The Michigan House signed off yesterday on House Bill 5364, a Republican-backed plan that would give lawmakers final say over changes to the state’s curriculum content standards. The move hands elected officials a new lever over classroom policy and sets up a fresh showdown over who really runs Michigan’s schools.
HB 5364 would require any revision to the model core curriculum content standards to be adopted by a concurrent resolution of both the Michigan House and Senate before those changes could take effect. The measure would amend MCL 380.1278 to bolt legislative approval onto the adoption process, according to FOX 2 Detroit.
A Response To The Sex-Ed Fight
The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Gina Johnsen, cast the proposal as a direct response to public outrage after the State Board of Education approved updated health education recommendations last fall that addressed gender identity and sexual orientation. “This is not a political or religious bill,” Johnsen told colleagues, arguing the change is meant to tighten the process and boost public scrutiny, as reported by Bridge Michigan.
How The Bill Would Alter The Process
Right now, standards take effect after a vote of the State Board of Education. Under HB 5364, there would be an extra step: both chambers of the Legislature would have to pass a concurrent resolution signing off on the board’s revisions. The bill text and summary detail the tweak to the statutory language governing academic standards (MCL 380.1278), a change that could shift the practical power to implement updates from education officials to elected lawmakers, according to the bill record on LegiScan.
Opponents Warn Of Politicization And Delays
Critics, including the Michigan Department of Education and some State Board members, warn that the proposal would undercut the board’s authority and make routine updates vulnerable to political delay or outright deadlock. Opponents testified that the bill’s broad language could stall necessary changes indefinitely and effectively pull final say away from local communities and education experts, according to Bridge Michigan.
What’s Next
With House approval in hand, the bill now heads to the state Senate, where its path is far from guaranteed. Lawmakers and policy watchers note that the politics inside the Capitol, along with a possible gubernatorial review, leave the measure’s fate very much up in the air, FOX 2 Detroit reported.
