Kentucky 2017 Regular Session Status: Enacted

SB 17 — AN ACT relating to the expression of religious or political viewpoints in public schools and public postsecondary institutions. Amend KRS 158.183 to permit students to voluntarily express religious or political viewpoints in school assignments free from discrimination; require local boards of education to ensure that the selection of student speakers is made in a viewpoint-neutral manner, the student's prepared remarks are not altered before delivery without student's consent, religious and political organizations are allowed equal access to public forums on the same basis as nonreligious and nonpolitical organizations, and no recognized religious or political student organization is discriminated against in the ordering of its internal affairs; allow students to display religious messages on items of clothing, access public school facilities during noninstructional time as a religious student organization, use school media to announce student religious meetings, and meet as a religious student group during noninstructional time and before and after school to the same extent as students undertaking such actions in a nonreligious manner; permit public schools to sponsor artistic or theatrical programs that advance students' knowledge of society's cultural and religious heritage; create a new section of KRS Chapter 158 to allow a teacher to teach about religion with the use of the Bible or other scripture without providing religious instruction, and to teach about religious holidays in a secular manner; amend KRS 158.186 to require annual notification to local school boards, school-based decision making councils, and certified employees of statutes pertaining to religious freedom and expression in schools; create a new section of KRS Chapter 164 to require public postsecondary education institution governing boards to ensure that students are permitted to voluntarily express religious or political viewpoints in assignments free from discrimination, the selection of student speakers is made in a viewpoint-neutral manner, the student's prepared remarks are not altered before delivery without the student's consent, religious and political organizations are allowed equal access to public forums on the same basis as nonreligious and nonpolitical organizations, no recognized religious or political student organization is discriminated against in the ordering of its internal affairs, and there are no restrictions on speech that occurs outdoors on campus and is protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, except for restrictions that are reasonable, justified without reference to speech content, narrowly tailored to serve governmental interest, and limited to provide alternative options for the communication of the information.

Last action — Signed by Governor (Acts, ch. 15)

Track this bill free

No card. One bill, free forever — alerts when it moves.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. ✓
    Passed Senate
  4. ✓
    Passed House
  5. ✓
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced January 03, 2017. Enacted.

Prognosis

Not enough signal yet

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

High

How often bills like it became law.

Not enough signal yet to read this bill's trajectory — we surface a likelihood only once there's real movement (stage, sponsorship, committee, or votes) to point to.

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Signed by Governor (Acts, ch. 15)

  2. Delivered to Governor

  3. Enrolled, signed by Speaker of the House

  4. Enrolled, signed by President of the Senate

  5. Received in Senate

  6. 3rd reading, passed 81-8

  7. Posted for passage in the Regular Orders of the Day for Friday, March 3, 2017

  8. 2nd reading, to Rules

  9. Reported favorably, 1st reading, to Calendar

  10. Posted in committee

  11. To Education (H)

  12. Received in House

  13. 3rd reading, passed 31-3 with Committee Substitute and floor amendment (1)

  14. Floor amendment (1) filed to Committee Substitute

  15. Posted for passage in the Regular Orders of the Day for Friday, February 10, 2017

  16. Reported favorably, to Rules with Committee Substitute

  17. To Veterans, Military Affairs, & Public Protection (S)

  18. Returned to Committee on Committees (S)

  19. 2nd reading

  20. Taken from Committee on Committees (S)

  21. Returned to Committee on Committees (S)

  22. 1st reading

  23. Taken from Committee on Committees (S)

  24. Introduced in Senate

Sponsorship breakdown

Export CSV (upgrade) →

0 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 138 not signed on

Sponsors (0)

None.

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (138)

138 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 138 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

civil-rights education
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What is the current status of SB 17?
This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced January 03, 2017. Enacted.
Where can I track SB 17?
Track SB 17 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

Make your voice heard on SB 17

Find the representatives who decide this bill and tell them where you stand — for yourself, or mobilize your whole list in one click with One Click Politics advocacy software.

Find my representatives → Run a campaign

Stay ahead of SB 17

Last checked for changes 2 months ago · updated continuously

One Click Politics tracks every bill in Congress and all 50 states.

Track this bill →