a link to the elected officials in those offices.

2. Send an email or hard copy mail.

Go to: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/App/Legislator/A/Senate/Current and https://www.leg.state.nv.us/App/Legislator/A/Assembly/Current to get contact information for legislators. Email addresses, office addresses, phone numbers (sometimes even personal cell phone numbers!) are listed.

3. Use the “share your opinion” option on the Nevada Legislature website: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/App/Opinions/81st2021/. On this website you can identify the bill number, indicate whether you are for or against it, and type in comments.

A few suggestions to ensure your messages are impactful:

• Identify yourself by name and include your address. Most legislators make it a priority to correspond with individuals who live in their district, so make sure you include your contact information so they can verify that you are a constituent.

• Be brief! Legislators get a lot of input and they appreciate short, specific messages.

• Be respectful as you communicate, even if you have a difference of opinion.

For a full list of bills we are tracking, click here.

The “Calendar of Meetings” on the Nevada Legislature website is always up to date.

OUR LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES

Maintain Opt-In:

Parents currently have the right to know, and must give written consent when subjects about sex are taught at school. There are organizations who would like to change opt-in to opt-out so that you don't have to provide a permission slip. Opt-out circumvents parents and transparency in sex education curriculum. We will work to protect opt-in this session.

School Choice: (Fund Students, Not Institutions)

Parents need more choices when it comes to educating our children. We would like to see the arduous process to create charter schools lifted so that parents can have more educational choices for their children.
We will work with legislators to Identify innovative sources for funding students, and restore the tax incentive to fund opportunity scholarships.

Transparency in Education:

Public schools should be required to post learning materials and activities for student instruction including textbooks, reading materials, videos, digital materials and websites.
Parents should be able to easily access all learning materials so they understand what will be taught in every grade.
Bills that impact Nevada families.

JOIN US ON TELEGRAM!

Join us on our new Telegram channel for quick updates!

https://t.me/power2parent

LIKE WHAT YOU SEE?

Power2Parent is a non-profit organization that operates entirely on donations. If you like what you see, please consider contributing to us, so we can continue our work to empower parents to advocate for their children and protect their parental voice.