California city aims to challenge state’s gender identity law

On Tuesday, the city council in Huntington Beach, Calif., voted to express its opposition to a new California law preventing schools from notifying parents about their child’s gender identity or expression. Assembly Bill 1955, also known as the SAFETY Act, was signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom last month.

What is the SAFETY Act? The Support Academic Futures and Educators for Today’s Youth Act bars schools from requiring administrators to notify parents if a student changes how he or she identifies himself or herself. California became the first state to pass legislation banning mandatory parental notification if a student changes their name, pronouns, or sex identity.

What is Huntington Beach doing about it? The city council requested to prepare an ordinance declaring Huntington Beach to be what it characterized as a Parent’s Right to Know city. The city will also explore any options to assist parents who would like to overturn the state legislation, Huntington Beach Mayor Gracey Van Der Mark said. By September, the council is expected to have an ordinance in place.

In the meantime, Van Der Mark has called on the city attorney to find ways to challenge the law or join any lawsuits brought by parents. When asked if teachers would face repercussions for not complying with the city ordinance, Van Der Mark replied that anything is possible.

Huntington Beach is already in a long-running legal battle over the city’s refusal to adopt a California law meant to expand affordable housing across the state, according to Court House News Service.

Dig deeper: Read Bethel McGrew’s commentary about California’s new law for WORLD Opinions.