HB23 • 2026

Public preK-12 education; discussions of gender identity prohibited, employees prohibited from displaying flags or insignia relating to sexual orientation or gender identity and from referring to students by pronouns inconsistent with student's biological sex

Education Labor

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Butler (M)
Last action: 2026-01-13
Official status: Pending Committee Action in House of Origin
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The candidate explanation incorrectly stated that the State Board of Education must create rules for following and enforcing these new laws. The bill does not specify this requirement.

Prohibiting Discussions About Gender Identity in Schools

This bill stops teachers from talking about gender identity or sexual orientation with students and prevents them from using certain flags or signs related to these topics. It also says teachers can't use pronouns that don't match a student's birth sex.

What This Bill Does

It bans classroom discussions about gender identity and sexual orientation for public school students in prekindergarten through twelfth grade.
It stops teachers from showing flags or signs related to sexual orientation or gender identity on school property.
Teachers are not allowed to refer to students using pronouns that don't match the student's biological sex at birth.

Who It Names or Affects

Public preK-12 teachers and education employees
Students in public schools from prekindergarten through twelfth grade

Terms To Know

gender identity: A person's internal sense of being male, female, a blend of both, or neither.
pronouns: Words like 'he,' 'she,' and 'they' used to refer to someone in conversation.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify what happens if a teacher breaks these rules.
It is unclear how the State Board of Education will enforce these new regulations.
There are no details on how this law affects private schools or homeschooling.

Bill History

2026-01-13 House
Pending Committee Action in House of Origin
2026-01-13 House
Read for the first time and referred to the House Committee on Education Policy

Official Summary Text

Public preK-12 education; discussions of gender identity prohibited, employees prohibited from displaying flags or insignia relating to sexual orientation or gender identity and from referring to students by pronouns inconsistent with student's biological sex

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

HB23 INTRODUCED
Page 0
HB23
EJ5AX9C-1
By Representatives Butler, Harrison, Gidley
RFD: Education Policy
First Read: 13-Jan-26
PFD: 11-Aug-25
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EJ5AX9C-1 05/27/2025 GP (L) lg 2025-2019
Page 2
PFD: 11-Aug-25
SYNOPSIS:
Under existing law, classroom instruction or
discussions regarding gender identity or sexual
orientation may not be provided to public school
students in kindergarten through fifth grade in a
manner that is not age or developmentally appropriate
or is not in accordance with state standards.
This bill would prohibit classroom instruction
or discussions related to gender identity or sexual
orientation from being provided to public school
students in prekindergarten through twelfth grade.
This bill would prohibit public preK-12 teachers
and education employees from displaying a flag or
insignia relating to sexual orientation or gender
identity on school property.
This bill would also prohibit public preK-12
teachers and education employees from referring to a
student by pronouns inconsistent with the student's
biological sex at birth.
A BILL
TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
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HB23 INTRODUCED
Page 3
Relating to education; to amend Section 16-40A-5, Code
of Alabama 1975; to prohibit classroom instruction in public
school prekindergarten through the twelfth grade related to
gender identity or sexual orientation; to prohibit education
employees from displaying certain flags and insignia on public
preK-12 school property; and to prohibit education employees
from referring to a student by pronouns inconsistent with the
student's biological sex.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1. Section 16-40A-5, Code of Alabama 1975, is
amended to read as follows:
"§16-40A-5
(a) An individual or group of individuals providing
classroom instruction to students in kindergarten
prekindergarten through the fifth twelfth grade at a public
K-12 preK-12 school shall not engage in classroom discussion
or provide classroom instruction regarding sexual orientation
or gender identity in a manner that is not age appropriate or
developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with
state standards .
(b) No teacher, or other public preK-12 employee, may
display a flag or other insignia relating to or representing
sexual orientation or gender identity in a classroom or on the
property of a public preK-12 school.
(c) No teacher, or other public preK-12 employee, may
intentionally address a student by a pronoun or title that is
inconsistent with the student's biological sex at birth.
(d) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules for
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HB23 INTRODUCED
Page 4
(d) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules for
the implementation and enforcement of this section."
Section 2. This act shall become effective on July 1,
2026.
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