Washington Republican Chair Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen, is looking to capitalize on a Monday ruling in King County Superior Court upholding the last legislative session’s parental rights bill.

A newly proposed bill by Walsh aims to provide more rights for parents regarding their children’s medical procedures, just as a judge dismissed a May parental rights bill lawsuit, which argued Initiative 2081 undermines other state laws protecting students’ rights to privacy, health care and education.

Part of the law, stemming from the Republican-backed initiative, was placed on hold in June by the King County court. However, a Friday hearing sided with the defendants, according to a press release from the ACLU of Washington, who, along with Legal Voice and QLaw Foundation of Washington, filed the suit on behalf of seven nonprofits, two individuals and the South Whidbey School District.

The case’s dismissal was filed Monday.

“What the ruling really establishes is that the Washington Parents’ Bill of Rights is good law,” Walsh said Wednesday.

Initiative 2081 explains information a parent of Washington public school students can access, including public school records, school curriculum and notifications of medical services. The June ruling temporarily blocked parents’ access to their children’s medical and mental health records.

Opponents of the law are now turning to legislative solutions. Two bills proposed in the current legislative session, House Bill 1296 and Senate Bill 5181, aim to amend the law to limit which student records are available to parents.

Walsh said he expects those bills to be difficult to pass, and that they would potentially face legal challenges of their own if they were passed.

“This is a fight we’re not backing down from,” he said.

Walsh, who is also the state Republican party chairperson, is currently working on another parents’ rights bill, this time to change when minors can independently consent to medical procedures, despite critics suggesting it could put teens at risk.

Walsh’s proposal

House Bill 1176 aims to raise the age at which minors can consent to certain medical procedures without parental permission in what Walsh says is an attempt to safeguard parental rights and improve health outcomes for young people.

If Walsh’s new bill passes, the age would raise for independent consent for care related to sexually transmitted diseases and inpatient treatment for mental health issues or substance use disorder. It also prevents parents or legal guardians from being held financially responsible if their child receives abortion services without their consent, and prevents state funds from being used to pay for those services unless the child’s life is in imminent danger.

Currently, state law allows minors to receive mental health and substance use treatment without parental consent if they are at least 13 years old, and STD treatment if they are at least 14. Abortion care is available without parental consent at any age.

In some cases, minors who do not meet the age requirement can still consent to their own care if the doctor determines that they are mature enough to understand the consequences or if they meet certain other conditions. This rule, called the mature minor doctrine, was first established by a 1967 Washington Supreme Court case.

Walsh said that while he believes the rule is well-intentioned, he thinks it has led to worse health outcomes for minors who benefit from it. The proposed bill would prevent the mature minor doctrine from taking effect in situations where it conflicts with the bill’s age requirements.

“There’s a vast difference in the maturity, emotional IQ and intelligent IQ of a person between 13 and 17,” he said.

The data

Walsh said that negative mental health, suicidal ideation and drug use among teens has increased since the mature minor doctrine was implemented, although he did not cite a specific source for that information.

According to the state healthy youth survey, the percentage of students in grades six-12 who reported that they had ever seriously considered suicide increased by around 7% between 2010 and 2018.

However, that percentage started to drop in 2021. In 2023, the percentage of eighth-12th graders who reported contemplating suicide was around 6% lower than in 2018.

Drug use, including marijuana, increased among eighth and 10th graders in the county between 2021 and 2023, according to the same survey, but remains lower than in 2018.

These numbers mirror national patterns, suggesting that individual state laws may not be to blame. The Centers for Disease Control reported in 2024 that the percentage of high school students nationwide who have considered or attempted suicide has been increasing since 2013, although it also noted a drop between 2021 and 2023.

Parental rights

Under the current system in Washington, minors do not need to give a reason for excluding their parents from medical decisions if they are old enough to independently consent, and do not have to prove that the parents are abusive or otherwise harmful to their health.

Walsh argues that this is unfair to parents who are not abusive.

“The parents can be perfectly supportive of the child and still be cut out of a child’s life,” he said. “That’s wrong.”

Rep. Joel McEntire, R-Cathlamet, said Republicans are continuing to focus on parental rights in response to what he called a movement to push parents out of decisions in schools and doctor’s offices.

“It’s jumping higher on the priority list all the time, because we have an administration now that probably sees things our way,” he said.

McEntire represents the 19th District, which includes Aberdeen, Longview and Kelso, along with Walsh, but was not involved in filing the bill.

Jim Coffee, CEO of Cowlitz Family Health Center, said that some teens seek out care without involving their parents not because they don’t want to, but because they can’t. For example, a homeless teen who is couch surfing with friends might not have a parent available to get permission from.

“We see a lot of those kids,” Coffee said.

Cowlitz Family Health Center is a nonprofit clinic based in Longview that first opened in 1970 as a way to provide family planning and health services to low-income Cowlitz County residents. Today, they see a number of teens for both physical and mental health care, Coffee said.

“Currently, we do follow the law and allow kids 14 and older to seek care without parental permission, but we’re always hoping they involve their parents,” he said.

Coffee said he is concerned Walsh’s bill would create a barrier for teens looking for help with family planning and similar services.

According to the CDC study, around 20% of high school students reported being sexually active in 2023. However, only half of those students said they used a condom during their last encounter, and less than 10% were tested for HIV or other sexually-transmitted diseases.