Legal & Legislative

Since the departure of Delaine Easton from the Department of Education (California) we have had a fairly decent environment to homeschool our children as we wish. In spite of this current calm we must not lower our awareness and defense of homeschooling. The following are legislative items that warrant our consideration and, in some cases, action.

AB 111 (Corbett)

This particular piece of legislation concerns itself with emotional child abuse legislation. What is of particular concern is the definition of emotional child abuse. Among the items that are included in emotional child abuse is humiliating or ridiculing a child, forcing a child to witness domestic violence and isolating a child. What is the most frequently asked concern of people opposed to homeschooling? Of course it is the socialization question with the understanding that we do not present our children with enough social interaction. In the past homeschoolers have been accused of isolating children. If this particular aspect of the bill is enforced unreasonably on homeschool parents (for instance by a school district or CPS) then we have a major problem. For this reason EIE is adamantly against this bill.

Current status: The Assembly did pass this bill and it is currently in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

ACTION: Write your State Senator opposing this bill. The Senate does not reconvene until January 5 so you do have some time on this. Do not write much past the end of the year.

BE INFORMED:

If you want to maintain your freedom to homeschool we highly recommend that you keep informed. The best way to stay informed is to access the following websites:

www.CaliforniaHomeschool.net
This is the official website of the California Homeschool Network. Just follow the prompts to the legal legislative area where you will find the latest on all legal legislative items. CHN spends a tremendous amount of time constantly monitoring all legal legislative activities in the state. Access this website for their opinions and recommended actions.

www.hslda.org
Homeschool Legal Defense is the premier legal eagle for the entire United States in homeschool legislation and legal issues. Access this website for their opinions and recommended actions.