Bill
HF 167
Amend HF167-H1039 broadens grooming from seeking a sex act to building trust with a student to exploit them, likely increasing mandatory reporting to BOEE.
Status and context
- Bill number: HF 167
- Amendment: H-1039 (filed March 7, 2025)
- Introduced: January 30, 2025; author added Novotny (Mar 17, 2025)
- Statutory target: Section 256.160, subsection 5, paragraph a (Code 2025)
- Legislative actions: Referred to Taxes (initially), later rereferred to Education (May 15, 2025); placed on calendar under unfinished business (Apr 3, 2025).
Note: The legislative header provided lists a taxation-related title, but the amendment text replaces language in an education statute concerning mandatory reporting and the definition of “grooming behavior.” This summary focuses on the amendment text as supplied.
Purpose and intent
- The amendment revises the statutory definition of “grooming behavior” used in the law that requires school authorities to report disciplinary action against licensed school employees to the Board of Educational Examiners (BOEE). The stated intent is to broaden the conduct encompassed by “grooming behavior” beyond actions intended to induce a student to engage in a sex act.
Key provisions and changes
- Replaces the existing definition of “grooming behavior.”
- Current statutory language (before amendment): defines grooming behavior as “any behavior … that constitutes actions to entice or entrap a student … with the intent to make such student … engage in a sex act.”
- New definition (as amended): defines grooming behavior as “the process of building trust and emotional connections with a student with the intent to exploit such student.”
- The amendment is limited to substituting the definition text within Section 256.160(5)(a); it does not change the reporting requirement language elsewhere in that section (which requires school boards, superintendents, area education agency administrators, and leaders of accredited nonpublic schools to report disciplinary action against licensed school employees for specified misconduct, including grooming behavior, to the BOEE).
Who is affected
- Licensed school employees: broader definition could bring more conduct within the category of reportable “grooming behavior” and thereby increase instances that trigger BOEE reporting and potential disciplinary review.
- Local school authorities (school boards, superintendents, area education agency administrators, leaders of accredited nonpublic schools): continue to have mandatory reporting duties; may face increased reporting obligations as the definition expands.
- Board of Educational Examiners: may receive and evaluate more reports alleging grooming/exploitative conduct.
- Students and families: the change is intended to capture behaviors that build emotional trust with exploitative intent, potentially increasing protections and investigatory scrutiny.
Potential impacts and considerations
- Broadening from “intent to make ... engage in a sex act” to “intent to exploit” widens the scope of conduct considered grooming (e.g., nonsexual emotional manipulation). This may result in more reports and investigations of teacher-student interactions that were not previously covered.
- The amended language shifts emphasis from a specific sexual-act endpoint to the process and intent to exploit; this could reduce the threshold for what counts as reportable grooming but also raises questions about how “exploit” will be applied factually and legally.
- Implementation will hinge on guidance and BOEE application of the amended definition in disciplinary and reporting contexts.
Procedural next steps
- As of the latest actions, the bill has been rereferred to the Education committee (May 15, 2025) and remains on the legislative calendar under unfinished business. Further committee consideration, floor debate, or amendment could follow.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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