This bill amends the definition of "grooming behavior" in Iowa law concerning mandatory reporting to the Board of Educational Examiners (BOEE) for licensed school employees. The current law defines grooming behavior as actions intended to entice or entrap a student or students to engage in a sex act. The bill revises this definition to specify that grooming behavior refers to any pattern of behavior that aims to entice or entrap a student with the intent to take advantage of them for the benefit of the individual engaging in the behavior, which includes but is not limited to engaging in a sex act with the student.

The changes made in the bill include the insertion of the phrase "pattern of" to clarify the nature of grooming behavior and the replacement of "make" with "take advantage of" to emphasize the exploitative intent behind such actions. Additionally, the bill removes the reference to "students" in the context of the intent, focusing instead on the individual student. These modifications aim to enhance the clarity and effectiveness of the law in addressing grooming behavior by licensed school employees.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 256.160