The Senate Education Committee webpage, with meeting minutes, is at: http://www.le.state.ut.us/asp/interim/Commit.asp?Year=2006&Com=SSTEDU The bill can be read and followed from: http://www.le.state.ut.us/~2006/htmdoc/sbillhtm/SB0096.htm There is an option at that page to have notice of any activity on the bill emailed to you. An audio file of the Jan. 17 committee meeting where the bill was referred to the full Senate can be listened to from a link on that page or directly using RealPlayer by url: rtsp://ra.le.state.ut.us:554/committee/rW130-0117060.rm Members of the Senate Education Committee are: Sen. David L. Thomas, Chair Sen. Patrice M. Arent Sen. D. Chris Buttars Sen. Dan R. Eastman Sen. Karen Hale Sen. Mark B. Madsen Sen. Howard A. Stephenson The debate on SB 96 begins at recording time index - 1:11:10 ending at time index 1:58:37. The Office of Legislative Counsel review note to S.B 96 states that "Based on a limited legal review, this legislation has not been determined to have a high probability of being held unconstitutional." I have not listened to the recording in full. In his opening statement, Senator Buttars states that he is in favor of "Divine Design," but that he has removed all faith-based initiatives from SB 96. Buttars agrees as the existence of natural selection as an evolutionary force, but claims that there is no consensus among the scientific community on how life began or whether humans evolved from primates. He claims that his bill is designed to prevent teachers and textbooks from improperly overstating the extent of consensus among the scientific community. Purported textbook overstatements include that all scientists feel that man descended from primates, that for all descended forms of humans, there are intermediate fossil forms at all stages of primate evolution, and omitting that Darwin original idea that island finches were an isolated population has since been disproven. Sen. David L. Thomas, Committee Chair, asked that witnesses refrain from discussing religion, since religion had been removed from the bill. Witness statements began with a presentation by the Utah State Board of Education on its curriculum and its position statement that scientific consensus does exist as to the evolutionary descent of man. The State of Education science core curriculum position paper on the origin of life is inconsistent with teaching good critical scientific reasoning skills. Buttars then questioned the Board of Education witness on Darwin's statements on island finches included in a advanced placement biology textbook used in a Utah school. Buttars asserted that certain of Darwin's assumptions on island finches had since been disproved and where no longer accepted by the majority of scientists. Sen. Mark B. Madsen inquired as to what other theories the bill would require to be taught, outside the standard model of evolution. Senator Buttars disputed that the bill required the teaching of any other theory of evolution. Buttars stated that the bill does not require the teaching of any other theory of the origin of life. Discussion of the practical effect of the language in the bill that the Board of Education's curriculum "shall require that instruction to students on _any theory_ regarding the origins of life, or the origins or present state of the human race, shall stress that not all scientists agree on which theory is correct." Emphasis added. The position of the Board of Education representative is that "any theory," including lay unscientific theories, would be required to be taught in Utah schools under the express language of the bill. Several more pro and con witnesses made presentations, focusing on the manufactured issue that some factual dispute exists in the scientific community as the consensus theory of evolution. For example, a retired mechanical engineer implied that Jay Stephen Gould's theory of punctuated equilibirm indicated belief in a divine, non-chance creation of species. The committee as whole voted against Sen. Patrice M. Arent's request to hold continued hearings to allow more debate and committee deliberation. Senator Buttars felt that the existing witnesses had outlined the issues adequately and further testimony would be cumulative. Senator Buttars request to hold an immediate vote on recommending the bill to the Senate floor was granted. In her summation, Sen. Arnet argued that the legislature should not second guess the curriculum experts at the Utah Board of Education. Senator Arnet also noted that Senator Buttars had twice lobbied her to vote in the favor of the bill based on her religion. Senator Buttars waived summation and called for an immediate vote. The bill was passed out of committee with a favorable recommendation. The vote was 4-for and 2-against. As to an online calendar of what daily floor debates will occur on the Senate and House floors, which might state when SB 96 will be heard on the Senate floor, I do not know. - C __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com