New Jersey: State Spurns Federal Sex Ed Money

On Tuesday, New Jersey health and education officials declined to accept about $800,000 in federal abstinence education money, saying its new funding requirements contradict the state's sex education and AIDS education programs. Though the state has received abstinence funds annually since 1997, state officials said the new requirements, including not letting teachers discuss contraception and requiring them to say sex within marriage is the "expected standard of human sexual activity," give them much less freedom in designing programs than in past years.

New Jersey, with an AIDS Prevention Act permitting schools to discuss contraception, is the fourth state to reject federal abstinence funding, after Pennsylvania, Maine, and California.

In a letter sent to US Secretary of Health and Human Services Michael Levitt, state Education Commissioner Lucille Davy and Health Commissioner Fred. M. Jacobs said New Jersey will not apply for abstinence funds for the 2006-07 school year. "Some of the elements required are inconsistent and violate our own educational standards," said Jacobs.

In previous years, Jacobs said New Jersey adhered to some but not all of the elements in the Title V federal abstinence education program -- for instance, teaching youths how to reject sexual advances and emphasizing self-sufficiency before sexual debut. However, the new guidelines require community groups that receive the money to adhere to all sections, including one that teaches that monogamy in marriage is the only expected standard and that sex outside of marriage likely has harmful psychological and physical effects, he said.

"Monogamy is not a bad idea, but having the government of New Jersey dictate these things for families is not something we wish to do," Jacobs said. "It isn't the function of state government to create standards [for sexual activity]."

The money had gone to nine community-based groups, such as the Camden County chapter of the American Red Cross and Catholic Community Services. The groups run programs for around 11,000 children ages 10-14.

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