Bill Passed to Require ‘Say No’ Sex Training Emphasis in Schools

The Senate sent to Gov. George Deukmejian on Monday legislation requiring that sex education teachers stress to their pupils that they should abstain from sexual intercourse until they are ready for marriage.

Proponents of the measure asserted that “saying no” to sex was the only guaranteed method of preventing unwanted pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS when sexually transmitted.

Concurring in Assembly amendments to the legislation by Sen. Newton Russell (R-Glendale), the Senate approved it on a 23-3 vote. Some opponents, rather than voting “no” on the election year bill, told Russell they were following the proposal’s admonition and abstained.

In what some legislators described as a major departure from the Legislature’s policy of allowing local districts to decide what to teach in sex education classes, the bill would direct teachers to stress in the classroom that youngsters should abstain from sexual intercourse until they are ready for marriage in a “heterosexual, monogamous” context.

As lawmakers headed into the final 10 days of the 1988 legislative session, the Assembly also sent to Deukmejian on a lopsided 57-7 vote a bill aimed at reducing the danger of truck accidents that could release poisonous gases on California highways.

The measure would restrict routes for trucks carrying 190 types of highly toxic materials so dangerous that a spill could cause widespread evacuation. The routes would be determined by the Highway Patrol after a series of public hearings. Included among the materials are methyl isocynate, the type of gas that killed 3,000 people in Bhopal, India, and thiophosgene, used in making rocket fuel.

Some of these vehicles would be required to have two qualified drivers on board plus emergency equipment, and be accompanied by an escort vehicle.

The legislation also would impose stiff fines for carriers of toxic materials hazardous to breathing who do not follow required safety procedures.

Passage of the bill was prompted by a controversy last year over the shipment of explosive rocket fuel on Los Angeles area freeways. But the measure was broadened to include other dangerous substances.

Assemblyman Richard Katz (D-Sepulveda), chairman of the Transportation Committee, who introduced the bill, estimated that 4 million or 5 million truckloads of hazardous materials are transported over state highways annually.

“Action to prevent tragic accidents involving inhalation hazards must be taken before the fact, not after the fact,” Katz said. “It is totally unacceptable that these toxic chemicals, which cannot be shipped by plane or passenger rail because of their volatility, can be sitting right next to you and me on the freeway.”

A spokesman for the governor said Deukmejian has no position on the bill.

A task force headed by Katz held hearings last fall after it was revealed that highly volatile rocket fuel was routinely transported on the Ventura Freeway through the San Fernando Valley and other heavily populated areas. The fuel has since been rerouted through less populated regions.

The sex education proposal, supported by such organizations as the state Board of Education, Coalition for Christians in Government and the Traditional Values Coalition, would require teachers to discuss various methods of contraception, such as use of condoms, and to cite their failure rate.

Pregnancy Caution

Likewise, teachers would discuss the potential emotional consequences of sexual intercourse outside marriage and the consequences of unwanted teen-age pregnancy.

Russell told the Senate that the bill was “necessary in changing young people’s thinking about abstinence” and, in effect, advised them “that you don’t have to go along with the crowd . . . and can say no” to sexual intercourse.

Groups opposed to the measure included Planned Parenthood, the Los Angeles Unified School District, California Medical Assn. and the California Federation of Teachers.

In other action, the Assembly passed and sent to the governor on a 67-0 vote a bill by Assemblyman Tom Bates (D-Oakland) to require credit agencies to be notified when a court orders a parent to pay child support. It also would require the agencies to maintain up-to-date records concerning payment or non-payment.

The Assembly also approved and sent to Deukmejian on a 56-13 vote a bill by Speaker Willie Brown (D-San Francisco) to increase State Bar dues to help finance a tougher disciplinary program against lawyers.

Experienced attorneys currently pay about $275 yearly in total dues. Annual 1989 dues for members admitted to the Bar for three years or more would jump to $417 under Brown’s bill. The higher total would include $245 in basic dues, $110 for the discipline fund, $50 for a client security fund, $10 for a building fund, and $2 for an affirmative action program.

Another bill sent to the governor would ban strip searches and body cavity searches of students suspected by school authorities of taking part in illegal activities. The measure, by Assemblyman Terry Friedman (D-Tarzana), passed the Assembly 43-30.