Date: Sun, 14 Apr 1996 08:48:55 -0700 (PDT) From: jessea@uclink4.berkeley.edu (Jessea NR Greenman) Subject: Final Chance to Contact Utah legislators and Governor >Date: Sat, 13 Apr 1996 18:02:34 -0700 >Mime-Version: 1.0 >To: UHRC.Update@austria.it.earthlink.net >From: cdorchard@earthlink.net (Charlene Orchard) >Subject: Special Legislative Session > >The governor has issued his proclamation calling for a special session of >the legislature on April 17 at 2:30 p.m. There are six items on the >agenda. The second is: "To consider provisions related to conduct of school >employees and student activities and performance." While the actual >language of the legislation may not be known until the last minute, >proposed language has been leaked to the press and others. In addition to >the basic language of SB 246 with some minor changes, the legislators are >bringing back the parental consent language. Finally, the legislators want >to provide for a direct challenge to the Equal Access Act by telling the >school boards to preclude access to student organizations or clubs that >deal with criminal or delinquent conduct, promote bigotry or involve human >sexuality. > >In addition to the unnecessary, costly--because it will result in expensive >and lengthy litigation--and outrageous legislation, the governor and the >legislature are again acting behind closed doors, excluding the public from >the debate. By not allowing us to see and reflect on the proposed >legislation, we are again disenfranchised. > >We need to express our outrage at being deleted from the democratic process >by being at the special session and letting them know that we are watching >and will remember how they voted when we go to vote. > >Charlene Orchard >Co-Chair, Utah Human Rights Coalition >P.O. Box 521242 >Salt Lake City, UT 84152-1242 >801-484-5291 >cdorchard@earthlink.net The P.E.R.S.O.N. Project adds: you can write to Leavitt Governor Michael O. Leavitt, State of Utah, 210 State Capitol, Salt Lake City, UT 84114; ***Internet E-Mail: governor@email.state.ut.us Speaker of the House is Rep. Melvin R. Brown (R) District 45 165 E. 7430 S. (H) 255-0556 Midvale, UT 84047 (O) 355-6079 Appropriations: Appropriations Executive Committee Public Education Standing: House State and Local Affairs Committee House Retirement Committee Leadership Position: Speaker President of the Senate is Sen. Lane Beattie (R) District 23 1313 N. 1100 W. (H) 292-7406 West Bountiful, UT 84087 (O) 298-7000 Appropriations: Appropriations Executive Committee Transportation and Environmental Quality Standing: Senate Transportation and Public Safety Committee Senate Retirement Committee Leadership Position: President] THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE P. O. Box 867,Salt Lake City,UT,84110 FAX 801-237-2800 or 2022, E-MAIL: the.editor@uol.sltrib.com Sunday, April 14, 1996 GAY-CLUBS BILL TOPS LEGISLATIVE AGENDA (excerpt) By Dan Harrie and Tony Semerad, THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE State leaders gather Wednesday to rework laws blocking gay and other student clubs in public schools, hash out a $51 million construction budget and fix assorted glitches from the regular 1996 Legislature in February. And they hope to pull all this off in a few hours. In fact, lawmakers won't begin the work of the planned one-day special session until midafternoon after their monthly interim committee meetings and party caucuses. Gov. Mike Leavitt has insisted the special session be strictly limited to issues for which there is broad legislative support and which require immediate action. ``We still hope to have everything done by nightfall and it appears we can accomplish that,'' Leavitt spokeswoman Vicki Varela said. ``There aren't any signs it's going to get out of control.'' House Speaker Mel Brown and Senate President Lane Beattie agree the session should be wrapped up in a single day, noting that they and the other 102 part-time lawmakers want to get back to their full-time jobs... ...Lawmakers have only hinted at their new course of action on the issue of gay student clubs since Leavitt vetoed legislation aimed at preventing teacher sponsorship of groups that promote a homosexual lifestyle. Yet the state already faces threats of a lawsuit over the matter. Leavitt said for weeks before the regular session adjourned Feb. 29 that he agreed with Senate Bill 246 in principle. But when it hit his desk, he vetoed it, fearing the measure went too far in clamping down on the private actions and free-speech rights of school employees. Since then, Leavitt and a core of attorneys, teacher representatives and school officials have met behind closed doors to draft a substitute version -- while also mapping a strategy for handling possible litigation, which the American Civil Liberties Union in Utah now says is likely. Ban on Bigotry: Lawmakers are expected to vote on a bill empowering local school boards to ban clubs that promote bigotry or criminal behavior, or deal with human sexuality, from school grounds. They also plan to narrow their restrictions on teacher actions, targeting ``criminal'' instead of ``illegal'' activities in hopes of eliminating First Amendment concerns. It is anticipated these new laws -- assuming they are passed -- will let the Salt Lake City School District lift its recently imposed blanket ban on extracurricular clubs and zero in with restrictions on gay clubs proposed by students, as well as other groups regarded as undesirable. Supporters, including SB246's sponsoring Sen. Craig Taylor, R-Kaysville, say the revised proposals only amplify on existing legal duties of teachers to protect the well-being of students. But some state officials privately acknowledge such laws will all but certainly be challenged under the federal Equal Access Act of 1984, which threw school facilities open to student clubs as long as they don't engage in criminal acts. School officials are said to have sought private assurances that if they are sued, the state will pay any legal costs. Some predict the state could be in federal court on the issue by mid-May. But as controversial as the issue might be among Utah residents, it is unlikely these new proposals will run into major turbulence in the Legislature. Democrats, who supplied the only opposition to SB246 during the regular session, had focused much of their objections on the original bill's restraints on teacher speech. Many in the minority party now will find it politically unpalatable to argue against the bills without appearing to be defending gay rights -- something hard to explain to the state's bedrock conservative voters, especially in an election year. ``They removed a lot of the objections to SB246 because of what they did to teachers and free speech and what consenting adults can do in their private lives,'' said House Minority Leader Frank Pignanelli, D-Salt Lake City... *+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+ OK TO RE-POST. Jessea Greenman The P.E.R.S.O.N. Project (Public Education Regarding Sexual Orientation Nationally) CHECK THIS OUT FOR TONS OF INFO - - http://www.youth.org/loco/PERSONProject/ Please cc us (for our files) on correspondence you send or receive re our action alerts.