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Feb. 12 | Introduced in the House
H.B. 149 was introduced in the House by Representatives by Karlee Provenza, Bob Davis, Lloyd Larsen, JD Williams, Mike Yin and Senators Ed Cooper, Chris Rothfuss, and Wendy Schuler.
If one of the sponsors is your representative or senator, please contact them immediately and ask them to withdraw House Bill 149. You can find your representative or senator here.
Summary of H.B. 149
H.B. 149 creates two circumstances where a parent can be prohibited from homeschooling:
- If a parent is being investigated or assessed by the Division of Family Services (DFS), the agency may prohibit the family from homeschooling—based solely on the agency’s belief that homeschooling is not in the best interest of the child. The agency may also notify the public or private school that the student was previously attending and block the student from withdrawing—effectively forcing the child to remain enrolled against the parents’ wishes.
- If a parent—or any other person living in the home—has been convicted in the last seven years of certain offenses related to the abuse and neglect of a minor.
HSLDA opposes this legislation because it perpetuates the false assumption that parents choose homeschooling to hide and abuse their children, rather than to educate them in a safe and loving environment. These sorts of bills implicitly draw a connection between homeschooling and child abuse that is not supported by the evidence.
The bill would prohibit homeschooling if any person living in the same home as the student has been convicted of certain offenses. While we understand why parents would want to keep their children away from known criminals, this issue has already been addressed in the law. These offenses are punishable with lengthy prison sentences and, in many cases, already result in court-ordered separation of the offender from the child. Adding this specific prohibition to the civil code casts a shadow over all homeschooling parents as posing unique risks to their children.
Even more troubling, the bill would bar families from homeschooling during any DFS investigation or assessment—before any finding of abuse or neglect has been made.
Allegations are not proof. Research shows that in only about 20 percent of DFS investigations do workers find enough evidence to merit a finding of maltreatment.
Yet this bill treats all investigations the same. Conditioning a family’s educational freedom on the mere existence of an investigation and the opinion of an investigator undermines due process and the presumption of innocence. Moreover, these investigations can go on for some time, preventing parents from making timely decisions about their children’s education and welfare. A child who is struggling academically in traditional school will continue to fall behind, while a child facing bullying or abuse from a teacher will have to remain in an unsafe environment.
Abuse and neglect are tragic realities that must be addressed decisively. That is why states have robust criminal laws and maintain child-protection systems. But policy should not be built on the premise that parents are guilty until proven innocent.
In American law, we assume innocence until guilt is proven. And we assume that parents are acting in their children’s best interests unless proven otherwise. Homeschooling families deserve to be treated with fairness, respect, and the presumption of innocence. We urge lawmakers to reject House Bill 149 and protect the homeschool freedom of Wyoming families.