California’s Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill Sunday that would have required all public high schools in the Golden State to provide free condoms to students.
The Democrat said he decided to return Senate Bill 541 without his signature because the economically depressed state — with more than 4,000 public schools — lacks funding for such a broad program.
The law, introduced by State Senator Caroline Menjivar, aims to prevent and reduce unwanted teenage pregnancies and the spread of sexually transmitted infections among high school students.
Newsom said he believed in the merits of the bill but the financial toll kept him from signing it.
“While evidence-based strategies, such as increasing access to condoms, are important to support better adolescent sexual health, this bill would create an unfunded mandate to public schools that should be considered in the annual budget process,” he said in a memo announcing it. . veto.
Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill that would have required all public high schools in the state to have free condoms for students. AP
California’s governor and lawmakers passed a budget this year that closed a $30 billion shortfall.
However, state lawmakers passed a group of bills that, if signed into law, would add nearly $19 billion in costs beyond the approved state budget, Newsom said.
“With our state facing ongoing economic risks and revenue uncertainty, it is important to remain disciplined when considering bills that have significant fiscal implications, such as this measure,” he said. “For this reason, I cannot sign this bill.”
The bill would also prevent stores from denying customers from purchasing contraceptives based on their age.
The bill aims to help reduce the number of teenage pregnancies and prevent the transmission of STIs among high school students. AP
Menjivar, the Democratic sponsor of the bill, said that “by requiring free condoms in all California high schools, we are empowering youth who decide to be sexually active to protect themselves and their partners from [sexually transmitted infections]while also removing obstacles that could potentially embarrass them and lead to unsafe sex,” according to the LA Times.
Conservative groups have raised public objections to the bill. The California Policy Council said the bill would encourage teenagers to think “sex is meaningless and done for fun with multiple partners,” local newspapers reported.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
