Two Ohio Republican lawmakers are attempting to follow in Florida's footsteps with a bill that would censor some race- and sex-related content in public schools. Ohio's bill wouldn't just ban topics in public schools, though—it also covers private schools that students may attend through vouchers, thus undermining the benefits of school choice.
On Monday, State Reps. Jean Schmidt (R–Lakeland) and Mike Loychik (R–Cortland) introduced H.B. 616, which mimics parts of Florida's H.B. 1557 in that it forbids any sort of "curriculum or instructional materials on sexual orientation or gender identity" for students up through third grade. Beyond third grade, the bill forbids teaching about the subject in a manner that's not "in accordance with state standards." (This is awkward wording because Ohio state law actually forbids the state Board of Education from establishing standards for health education.)
