After a week of national attention being paid to the Senate-passed anti-bullying legislation, the House of Representatives passed an amended version of the measure Thursday without the controversial language.
As passed by the Senate last week, Senate Bill 137, sponsored by Senator Rick Jones (R-Grand Ledge), required school districts to develop and implement an anti-bullying policy but provided an exemption from bullying policies for statements made based on a religious belief or moral conviction. The exemption was dubbed a “license to bully” by Democrats and ultimately became the subject of national media outlets criticizing the move.
The House version removed the exemption and was also amended to allow school districts that currently have policies to maintain those policies, simply adding any missing portions under the new law.
The issue that began as the most significant disagreement in the Senate before the exemption was added last week continued during House debate – the issues of enumerating specific characteristics in the legislation, such as race, gender, or sexual orientation. The GOP caucus position is that the enumeration of specific characteristics could risk leaving some groups out of the intended protection.
The legislation now returns to the Senate for consideration of the House changes.