Healthy Relationships Act of 2017

To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Administration for Children & Families, to award grants on a competitive basis to public and private entities to provide exclusively education in sexual risk avoidance (meaning avoiding all sexual risk by voluntarily refraining from nonmarital sexual activity). 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Healthy Relationships Act of 2017 2. Sexual risk avoidance education (a) Grants The Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Administration for Children & Families (in this section referred to as the Secretary SRA (b) Qualified SRA education To receive funding for SRA education under this section, an entity shall demonstrate to the Secretary each of the following: (1) The education— (A) will be evidenced-based, meaning it will have a clear theoretical framework integrating research findings with practical implementation relevant to the SRA field that matches the needs and desired outcomes for the intended audience; and (B) if effectively implemented, will give youth improved life and health outcomes. (2) The unambiguous and primary emphasis and context for each topic covered by the education will be the message to middle and high school students that avoiding nonmarital sexual activity offers the best opportunity for optimal sexual health. (3) The education will be medically accurate, meaning that information will be referenced to peer reviewed publications by educational, scientific, governmental, or health organizations. (4) The education will be age-appropriate, meaning it will be appropriate for the general developmental and social maturity of the targeted age group (as opposed to the cognitive ability to understand a topic, or the atypical maturation, of a small segment of the targeted population). (5) The education will thoroughly address each of the following: (A) The holistic individual and societal benefits associated with personal responsibility, self-regulation, goal setting, healthy decisionmaking, and a focus on the future. (B) The research-supported advantage of reserving sexual activity for marriage, in order to improve the future prospects and physical and emotional health of youth, and helping sexually active students return to a risk-free status. In this subparagraph, the terms sexual activity sexually active (C) The increased likelihood of avoiding poverty when youth implement the success sequence (D) The skills needed to resist the harms associated with pornography and the pervasive, sex-saturated culture that portrays teenage sexual activity as an expected norm, with few risks or negative consequences. (E) The foundational components of healthy relationships and their impact on the formation of healthy marriages and safe and stable families. (F) How to resist and avoid sexual coercion and dating violence, recognizing that even with consent, teen sex remains a youth risk behavior. (G) How other youth risk behaviors, such as drug and alcohol usage, increase the risk for teen sex. (6) The education will ensure that any information provided on contraception— (A) is medically accurate and ensures that students understand that contraception offers only physical risk reduction and not risk elimination; and (B) does not include demonstration, simulation, or distribution of contraceptive devices. (c) Priority In awarding grants under subsection (a), the Secretary shall give priority to applicants proposing programs to provide qualified SRA education that will— (1) regularly reinforce the SRA message in both the middle and high school grades; and (2) promote parent-child communication regarding the benefits of avoiding all sexual risk. (d) Application To seek an application under this section, an entity shall submit an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such assurances as the Secretary may require. At a minimum, the application shall include— (1) assurances satisfactory to the Secretary that each of the conditions listed in subsection (c) will be satisfied; (2) an individualized plan to evaluate the SRA education to be funded through the grant for behavioral impact, or to inform best practices in the provision of such SRA education that are based on research that— (A) is conducted by independent researchers who have experience in conducting and publishing research in peer-reviewed outlets; and (B) is not part of a national evaluation that is mandated by, contracted for, or conducted by the Department of Health and Human Services; and (3) an agreement to expend not more than 20 percent of their overall grant award for such evaluation. (e) Training and technical assistance (1) In general The Secretary may provide training and technical assistance to grantees under this section. (2) Requirements Any such training and technical assistance shall— (A) emphasize the practical implementation of SRA in all educational messaging to teens; (B) be provided directly to grantees by SRA-credentialed experts; (C) cover methodologies and best practices in SRA for teens; and (D) consistently teach in the context of a public health model that stresses risk avoidance or a return to a risk avoidance status. (3) Settings Any such training and technical assistance shall be provided during national and regional conferences, webinars, and one-on-one conversations about funded projects. (4) Qualified organizations In addition to training and technical assistance provided by staff of the Department of Health and Human Services, such training and technical assistance shall be provided by qualified organizations that have— (A) sole focus on the development and advancement of SRA education; (B) expertise in theory-based SRA program development and implementation; (C) direct experience in developing SRA evaluation instruments; and (D) the ability to offer technical assistance and training on topics relevant to the SRA field. (f) Authorization of appropriations (1) In general To carry out this section, there is authorized to be appropriated $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2022. Amounts authorized to be appropriated by the preceding sentence shall be derived exclusively from amounts made available for the Teen Pregnancy Prevention program of the Department of Health and Human Services. (2) Federal administrative costs Of the amount authorized to be appropriated by paragraph (1) for a fiscal year— (A) up to $1,000,000 are authorized to be used for the creation of a national media campaign to increase understanding and appreciation for SRA education; (B) not more than $1,000,000 are authorized to be used for Federal administrative costs; and (C) of the amount used by the Secretary for administrative costs, no more than 25 percent shall be used for training and technical assistance.

Summary: Healthy Relationships Act of 2017 This bill authorizes the Administration for Children & Families of the Department of Health and Human Services to award grants to public and private entities for the exclusive purpose of providing qualified sexual risk avoidance education to youth and their parents. Such education must address specified topics, including: benefits associated with personal responsibility and healthy decisionmaking; the advantage of reserving sexual activity for marriage; the skills needed to resist the harms associated with pornography and pervasive, sex-saturated culture; the foundational components of healthy relationships; and how to resist and avoid sexual coercion and dating violence. Priority in awarding grants must be given to applicants who propose sexual risk avoidance education programs that will regularly reinforce the sexual risk avoidance message in both the middle and high school grades and will promote parent-child communication on the benefits of avoiding all sexual risk.