Federal Funds for No-Sex Ed?

A Senate committee voted Tuesday night to restore $50 million in annual federal funding for abstinence-only education, reports the Associated Press. President Barack Obama cut federal funding for abstinence-only education in May in his 2010 budget.

The measure, proposed by Republican senator Orrin Hatch of Utah, passed on a 12-11 vote by the Senate Finance Committee. It must pass the full Senate and House before any money would become available.

While Hatch says abstinence education works, Sen. Max Baucus of Montana, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, disagrees.

Baucus also proposed a measure, which passed 14-9, that would make funds available for programs that teach students about contraception and sexually transmitted diseases in addition to abstinence.

Federal legislators will have to reconcile both approved measures during the current debates on health care reform.