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SB 978MISSOURISession 2026State Billin committee
High Impact

Missouri bill requires human growth and development instruction starting in third grade

Original title: Requires school districts and charter schools to provide instruction on human growth and development

Last action · February 10, 2026: SCS Voted Do Pass S Education Committee (4958S.02C)Sponsor: Nick Schroer

Bill progressHistory & official text ↓
Introduced
Committee
Floor Vote
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What This Bill Would Do

Beginning in the 2026-27 school year, Missouri school districts and charter schools must provide human growth and development instruction no later than third grade, including specific videos on fetal development and fertilization. Schools are prohibited from partnering with abortion service providers, and parents retain the right to opt their children out of the instruction.

Why it matters

Changes curriculum requirements for all public and charter school students starting in third grade, introduces mandatory video and scientific content regarding fetal development, and authorizes the state attorney general to bring civil actions against violators.

Who It Would Affect

Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.

Directly affected

school district

School districts must implement mandatory human growth and development instruction by grade three, include specific videos and scientific facts, and ensure compliance with restrictions regarding abortion service providers.

Directly affected

charter school

Charter school governing boards must provide human growth and development instruction starting no later than grade three with mandated curriculum components.

Directly affected

students

Students will receive mandatory instruction on human growth and development, including specific fetal development videos and biological details starting in third grade.

Directly affected

parents or legal guardians

Parents or legal guardians must receive advance notice of the basic content of the instruction and have the right to remove their student from any part of it.

Key Facts

You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.

Frequently Asked Questions

When does the new human growth and development instruction requirement take effect?
The requirement begins in the 2026-27 school year for instruction starting no later than third grade.
Can parents choose to remove their children from this instruction?
Yes, school districts and charter schools must notify parents or legal guardians of the basic content and provide the right to remove the student from any part of the instruction.
Are schools allowed to work with outside organizations that provide abortion services?
No, schools, personnel, and agents are prohibited from providing abortion services or permitting any person or entity that provides abortion services to sponsor or furnish course materials or instruction.

What else do you want to know?

News Coverage

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Check Your Understanding

1.According to the Senate Committee Substitute, what instructional requirement does the bill establish for school boards and charter school governing boards?

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Where This Stands

Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.

Procedural history

5 actions
  1. Feb 10, 2026SenateCommittee
    SCS Voted Do Pass S Education Committee (4958S.02C)
  2. Feb 3, 2026Senate
    Hearing Conducted S Education Committee
  3. Jan 8, 2026SenateFloor
    Second Read and Referred S Education Committee
  4. Jan 7, 2026SenateIntroduced
    S First Read
  5. Dec 1, 2025Senate
    Prefiled

Version history & redline

2 versions on file
Comparing 4958S.01I - Introduced → Senate Committee Substitute - Committee Version
removed addedOfficial text
removed: EXPLANATION-Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in this bill is not enacted and is intended to be omitted in the law. SECOND REGULAR SESSION added: 4958S.02C 1 SENATE added: COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR SENATE BILL NO. 978 removed: 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY INTRODUCED BY SENATOR SCHROER. 4958S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary AN ACT To repeal section 170.015, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof two new sections relating to instruction in human development. Be it […] papilloma virus, hepatitis and other sexually transmitted diseases; (3) Present students with the latest medically factual information regarding both the possible side effects and added: 2 health benefits of all forms of contraception, including the success and failure rates for the prevention of pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases; or shall […] email, and instant messaging programs. Pupils shall be taught how to behave responsibly and remain safe on the internet and the importance of having added: 3 open communication with responsible adults and reporting any inappropriate situation, activity, or abuse to a responsible adult, and depending on intent and content, to […] or attempting to cause another to engage involuntarily in any sexual act by force, threat of force, duress, or without that person's consent; and added: 4 (10) For the 2026-27 school year and all subsequent school years, include a human growth and development discussion, which shall include: (a) A high-definition […] 5. A school district or charter school shall notify the parent or legal guardian of each student enrolled in the district or school of: added: 5 (1) The basic content of the district's or school's human sexuality instruction to be provided to the student; and (2) The parent's right to […] not necessary to save the life of the mother; (3) "Human growth and development discussion", an oral, written, or digital lesson, lecture, or presentation added: 6 about human biology related to pregnancy and human development inside the womb. 9. The attorney general may bring a civil action, including an action […] throughout pregnancy until birth; (3) At conception, a new genetically distinct human being is formed, and abortion ends the life of an unborn child; added: 7 (4) In medicine, a special emphasis is placed on the heartbeat. The heartbeat is a discernible sign of life at every stage of human […] children who were removed during an ectopic pregnancy or hysterectomy. Fetal magnetic resonance imaging, or "MRI", of an unborn child's brain is used during added: 8 the second and third trimesters of pregnancy and brain activity has been observed using MRI; (10) Unborn children at eight weeks gestational age show […] to the brain. Increased blood flow to the brain is the same type of stress response seen in a born child and an adult; added: 9 (14) By sixteen weeks gestational age, pain transmission from a peripheral receptor to the cortex is possible in the unborn child; (15) Physicians provide […] is dilation and evacuation (D&E). The D&E abortion method includes the dismemberment, disarticulation, and exsanguination of the unborn child, causing the unborn child's death.added: 4. The board of a school district or charter school shall ensure that all instruction in human development is appropriate to the age of the students receiving such instruction. 10 5. A school district or charter school shall notify the parent or legal guardian of each student enrolled in the district or school of: (1) The basic content of the district's or school's human development instruction to be provided to the student; and (2) The parent's right to remove the student from any part of the district's or school's human development instruction.
Redline computed from the official version text (record lane).View this version →

Lobbying Activity

No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.

Full breakdown

Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.

Sponsors

Nick SchroerSenate · District 2RepublicanPrimary sponsor

Connected Entities

General Assembly of the State of Missouri, Fabiola Müller, Dr. J. Wisser and 4 more
OrganizationGeneral Assembly of the State of Missouri“Legislative body enacting the statute”Map →
PersonFabiola Müller“Author of The Embryonic Human Brain: An Atlas of Developmental Stages”Map →
PersonDr. J. Wisser“Author cited regarding fetal pain perception”Map →
PersonNick Schroer“Republican Senator, District 2”Map →
OrganizationFederal Bureau of Investigation“Law enforcement agency referenced in safety guidelines”Map →
PersonRonan O'Rahilly“Author of The Embryonic Human Brain: An Atlas of Developmental Stages”Map →
OrganizationNational Center for Missing & Exploited Children's CyberTipline“Reporting tip line referenced in safety guidelines”Map →

Sources

Open source document

www.senate.mo.gov

Analysis Score

0–100
  • Significance85
    How much this matters to a regular citizen
  • Controversy90
    Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
  • Entertainment10
    Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
  • Buzz75
    Current news / social attention level

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