Federal Complaint Says Montgomery County Schools Sidestepped PPRA, Denying Parent Access to Curriculum

Federal complaint alleges Montgomery County Public Schools sidestepped federal law

America First Legal (AFL), a conservative legal group, has filed a federal complaint accusing Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) in Maryland of improperly processing a parent's request to inspect classroom materials — a request AFL says should have been handled under the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA).

Allegations and request

The complaint centers on a request from Rosalind Hanson, director of development for Moms for Liberty, who asked to review her child’s instructional materials. AFL contends MCPS "incorrectly processed" Hanson’s request as a Maryland Public Information Act record request rather than following the PPRA’s mandated parental inspection procedures.

AFL counsel Alice Kass: "This is not a state records issue — it’s a federal violation. Parents have a right to know what their children are being taught, and Montgomery County cannot hide behind procedural loopholes to avoid transparency."

Why AFL says PPRA applies

Under the PPRA, parents have a federal right to inspect "all instructional materials" used in the classroom. AFL argues that MCPS's Family Life and Human Sexuality curriculum — which consists of lesson plans and instructional resources — clearly falls within the PPRA definition, and therefore should have been made available for parental review without fees or state-records processing delays.

Relief sought

In its letter to MCPS and the U.S. Department of Education’s Civil Rights Division, AFL asks the district to:

• Reclassify Hanson’s request as a PPRA matter rather than a Maryland public-records request;
• Provide full access to the requested instructional materials without charge; and
• Clarify and update district procedures for processing PPRA requests going forward.

AFL’s press release accuses MCPS of "burying the request in bureaucratic red tape," imposing unlawful delays and fees, and effectively denying a parent the federal right to review curriculum materials.

Context and related developments

AFL has promoted parental rights under the PPRA throughout the year and published a toolkit to help parents understand how to request transparency in schools, including a template letter. AFL President Gene Hamilton said the toolkit underscores that "schools answer to parents," and emphasized protecting parental authority over children’s education.

The dispute follows heightened national attention to curriculum and parental opt-outs after the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year ruled 6-3 that parents may exclude their children from lessons containing themes about homosexuality and transgenderism when such lessons conflict with the parents’ religious beliefs. That case involved Maryland parents who said their district had introduced elementary students to books addressing gender transitions, Pride parades and same-sex relationships, and who contested the district’s handling of opt-outs.

MCPS response

Fox News Digital contacted MCPS for comment; at the time of the report the district had not publicly responded to the AFL complaint.

Reporting contributed by Fox News Digital.