When it comes to schools and transitioning students, California Assemblymember Bill Essayli has something to say:

“There is no law that says schools are allowed to withhold [student transitioning] information from parents. It is unconstitutional and schools don’t have any authority to withhold the information from parents. But the CA Department of Education published guidance to the schools that children have a right to privacy and they should not disclose any information to the parents without the student’s consent.”

Asm. Essayli wants to make holding back information about your kids illegal so he wrote the Gender Identity: Parental Notification Bill, AB-1314. This bill simply says, if a kid is transitioning in school, the school must notify the parents.

On July 6, 2023, Costa Mesa Brief met with Asm. Essayli to learn more about his bill, how it affects students in California and what you as parents and concerned citizens can do. Reporting for Costa Mesa Brief is Tim Shaw who is the current president of the Orange County Board of Education.

Asm. Bill Essayli was elected in 2022 to represent the 63rd State Assembly District, which includes the whole cities of Norco, Menifee, Lake Elsinore, and Canyon Lake, as well as portions of the cities of Eastvale, Riverside, and Corona. Essayli is a former federal prosecutor and Riverside County Deputy District Attorney. He is also a small business owner as partner at the estate planning law firm of Essayli & Brown LLP.

To learn more about what your school is doing, contact your local school district.

To learn about Assembly Bill AB-1314 Gender Identity: Parental Notification:
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/fa...

To contact Asm. Essayli: https://www.assembly.ca.gov/assemblym...

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