A Southern California school district filed a lawsuit against Gov. Gavin Newsom’s (D-CA) new law prohibiting districts from notifying parents when children change their gender identification.

The law bars school districts from passing or enforcing policies that mandate staff members to disclose information regarding a student’s sexual orientation or gender identity without the student’s consent.

The Chino Valley Unified School District and several parents argued this law infringes on parental rights protected under the U.S. Constitution.

“School officials do not have the right to keep secrets from parents, but parents do have a constitutional right to know what their minor children are doing at school,” Emily Rae, a lawyer representing the district, said in a press release.

However, Newsom spokeswoman Izzy Gardon dismissed the lawsuit as “deeply unserious.”

“California law ensures minors can’t legally change their name or gender without parental consent, and parents continue to have guaranteed and full access to their student’s educational records consistent with federal law,” Gardon said. “We’re confident the state will swiftly prevail in this case.”

Last year, Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit against Chino Valley USD over a policy requiring school staff members to notify parents of their children’s gender identification or pronoun changes.

Bonta argued that the law discriminated against “gender nonconforming students.”

The policy was temporarily halted by a judge pending the case’s resolution, after which the district revised it to mandate parental notification for broadly any student record changes requested by a child.

“This law helps keep children safe while protecting the critical role of parents,” Newsom spokesman Brandon Richards said in a statement.

“It protects the child-parent relationship by preventing politicians and school staff from inappropriately intervening in family matters and attempting to control if, when, and how families have deeply personal conversations.”

The new law, set to take effect in January 2025, also mandates the state Department of Education to allocate resources for families of LGBT students from seventh grade through high school.

“This bill undermines [parents’] fundamental role and places boys and girls in potential jeopardy,” California Family Council President Jonathan Keller said in a statement.

“Moms and dads have both a constitutional and divine mandate to guide and protect their kids, and AB 1955 egregiously violates this sacred trust.”

According to Associated Press reporting, at least six states require schools to notify parents if minors disclose they are transgender or request a different pronoun: Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

Virginia requested school boards to implement similar policies, although it does not have a law.

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Arizona and Idaho also mandate that schools provide information to parents. However, they do not specifically address gender expression or sexual orientation.

Last year, New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin sued four school districts, alleging their policies violate an anti-discrimination law that permits sharing gender-expression information with a student’s family only with consent or if it jeopardizes the student’s well-being.