Michigan House votes to rein in Board of Education after controversial sex ed changes

The Michigan House approved legislation Tuesday that aims to put a check on the State Board of Education's ability to change model curriculum standards following the board's controversial approval of new sex ed standards last year.

The bill, which passed the House largely along party lines, would prohibit any state board changes to state model curriculum content standards from being implemented or enforced unless or until the changes are supported through concurrent resolutions in the House and Senate.

The legislation passed 56-50 with support from all but one Republican: state Rep. Karl Bohnak, R-Deerton. The bill moves next to the state Senate, where it is likely to face an uphill climb in the Democratic-led upper chamber.

“This bill does not dictate curriculum or substitute legislative judgment for education expertise,” state Rep. Gina Johnsen said in committee earlier this year. “It adds a modest but necessary check to ensure transparency, public scrutiny and democratic legitimacy.”

Johnsen, the Portland Republican who sponsored the legislation, argued the bill was necessary after the state board in November approved controversial revisions to the state health education standards without any legislative input. The process, she said, revealed a “structural gap” in the way education policy is adopted in the state.

The legislation stirred opposition from the Michigan Department of Education, which falls under the authority of the State Board of Education, on the grounds that it infringed on the constitutional authority of the state board and usurped the voices of parents who participate in the board’s deliberation process.

“The legislation would require legislative approval of all content standards, not just health education standards, that are approved by the State Board of Education,” said Bob Wheaton, a spokesman for the Michigan Department of Education. “This requirement would infringe on the constitutional authority of the State Board of Education to provide leadership and general supervision over public instruction in Michigan.”

The state board in November passed the first major update to its health education standards since 2007, in part broadening the sex education section to include gender identity and sexual orientation. Those changes, in particular, prompted significant pushback from some parents, conservative groups and Republican lawmakers.

The Michigan Department of Education stressed the standards are simply guidelines for districts to use and that parents still will be able to opt their children out of sex education.

But conservative attorney David Kallman, who testified with Johnsen on the bill in January, said the new policy appears to usurp parental rights and is ripe for a legal challenge. But regardless of the specific education standard at issue, Kallman said, the Legislature should have some say over those policies.

“It’s not uncommon for legislatures to require agency rules, actions, other things to be subject to their approval or review,” Kallman said.

But the Michigan State Board of Education is a different type of state agency because the state constitution gives it explicit authority that other agencies do not have. The Michigan Constitution states "leadership and general supervision over all public education" is vested in the elected state board.

Under the Michigan Constitution, the elected State Board of Education is the "general planning and coordinating body for all public education, including higher education." The board appoints the state superintendent of public instruction, currently Glenn Maleyko, and governs the Michigan Department of Education.

State Rep. Matt Koleszar, D-Plymouth Township, noted that distinction when questioning Johnsen and Kallman in committee earlier this year.

“Would this bill expose the state to litigation by redefining or restricting the State Board of Education’s ... constitutional role?” Koleszar asked.

But Johnsen and Kallman maintained state lawmakers also have their own duties and authority to set education standards. The bill’s framework, Johnsen said, “is consistent with basic principles of democratic accountability and separation of powers.”

State Rep. Erin Byrnes, D-Dearborn, suggested the bill should include a timeline for legislative review of State Board of Education changes, lest the House or Senate drag its feet indefinitely on certain policies and effectively freeze implementation.

At one point during committee discussion on the bill in January, state Rep. Joseph Fox, R-Fremont, suggested the solution to the problem went beyond a turf war between the Legislature and board and, instead, showed the need for a more moral society.

“Isn’t the real answer to all this Jesus?” Fox said. “I think that we are not wrestling with what it means to be a morally and religious people.”

Johnsen, in response, attempted to refocus the discussion and stressed that the legislation was merely a procedural fix.

“This is not a political or a religious bill,” Johnsen said. “This is process. We’re just going to tighten process. This could go any number of different directions depending on what core curriculum we’re talking about.”

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