More and more states are refusing to put up with Bush's faith-based gaslight, especially where Sex Ed is concerned:
The number of states refusing federal money for "abstinence-only" sex education programs jumped sharply in the past year as evidence mounted that the approach is ineffective.
At least 14 states have either notified the federal government that they will no longer be requesting the funds or are not expected to apply, forgoing more than $15 million of the $50 million available, officials said. Virginia was the most recent state to opt out.
Considering that the states are cash-strapped thanks to their having to shoulder much of what used to be the Federal government's job, for them to turn down "free money" is remarkable. But they have their reasons. (More after the jump.)
From the 12/15/07 WaPo:
The number of states refusing federal money for "abstinence-only" sex education programs jumped sharply in the past year as evidence mounted that the approach is ineffective.
At least 14 states have either notified the federal government that they will no longer be requesting the funds or are not expected to apply, forgoing more than $15 million of the $50 million available, officials said. Virginia was the most recent state to opt out.
Two other states -- Ohio and Washington -- have applied but stipulated they would use the money for comprehensive sex education, effectively making themselves ineligible, federal officials said. While Maryland and the District are planning to continue applying for the money, other states are considering withdrawing as well.
Until this year, only four states had passed up the funding.
[...]
The trend has triggered intense lobbying of state legislators and governors around the country. Supporters of the programs are scrambling to reverse the decisions, while opponents are pressuring more states to join the trend.
"This wave of states rejecting the money is a bellwether," said William Smith of the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, a Washington-based advocacy and education group that opposes abstinence-only programs. "It's a canary in the coal mine of what's to come."
"We hope that it sends a message to the politicians in Washington that this program needs to change, and states need to be able to craft a program that is the best fit for their young people and that is not a dictated by Washington ideologues," Smith said.
Smith and other critics said they hope that if enough states drop out, Congress will redirect the funding to comprehensive sex education programs that include teaching about the use of condoms and other contraceptives.
[...]
The jump in states opting out follows a series of reports questioning the effectiveness of the approach, including one commissioned by Congress that was released earlier this year. In addition, federal health officials reported last week that a 14-year drop in teenage pregnancy rates appeared to have reversed.
"This abstinence-only program is just not getting the job done," said Cecile Richards of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. "This is a ideologically based program that doesn't have any support in science."
It wouldn't be so bad if the failure of the faith-based abstinence programs didn't hurt anything. (Well, besides being illegal endorsements of religion by the Feds. But that's another diary.) But when these programs fail, they lead to teen pregnancies -- and kids dropping out of school, usually to wind up on state welfare rolls. That costs the states millions per year in the long run -- more than they get from the "abstinence" programs.
As the WaPo article notes, the faith-based folks, alarmed at the possible loss of their meal ticket, are lobbying state and Federal governments to try and keep the states on the abstinence bandwagon. But fewer people are buying what they're selling -- not when they can see with their own eyes that it doesn't work.