KRS § 158.192 — KY Code / Title XIII / Chapter 158 / Section 158.192
158.192 Complaint alleging that material, program, or event is harmful to minors -- Complaint resolution policy -- Determination by principal -- Appeal -- Final disposition by board -- Request by parent or guardian to preclude student access -- Parent's or guardian's access -- Model policy
Status: in_force

158.192 Complaint alleging that material, program, or event is harmful to minors -

- Complaint resolution policy -- Determination by principal -- Appeal -- Final

disposition by board -- Request by parent or guardian to preclude student

access -- Parent's or guardian's access -- Model policy.

(1) As used in this section, "harmful to minors" means materials, programs, or events

that:

(a) Contain the exposure, in an obscene manner, of the unclothed or apparently

unclothed human male or female genitals, pubic area, or buttocks or the

female breast, or visual depictions of sexual acts or simulations of sexual acts,

or explicit written descriptions of sexual acts;

(b) Taken as a whole, appeal to the prurient interest in sex; or

(c) Are patently offensive to prevailing standards regarding what is suitable for

minors.

(2) No later than July 1, 2023, each local board of education shall adopt a complaint

resolution policy for its local schools to be used to address complaints submitted by

parents or guardians alleging that material, a program, or an event that is harmful to

minors has been provided or is currently available to a student enrolled in the local

school district who is the child of the parent or guardian. The complaint resolution

process shall require that:

(a) Complaints be submitted in writing to the principal of the school where the

student is enrolled;

(b) Complaints provide the name of the complainant, a reasonably detailed

description of the material, program, or event that is alleged to be harmful to

minors, and how the material, program, or event is believed to be harmful to

minors;

(c) Within seven (7) business days of receiving a written complaint, the school

principal shall review the complaint and take reasonable steps to investigate

the allegations in the complaint, including but not limited to reviewing the

material, program, or event that is alleged to be harmful to minors;

(d) The school principal shall determine whether the material, program, or event

that is the subject of the complaint is harmful to minors;

(e) The school principal shall determine whether student access to material that is

the subject of the complaint shall remain, be restricted, or be removed;

(f) The school principal shall determine whether a program or event that is the

subject of the complaint shall be eligible for future participation by students in

the school;

(g) Within ten (10) business days of receiving the complaint, unless another

schedule is mutually agreed to by the parent or guardian and the school

principal, the school principal shall confer with the parent or guardian and

inform him or her whether the material, program, or event that is the subject

of the complaint was determined to be harmful to minors and what the

resolution will be in accordance with paragraphs (e) and (f) of this subsection;

(h) Appeals of the school principal's determination provided for in paragraphs (d),

(e), and (f) of this subsection shall:

1. Be subject to full administrative and substantive review by the local

board of education and shall not be delegated;

2. Include an opportunity for the parent or guardian to provide input during

public comment at a local board of education meeting;

3. Be completed within thirty (30) calendar days of receiving the written

appeal unless another time frame is mutually agreed upon by the parent

or guardian and the local board of education; and

4. Be discussed and voted on during a meeting of the local board of

education subject to the open records and open meeting requirements

under KRS Chapter 61;

(i) The board's final disposition of the appeal shall be made in writing and shall

state whether the material, program, or event was determined to be harmful to

minors and whether student access to the material will remain, be restricted,

or be removed and whether the program or event shall be eligible for future

participation by students in the school; and

(j) Within fifteen (15) business days from the date of a final disposition, the title

of the material or a description of the program or event submitted for appeal

pursuant to paragraph (h) of this subsection, whether the material, program, or

event was determined to be harmful to minors, whether student access to the

material will remain, be restricted, or be removed or whether the program or

event shall be eligible for future participation by students in the school, and

the vote cast by each individual board member shall:

1. Be published on the website of the local board of education where it

shall remain available for review; and

2. Be published in the newspaper with the largest circulation in the county.

(3) (a) A parent or guardian may request in writing to the school, after final

disposition is determined by the board as provided for in subsection (2)(i) of

this section, that the school ensure his or her student does not have access to

the material, program, or event that the parent or guardian believes to be

harmful to minors but was allowed to remain or be eligible for future

participation.

(b) The school shall ensure that the student whose parent or guardian has made a

request as provided for in paragraph (a) of this subsection does not have

access to the material or is not allowed to participate in the program or event

that the parent or guardian believes to be harmful to minors.

(4) A parent or guardian not having filed the appeal may request in writing access to

the appealed materials, programs, or events for review and shall abide by the

school's and district's policies and procedures when requesting and reviewing such

information.

(5) No later than May 1, 2023, the Department of Education shall promulgate a model

policy for a complaint resolution process that meets the requirements of subsections

(2), (3), and (4) of this section.