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SALT LAKE CITY — A bill giving further clarity to parents' right to opt their children out of testing and excuse them from school was approved by the Utah Senate on Wednesday.
SB204 would allow parents to excuse their children from "any summative, interim or formative test that is not locally developed," as well as any federally- or state-mandated test by only submitting a written request to school leaders.
The bill would also allow parents to excuse their student from school for family or medical reasons so long as they notify the school one day in advance and that the student agrees to make up the coursework that is missed.
SB204 gives further clarity to a bill passed last year that left unanswered questions as to the balance between a parent's right to direct the education of their children and the operational needs of schools. Last year's bill left educators wondering which tests were included in the opt-out policy, and it allowed students to be absent for any reason so long as they came back with a note from a parent.
"At the end of the day, according to our own statute, we say that a parent has the primary liberty interest in the child's education and the right to make a decision about what they shall and shall not participate in," said bill sponsor Sen. Aaron Osmond, R-South Jordan. "We need to clarify that and enable that right."
The bill passed its third reading in the Senate in a 18-6 vote and now goes to the House. Email: mjacobsen@deseretnews.com Twitter: MorganEJacobsen
