A sex education controversy is underway northwest of Madison. Juneau County District Attorney Scott Southworth wrote a letter to five school districts in his county urging them to cease their human growth and development curriculum. Southworth believes a new state law will increase sexual activity among children and put teachers at risk of criminal liability.

The Healthy Youth Act, passed last month, will require teachers in public school districts across Wisconsin to teach proper contraceptive use, including condom use and birth-control pill regimentation, in health classes beginning next fall.

Districts will have only two options: comply with the law, or end human growth and development courses. Parents will have the option to exempt their children from the courses.

Even though instruction on contraceptive use will be required in Wisconsin health classes next school year, teachers will still stress abstinence as the most effective way to prevent pregnancy and sexually-transmitted diseases, according to a brief from the Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau.

State Representative Kelda Roys (D-Madison), who helped write the original bill, said in an interview with the Tribune that the law will help Wisconsin children make healthy personal choices concerning sexuality and will help in alleviating teen pregnancies and the spread of sexually-transmitted diseases. She added that abstinence-only education has had no effect on these problems.

Southworth, on the other hand, is concerned that teaching children how to use contraception encourages sexual activity, which will turn human growth and development classes into “programming that promotes the sexualization — and sexual assault — of our children.”

Southworth said the law may make teachers criminally liable in cases of sexual assault among students because their instruction may be construed as “contributing the the delinquency of a child,” which is prohibited under Wisconsin law. The age of consent in Wisconsin is 16.

“It is akin to teaching children about alcohol use, then instructing them on how to make mixed alcoholic drinks,” Southworth said in his letter to school districts.

Roys called Southworth’s legal interpretation “preposterous.” She said the general state prohibition on contributing to the delinquency of a minor isn’t strong enough to take precedence over specific laws such as the Healthy Youth Act.

Southworth’s letter also warns school districts that the law will undermine parental authority and require instruction on homosexuality and transgenderism, which would “likely conflict with the religious beliefs and values of most Juneau County families,” Southworth said.

Roys questioned Southworth’s motivation in writing the letter, saying he stepped outside his bounds as district attorney by going beyond his duty in simply clarifying the law.

“It’s clear from his letter that he is personally and morally opposed to comprehensive sexual education,” Roys said.