New Hampshire has passed a universal school choice bill and a parental bill of rights allowing parents to opt their children out of sex education lessons.

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New Hampshire’s Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte signed two measures into law Tuesday. House Bill 10 establishes a parental bill of rights, while Senate Bill 295 increases the eligibility for education freedom accounts that enable parents to cover costs associated with sending their children to non-public schools.

House Bill 10 declares, “No school may infringe on the fundamental rights of a parent to direct the upbringing, education, health care, and mental health of his or her minor child without demonstrating that such action is necessary to achieve a compelling state interest, that such action is narrowly tailored, and that such interest is not otherwise served by less restrictive means.”

The list of parental rights now protected under state law includes the right “to opt out of health or sex education and any other objectionable material.”

In addition to containing an extensive list of rights for parents, the legislation directs school districts in the state to develop “procedures for a parent to object to instructional materials and other materials used in the classroom” and “procedures for a parent to withdraw his or her child from any portion of the school district’s health education program that relates to sex education or instruction in acquired immune deficiency syndrome education or any instruction regarding sexuality if the parent provides a written objection to his or her minor child’s participation.”

School districts are also directed to publish the parental bill of rights on their school website or in their school handbook. The measure includes a right of action for any parent who feels their rights have been violated by a school district to seek judicial relief.

One of the rights granted by the parental bill of rights is the right to “choose to enroll the minor child in an assigned resident public school, a public charter school, a non-public school, including a religious school, a home education program, or any other state-based education program, as authorized by law, as an alternative to public education.”

Senate Bill 295 attempts to make it easier for parents to choose alternative education options for their children. The measure removes restrictions limiting education freedom accounts to students who live in households where the income is less than or equal to 350% of the federal poverty line, meaning that all students are eligible. It also caps total enrollment in the education freedom accounts at 10,000 per fiscal year.

Education freedom accounts enable parents to apply to scholarship organizations to establish saving accounts, enabling them to pay for tuition and fees at private schools or non-public online learning programs, tutoring services, and other expenses associated with education, like textbooks, school uniforms and tuition.

In a statement issued following her approval of House Bill 295, Ayotte said allowing “parents the freedom to choose the education setting that best fits their child’s needs will help every student in our state reach their full potential.”

“I’m proud to sign this into law today along with the Parental Bill of Rights, which ensures parents are the central voice in their children’s education,” the governor said.

While conservatives have championed school choice, such programs have been criticized by Democrats, who argue it will take resources away from struggling public schools.

Democratic Rep. David Meuse is among those who opposed HB 295, who contends that it will “increase the state’s obligation to pony up your tax dollars for the GOP school voucher scam by tens of millions of dollars over the next biennium while many state services will be cut due to declining state revenues.”

“Get out your wallets folks,” Meuse said, according to Seacostonline. “Wealthy people want subsidies from taxpayers like you to send their kids to private schools.”

Ayotte’s approval of the parental bill of rights comes at a time when school districts across the U.S. have faced lawsuits for withholding information about their trans-identified children’s wish to identify as a member of a different sex or use of a name that does not align with their biological sex. School districts across the U.S. have also faced lawsuits and criticism for including sexually explicit material and/or LGBT ideology in the curriculum.

New Hampshire follows in the footsteps of other states that have passed school choice expansions in recent years.

In May, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed a historic school choice bill into law, which he claimed would make the “largest day-one” school choice program launch in the country.

Idaho passed a $50M school choice program in March to allow private schoolers and home-schoolers to claim a refundable tax credit worth $5,000.

Just weeks after taking office, President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing the U.S. Department of Education and other federal agencies to look for ways to expand school choice options for families.

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This article was originally published at The Christian Post. Photo Credit: Kenny Eliason on Unsplash.