California law bans children from being surveyed in school about sex, morality or religion unless their parents fill out permission slips -- but that could change soon.

Proposed legislation to make it easier for schools to gather anonymous information from students on topics ranging from smoking to gender discrimination has sparked fierce fighting.

Supporters say AB 661 would lead to better prevention programs, safer schools and healthier children. But critics contend the bill would violate parental rights and give educators a license to snoop.
"It's a moral issue, an ethical issue," said Assemblyman Jay La Suer, R-La Mesa. "We have no right sticking our nose into a family's business. The state is not a better parent than the parent."

Assemblywoman Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley, said angry opposition to her bill may stem largely from fears, misinformation or "maybe a feeling that if we don't know about (problems), they're not happening."

Children can be victims of discrimination because of their race, religion or sexual orientation, and media or peer pressures can promote violence, drinking or smoking, Hancock said.

School officials need to know the nature and extent of problems, without identifying any particular child, Hancock said.

"We want to hold our schools accountable for keeping students safe," she said. "We want to be able to devise the most effective prevention and education programs to reach these kids."

Hancock's bill reached the Assembly floor last week, but she withdrew it for amendments after angry debate broke out. She could introduce a new version as early as this week.

The most extensive polling of student health attitudes currently occurs through the California Healthy Kids Survey, sponsored by the state Department of Education. Nearly half the eligible students fail to submit permission slips.

The survey consists of questionnaire modules that can be configured to meet local needs. Topics can include diet, safety, smoking, alcohol, drugs, fighting, hobbies, general health, self-image and a wide range of other subjects, including whether the child has friends and adults he can depend upon.

Some of the most sensitive and personal questions, perhaps, involve attitudes toward sex. A sample survey shows that potential questions a high school student might be asked include:

* Have you ever had sexual intercourse?

* About what percent of students in your school grade do you think ever had sexual intercourse?

* The last time you had sexual intercourse, did you or your partner use a condom?

* Have you ever been forced to have sexual intercourse when you did not want to?

AB 661 would change the ground rules for administering such surveys from "opt-in" to "opt-out." Instead of written permission, as required now, the bill would allow schools to survey students unless a parent notifies them otherwise.

Before children could be asked about their -- or their parents' -- beliefs or practices regarding sex, morality or religion, AB 661 requires that parents receive written notification and be given a chance to review the material and decline to have their kids participate.

Opponents say the measure stacks the deck in favor of such surveys, despite the required notification: Students will jam information slips into their backpacks, then lose, dump, forget or neglect to give them to their parents, critics say.

"Why should you have to opt out?" asked Assemblywoman Bonnie Garcia, R-Cathedral City. "What they're proposing to do is exclude parents from the process, period. And that's wrong."

Garcia said she does not oppose healthy prevention and information programs.

"We want to teach our children tolerance, we want to teach them about the diversity we have in our state," Garcia said. "But no education plan should proceed without parents' knowledge, consent and commitment to be part of that process."

Nothing in AB 661 would prohibit any school district from exceeding the "opt-out" standard and continuing to require permission slips.

The California State PTA, the California School Boards Association and Gov. Gray Davis have not yet taken a position on the bill.

Federal law requires schools to obtain parental consent before requiring students to participate in surveys that ask about political affiliations, sexual attitudes, anti-social behavior or other personal matters.

AB 661 would not violate federal law, supporters said, because California's anonymous surveys are voluntary.

Statistics were not readily available Friday on the number of states that require parent permission slips. Gregory Austin, who directs the state's Healthy Kids Survey, said California's current standard is one of the strictest nationwide.

AB 661 stemmed partly from the efforts of the California Safe Schools Coalition, which is promoting implementation of a state law banning campus discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

The group's affiliation to AB 661 has prompted conservative critics to suspect a hidden, pro-homosexuality agenda.

Randy Thomasson, a spokesman for the conservative Campaign for California Families, calls AB 661 a radical bill that would invade the "innocence of children's minds with an aggressive sexual agenda that disrespects the God-given rights of their mothers and fathers."

Assemblywoman Jackie Goldberg, a Los Angeles Democrat who is openly gay, says the fury is misplaced and "all the hullabaloo is nonsense."

Opponents "whip themselves up into believing that what we really want to do is to peek into their bedroom and find out about their personal practices," Goldberg said. "I could care less -- and so could anybody who is doing the kind of information-gathering we're talking about."

Supporters of AB 661 include the American Civil Liberties Union, Children NOW, California Women Lawyers and Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California. Opponents include the California Catholic Conference, Seventh-day Adventist Church State Council and a conservative advocacy group called the Committee on Moral Concerns.

Hancock said AB 661 has numerous practical applications: It could assist schools in gathering data to pinpoint exceptionally large clusters of asthma or autism problems, for example, and potentially help identify causes.

Schools desperately need to learn more about kids' needs outside the classroom, said Assemblywoman Sally Lieber, D-Santa Clara.

"When kids come to school not ready to do their work, they have multiple barriers to success," she said. "And I think it's a shame to let kids through the system without having their needs addressed."

Assemblyman Dario Frommer, D-Los Angeles, said California's efforts to reduce teen pregnancy depend, in part, on the ability to obtain accurate information about attitudes and trends.

"How do we do that if we can't do surveys?" Frommer asked.