Arizona Requests Federal Abstinence-Only Funding, Reversing Decision Of Former Gov. Napolitano

Main Category: Sexual Health / STDs
Article Date: 22 Apr 2009 - 7:00 PDT

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The Arizona Department of Health Services on Friday announced that it has applied for a $1 million federal grant to continue funding abstinence-only sex education programs in middle and high schools, a move that reverses former Gov. Janet Napolitano's (D) decision to end requests for federal money for the programs, the Arizona Republic reports (Rough, Arizona Republic, 4/18). Napolitano, who resigned in January to take a Cabinet position, and state lawmakers did not include the state's required matching share of the federal allocation for abstinence-only sex education in drafting the current budget. The abstinence-only programs currently are operating on money left over from the previous fiscal year but will run out of funding in June, according to the health services department's interim director, Will Humble (Davenport, AP/Fox11az.com, 4/17). Paul Senseman, a spokesperson for Gov. Jan Brewer (R), said that Brewer believes abstinence-only programs are "very effective" and feels that "with over a million dollars available, ... this was a good opportunity." The federal program requires a state match of about $776,000 for next year. The health department has secured outside contractors to provide the matching funds, the Republic reports (Arizona Republic, 4/18). Napolitano said last year that she decided against funding abstinence-only sex education because research shows that the programs are not effective (Fischer, Arizona Daily Star, 4/20).

According to the Republic, although the decision to apply for the federal funding "emphasizes the ideological differences" between Brewer and Napolitano, it is "unlikely the move will have a big impact on what's taught in the classroom" for a few reasons. President Obama and Congress are considering ending the federal grant program, but Arizona offers its abstinence-only sex education under contracts with outside organizations, many of which are not-for-profits that are eligible for grants through a variety of government programs. None of the federal money goes directly to the schools, according to the Republic. In addition, existing state statutes on sex education -- which require schools to teach abstinence as part of their curricula but allow comprehensive sex education to be taught -- are unlikely to change anytime soon, the Republic reports (Arizona Republic, 4/18).

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