RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — A bill in the North Carolina General Assembly looks to remove certain books around gender identity and sexuality. The bill bans books considered to have harmful material for students in kindergarten through sixth grade and requires parental consent for students to get acc ess to those books if they’re in seventh grade or older. Additionally, the bill would allow school teachers or staff to be criminally prosecuted if they distribute certain materials to students, including books around gender identity and sexuality. The bill also lays out strict requirements for how health and puberty subjects are taught to students, including requiring teachers "teach that a mutually faithful monogamous heterosexual relationship in the context of marriage is the best lifelong means of avoiding sexually transmitted diseases". CBS 17 did not receive a response from state Democrats, who have previously opposed similar bills, saying books around gender identity and sexuality are helpful for students who are learning who they are. Supporters of the bill though said these topics shouldn't happen in schools. "If parents want to expose their children to these types of books, I think that’s their prerogative," Tami Fitzgerald with the NC Values Coalition said. "They can do it at home, but the rest of the children and their parents shouldn't be made to suffer through this radical gender ideology, sexual activity, and sexuality in K through grade six." Furthermore, the bill requires a review system for library books to be regularly reviewed and monitored. The bill has been referred to committee. ...read more read less