New Indiana sexual education law in effect July 1 after debate over ‘consent’

INDIANAPOLIS — July 1 is nearly here, and that means several new laws are set to go into effect across the Hoosier state after Gov. Mike Braun signed them during the 2025 legislative session.

One of these new laws centers on requirements for school districts teaching on topics like human sexuality or sexually transmitted infections.

Senate Bill 442,

titled “instruction on human sexuality,” stipulates that a district must include instruction surrounding the topic of consent in sexual situations and deliver a presentation on human growth during pregnancy. The bill also focused on school districts receiving consent from parents before certain materials could be added to sex education courses.

The bill, which was authored by Indiana State Republican Senators Gary Byrne, Jeff Raatz and Michael Young, was at the center of a contentious debate in April after the Indiana House of Representatives added amendments once it passed the Indiana Senate. These amendments included adding a requirement to include a video showing students a developing fetus and another highlighting the importance of consent.

Byrne opted to remove the consent language in the bill while the other requirement remained the same. Byrne said at the time that he wanted to give school boards the authority to decide whether they taught consent. Numerous concerns were raised by the public and fellow lawmakers who criticized Byrne’s decision.

The pressure culminated in Byrne’s decision to reinstate the consent language in Senate Bill 442. Byrne’s office shared the following statement with FOX59/CBS4 at the time after he walked back on his original decision:

“The primary goal of Senate Bill 442 is to promote transparency in sexual education curriculum by requiring that (the) curriculum… be approved by school boards and posted publicly online. The new conference committee report… will also retain language added by the House of Representatives, which would require schools to teach about the importance of consent to sexual activity in an age-appropriate way and teach about fetal development during pregnancy. I look forward to shepherding this bill through the rest of the legislative process.”

The bill passed in the Indiana Senate on April 23 by a 35-12 vote. The bill was signed into law by Braun on May 6.

A complete version of the bill can be viewed here.