Murrieta Valley, CA — Following the Murrieta Valley Unified School District School Board’s decision to implement a mandatory gender identity disclosure policy on August 10, California Attorney General Rob Bonta issued a statement condemning the policy for potentially harming the well-being of LGBTQ+ students.
The newly enacted policy requires schools to inform parents, with minimal exceptions, whenever a student requests to use a name or pronoun different from what’s on their birth certificate or official records, even without the student’s consent. Additionally, it mandates notification if a student requests to use facilities or participate in programs that don’t align with their recorded sex. This decision comes shortly after Attorney General Bonta announced a civil rights investigation into an identical policy adopted by Chino Valley Unified School District.
Attorney General Bonta expressed his deep concern over the policy, stating: “I am deeply disturbed to learn another school district has put at risk the safety and privacy of transgender and gender nonconforming students by adopting a forced outing policy. My office remains committed to ensuring school policies do not target or seek to discriminate against California’s most vulnerable communities. California will not stand for violations of our students’ civil rights.”
Bonta emphasized the state’s interest in protecting children’s legal rights, physical safety, and mental health, especially from trauma, harassment, and exposure to violence. Research highlights that preserving a transgender student’s ability to choose how and when to inform others of their identity is essential to their well-being. Transgender students often face high levels of harassment and mistreatment in schools and communities.
Bonta’s commitment to defending the rights and safety of LGBTQ+ youth is not new. He previously opened an investigation into CVUSD’s adoption of a similar policy and has cautioned educators about the potential dangers and infringements of such forced outing policies.