Fund Sex Education Grants

Section 1. Legislative intent. The legislature finds and declares that New York state's teen pregnancy rate, 56.2 per 1000 female 15-19 year olds as compared to the Healthy People 2010 goal of 43 cases per 1000 female 15-19 year olds falls far too short of the public health expectation set by the Surgeon General. New York state had 40,000 teen pregnancies in 2006. In addition, according to the centers for disease control, 1 in 4 teenage girls has a sexually transmitted infection. This is true in New York state as well. Current research documents that individuals who receive early, comprehensive, age-appropriate, and scientifically accurate education in the health and other benefits of sexual abstinence, family planning, and birth control are more likely to delay sexual activity and engage later in such activity with a higher degree of responsibility and safety. Comprehensive sex education programs which complement parental involvement and instruction respect the diversity and values of our state and provide our youth at risk with the foundation to make responsibly informed choices. The earlier such programs are commenced on an age-appropriate curriculum basis, the more responsible will be the sexual activity decisions.

Statistics within New York state communities show an increase in rates of sexually transmitted diseases among adolescents over the past several years. Adolescents are the fastest growing population of new HIV/AIDS cases. These increases place greater demand on the state's health care delivery system and require that we take immediate action and embark on a dedicated mission to provide targeted at-risk adolescents with a more

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

[ ] is old law to be omitted.

LBD06628-01-7

S. 3124 2

concentrated sex education program with a significant parental component, designed to inform and instruct them on abstinence, protection and pregnancy prevention. Approximately 25 percent of new cases of sexually transmitted diseases each year occur among teenagers and two-thirds of such new cases occur among persons 15 to 24 years old. By age 24, at least one in three sexually active persons are estimated to have had a sexually transmitted disease. By way of example, the highest age-specific gonorrhea rates among women and the third highest rates among men are in the 15 to 19 year old group.

It is the intent of the legislature that the age-appropriate sex education grant program established in this act provide at-risk adolescents with the information, assistance, skills and support to enable them to make responsible decisions, including abstaining from sexual intercourse and for those who do become sexually active, the use of condoms or contraceptives effectively.

It is also the intent of the legislature to reduce the current teenage pregnancy rate to 36.2 among 15 to 17 year olds and 105.9 among 18 to 19 year olds by the year 2020 to meet the federal government initiative known as Healthy People 2020.

§ 2. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "healthy teens act".

§ 3. The public health law is amended by adding a new article 14-A to read as follows:

ARTICLE 14-A

AGE-APPROPRIATE SEX EDUCATION GRANT PROGRAM Section 1450. Definitions.

1451. Establishment of age-appropriate sex education grant

program; general components.

1452. Age-appropriate sex education grant program awards.

1453. Application for grants; age-appropriate sex education

grant program plan.

1454. Maintenance of effort.

1455. Annual reports by grant recipients.

1456. Notification to potential applicants.

1457. Regulations.

§ 1450. Definitions. For the purposes of this article, the following terms shall have the following meanings:

1. "Eligible applicant" means (a) a public school district, (b) a board of cooperative educational services, (c) a school-based health center, (d) a community based organization which may be a for-profit corporation or entity or not-for-profit corporation or organization, or (e) a consortium or partnership formed by a public school district, a board of cooperative educational services and/or a school-based health center and one or more community based organizations which qualifies for the award of an age-appropriate sex education grant by the commissioner under this article.

2. "Grant program plan" means the plan submitted to the commissioner by an eligible applicant under section fourteen hundred fifty-one of this article.

3. "State income standard" means the most recent federal income official poverty line as defined annually and revised by the federal office of management and budget adjusted for family size.

4. "Age-appropriate sex education grant program" means a comprehensive age-appropriate sex education program conducted by an eligible applicant under section fourteen hundred fifty-one of this article.

S. 3124 3

5. "School-based health center" means a clinic licensed under article twenty-eight of this chapter, or sponsored by a facility licensed under article twenty-eight of this chapter, which provides primary care services within an elementary or secondary public school setting.

§ 1451. Establishment of age-appropriate sex education grant program; general components. 1. There is hereby established within the department an age-appropriate sex education grant program. The program shall be formulated by the commissioner after consultation with the commissioner of education. The purpose of the program shall be to provide grants to eligible applicants to support age-appropriate sex education grant programs for young people which provides them with topics of instruction in the components set forth in subdivision two of this section.

2. In order for an eligible applicant to receive an award of an annual grant under subdivision three of this section, such an applicant shall submit with its application the components of instruction which shall be offered in its age-appropriate sex education grant program. The commissioner shall determine certain topics of instruction to be optional for age-appropriate reasons as shall be specified by the commissioner in application instructions made available by the department for the purposes of implementing this article. It is not necessary to provide equal emphasis on each component of instruction, however a project may not be inconsistent with any of the components. The components of instruction shall include whether such instruction:

(a) is age-appropriate and medically-accurate;

(b) does not teach or promote religion, provided that this paragraph shall not preclude discussion of moral, ethical or religious views related to sex or sexual relationships;

(c) teaches that abstinence is the only sure way to avoid pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases;

(d) stresses the value of abstinence while not ignoring those adolescents who have had or who are having sexual intercourse;

(e) provides information about the health benefits and side effects of all contraceptives and barrier methods as a means to prevent pregnancy;

(f) provides information about the health benefits and side effects of all contraceptives and barrier methods as a means to reduce the risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases, HIV/AIDS and other diseases;

(g) provides information about the vaccine for human papilloma virus, which may prevent cervical cancer, genital warts, infertility, and other reproductive health problems, when administered prior to becoming sexually active;

(h) encourages family communication about sexuality among parents, other adult household members and children;

(i) teaches skills to make responsible decisions about sexuality, including how to avoid unwanted verbal, physical and sexual advances, and how not to make unwanted verbal, physical and sexual advances;

(j) teaches how alcohol and drug use can affect responsible decision making;

(k) helps young people to gain knowledge about the physical, biological and hormonal changes of adolescence and subsequent stages of human maturation;

(l) develops the knowledge and skills necessary to ensure and protect young people with respect to their sexual and reproductive health;

(m) assists young people in gaining knowledge about the specific involvement of, and responsibility of both males and females in sexual decision making;

S. 3124 4

(n) develops healthy attitudes and values concerning growth and development, body image, gender roles, sexual orientation and other subjects;

(o) encourages young people to practice healthy life skills including goal setting, decision making, negotiation, and communication and stress management;

(p) promotes self-esteem and positive interpersonal skills focusing on relationship skills, including platonic, romantic, intimate and family relationships and interaction and how to avoid relationship abuse; and

(q) is based on theoretical projects that have been demonstrated to influence health behavior.

It is not necessary for the grantee to address every component of instruction, however, paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subdivision are required of all applicant programs. No program may include information or messages that contradict any of the components.

3. Any eligible applicant may apply for, and upon approval of the application by the commissioner, shall be awarded an annual sex education grant provided it demonstrates in the grant program plan submitted to the commissioner that:

(a) it is capable of providing young persons with an effective sex education program that shall be meaningful, substantially involve parents and other adults as feasible and appropriate, and shall be conducted in accordance with this article and any regulations under this article;

(b) if such applicant is a community based organization, that it has a proven record and experience in conducting meaningful and successful age-appropriate sex education programs for at least five years prior to the calendar year in which application for the grant is made, and that it is capable of providing an age-appropriate sex education program to a broad based segment of the youth population with specific emphasis on targeted at-risk youths in such organization's service area. The commissioner may seek and he or she shall receive any pertinent information or request and receive recommendations as to such community based organization's interactions or prior dealings with any other state or local governmental entity, including, but not limited to, any public school district or board of cooperative educational services in making the determination required by this paragraph.

4. All monies provided in grants under this article shall be in addition to, and not in lieu of, any moneys historically appropriated for the same or similar purposes and shall not be used to offset or reduce moneys previously expended for similar programs.

§ 1452. Age-appropriate sex education grant program awards. 1. Within amounts appropriated therefor, the commissioner shall be authorized to grant awards for the support of approved age-appropriate sex education grant programs.

2. Grants to support an approved age-appropriate sex education grant program shall be awarded on a competitive basis in accordance with criteria established by the commissioner.

3. The department shall, from within amounts appropriated to the department, undertake all activities necessary to plan for and preliminarily provide for the timely implementation of the age-appropriate sex education grant program authorized by this article for the state fiscal year commencing one year following the effective date of this article.

4. Not more than five percent of any amounts made available by appropriation in any single fiscal year for the age-appropriate sex education grant program shall be annually retained by the commissioner for the administrative purposes of the department.

S. 3124 5