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By Brian Wilson, The Tennessean

Gov. Bill Haslam is weighing whether to veto a pair of bills passed in the waning days of the legislative session that have pushed social issues to the forefront at the Capitol.

Haslam is facing calls from Democrats to strike down a sex education bill that has drawn national ridicule for its focus on "gateway sexual activity" and legislation meant to pressure Vanderbilt University into dropping an antidiscrimination policy opposed by campus religious groups.

Haslam says he has not yet decided whether to sign the two bills. But he expressed strong reservations about one measure - the Vanderbilt bill - and said the other remains under review.

Haslam has not vetoed a bill since taking office in January 2011, and the move is rare in Tennessee because the legislature can override vetoes with a simple majority. But any veto issued this spring is likely to stick, as legislative leaders expressed a willingness Tuesday to defer to the governor's judgment.

"I respect the governor on that," said Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, the Senate leader. "I hope there won't be a need for that. I'll accept it."

Sex ed overhaul

House Bill 3621 would overhaul the state's sex education curriculum and strengthen its abstinence-based message to students. The legislation, along with the "gateway sexual activity" term featured in it, has gained coverage from state and national media after the House passed it 68-23 last week and the Senate passed the bill 29-1 in early April.

The proposed curriculum would "exclusively and emphatically" promote abstinence, rewriting a two-decades-old code that had been criticized after school officials in Davidson and Knox counties talked to students about alternatives to sexual intercourse. The bill said the new curriculum would be altered at varying levels to be age-appropriate, and could ideally be taught from kindergarten through 12th grade.

The change would significantly alter what is currently taught in local schools, said Jennifer Evetts, an award-winning wellness teacher from Glencliff High School. She said the proposed changes would require students to be taught only about their ideal actions and fail to cover what students need to realistically know about, including contraception and sexually transmitted diseases.

"All of these things need to be addressed," she said. "I need to teach them everything I can."

The legislation would go beyond promoting total abstention from sex, discouraging instructors from promoting any action that may lead to it. Instruction in the proposed sexual education curriculum, according to the revised legislation, could not "promote, implicitly or explicitly, any gateway sexual activity."

The term's meaning led to some confusion among legislators during debate, and was featured in statewide and national media and satirized on Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report."

Haslam told reporters shortly after lawmakers left for the summer on Tuesday that he had not yet reviewed the abstinence bill.

"I don't know enough to comment on that one yet," he said. "We'll work through everything, from the definitions on."

During the bill's debate, Rep. Mike Stewart, D-Nashville, expressed concern about what enforcing the "gateway sexual activity" policy could mean for teachers.

"While I think your bill is well-intentioned, I think it opens up a brave new world of concern for teachers, and I think it's problematic," he said.

According to the latest version of the bill, gateway sexual activity "means sexual contact encouraging an individual to engage in a non-abstinent behavior." Individuals can promote the term under the law "by encouraging, advocating, urging or condoning gateway sexual activities."

The bill's House sponsor, Rep. Jim Gotto, R-Hermitage, said during the bill's final debate that the definition of "sexual contact" is found in the state criminal code.

"We wanted to make it clear," he said. "We wanted to make it absolutely certain so that teachers or outside instructors would not be confused as to what this means."

Evetts agreed with the intent of this part of the legislation.

"I don't think teachers should condone in that," she said. "A professional tone needs to be set."

All-comers challenged

Another bill on its way to the governor's desk, House Bill 3576, was a measure approved by the House on Monday night condemning Vanderbilt University's "all-comers" policy, which attempts to force student organizations to accept all prospective members. The bill bans state universities from adopting the same rules, but lawmakers also added language that would require Vanderbilt to exempt religious organizations from its policy.

The legislation came as a result of a policy Vanderbilt adopted earlier this year that required on-campus students groups to adhere to the university's non-discrimination policy and allow any interested students to join and run for office in any organization.

Haslam has been hesitant to endorse the legislation that would affect Tennessee's largest private school.

"That does concern me," he said Tuesday. "I don't agree with Vanderbilt's decision. I'll be really upfront about that. That being said, I do have some concerns about the state telling a private institution what to do."

The bill, amended on the Senate floor to include the language about Vanderbilt, is another element of a series of discussions and protests about the university's policy. Several religious groups have refused to adhere to the policy and have not re-applied for official recognition from the university.

They argue that the policy forces them to accept members and choose leaders who did not share their faith or beliefs.

While the bill would not take any state funds away or provide a strong level of enforcement for Vanderbilt to change its policies, its sponsor, Sen. Mae Beavers, R-Mt. Juliet, said it would force the university to choose between exempting religious organizations from this policy or expanding it to every student group, including sororities and fraternities.

The legislation passed the Senate 19-12 and the House 61-22.