(The Hill) Two Ohio Republicans on Monday introduced a bill strikingly similar to Florida’s recently passed Parental Rights in Education law, which has been dubbed by its critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” law. The Ohio bill also borrows language from a new South Dakota law which outlaws the promotion of “divisive concepts” in places like the classroom and the workplace.
Under Ohio’s House Bill 616, introduced Monday by state Reps. Mike Loychik and Jean Schmidt, public kindergarten through third grade teachers would not be permitted to “teach, use, or provide any curriculum or instructional materials on sexual orientation or gender identity.”
Educators of grades four through twelve under the bill would be barred from engaging in instruction related to sexual orientation or gender identity in a manner that is not “age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards.”