California's Bill to Provide Free Condoms in High Schools 'Thwarted' by Governor's Veto

Governor Exercises Veto Due to "Budget Shortfall"

The California State Legislature in the United States attempted to pass legislation to provide free condoms to all public high school students, but the effort was thwarted by the governor's veto. The governor exercised the veto citing budget concerns.

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On the 8th (local time), the California state government announced that Governor Newsom vetoed the "Youth Sexual Health: Contraceptive Devices" bill, which had passed the state senate.

The bill mandated that all public high school students (grades 9?12) in California be provided with free condoms and prohibited retailers from refusing to sell condoms to minors.

The youth social organization supporting the bill, ‘GENup,’ emphasized the necessity of the legislation by sharing cases such as a high school student being refused condom purchase at a pharmacy due to age, students being embarrassed in stores while trying to buy condoms for STD prevention, and cases of pregnancy due to inability to afford contraceptive pills.

Caroline Menjivar, a Democratic state senator who introduced the bill, stated, “This will help young people who have decided to be sexually active protect themselves and their partners during sexual activity.”

Governor Newsom agreed with the purpose of the bill but raised concerns about the cost. He said, "Increasing access to condoms is important to support the improvement of youth sexual health, but mandates cannot be imposed on public schools without budget support," adding, "Our state faces ongoing financial risks and revenue uncertainties, so we must approach legislation with significant fiscal impacts, like this bill, with caution."

Currently, California’s budget deficit exceeds $30 billion (approximately 40.47 trillion KRW).

According to the California Department of Education, approximately 1.94 million students were enrolled in California public high schools during the 2022?2023 academic year.

Some schools in California already provide free condoms. In 1992, the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District was the first in LA County to distribute condoms to students at schools.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.