Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, along with 25 other state attorneys general, has approached the U.S. Supreme Court to advocate for parental authority in educational and religious matters concerning their children. This coalition challenges a decision by a U.S. Court of Appeals that supports a Maryland school district's policy denying parents the right to exempt their children from certain lessons on sexuality that conflict with their religious beliefs.
Yost expressed his concern by stating, "District officials have overstepped their authority with an unconstitutional ban on parental discretion." He emphasized that officials should not override parents' religious objections to sex education.
The issue arose when Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland declared in 2023 that parents could no longer withdraw their children from classwork involving "pride storybooks," which had been incorporated into the curriculum the previous year. In response, a group of parents filed a lawsuit against the school board, asserting that the policy infringed upon their religious rights. However, in May 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit ruled in favor of the school board. The case is now set to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court following its agreement in January.
The attorneys general argue that the policy infringes on constitutional rights, allowing schools to enforce specific ideologies contrary to parental religious beliefs. They claim that this ruling jeopardizes both First Amendment protections and parents' fundamental rights regarding their children's education.
The coalition's brief requests that the Supreme Court overturns this decision and mandates schools to permit opt-outs from sex education courses, highlighting that about 90% of states already provide such options for parents. The brief also points out that Maryland law requires public schools to allow exemptions from any instruction related to "family life and human sexuality."
In addition to Yost, attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Wyoming, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia and West Virginia are supporting this reversal request.