Idaho lawmakers will be considering a bill in 2009 that will give home schoolers legal protection.
Under current Idaho law, home schoolers have some shelter under the state's compulsory attendance law, which says children between the ages of 7 and 16 must be enrolled in public, private, or parochial schools unless their parents are providing "other comparable instruction." While Idaho's courts have understood that to include the right to home education, recent rulings around the country indicate that judges' perspectives can change over time. That is why the language in the Idaho bill being developed expressly declares that "children privately instructed at home by their parent or guardian" are in compliance with the state's compulsory attendance law. It also clearly identifies home education as a defense against charges of "educational neglect" under Idaho's Child Protection Act. Bryan Fischer of the Idaho Values Alliance says the bill was crafted in response to a California court ruling that briefly outlawed home schooling in 2008. Currently the bill lacks a number, but Fischer believes it will be submitted shortly after Idaho lawmakers convene. "[W]hat this bill would provide is that parents who choose to educate their children at home would have specific protection from Idaho's code that provides sanction for parents who are guilty of educational neglect," Fischer explains. "So we believe this is a good law; it's good for Idaho families. It will provide additional protection for their right to educate their children at home." Fischer says passage of this bill could cut down the number of instances that social workers falsely charge parents with educational neglect. "I think this bill is going to make it more difficult for social workers to abuse their authority and put home-schooling families at risk," he adds. The bill, which Fischer says is a plus for educational choice, also includes protection for online schools and charter schools. The Governor's Task Force on Children at Risk and the Idaho Coalition of Home Educators pooled their efforts in developing the language in the bill.
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