“Twins” Bill Becomes Law

Legislation Guarantees Rights of Parents of Multiple Birth Children

St. Paul -- Surrounded by multiple birth children and their parents, Governor Pawlenty signed into law a bill giving parents of multiple birth children the right to decide if their twins or higher multiples should be placed together or in different school classrooms. The bill was sponsored in the Senate by Senator Dennis Frederickson (R-New Ulm) and in the House by Representative Marty Seifert (R-Marshall).

“Twin children share a special bond,” said Frederickson, himself a father of twins. “When that bond is disregarded, the effects can be very traumatic for the children and their parents.”

The need for the bill came from Sen. Frederickson’s legislative assistant, Wendy Haavisto, a mother of boy/girl twins.

“My husband and I requested that our kids be placed together in the same classroom,” recalled Haavisto. “After we were told they would be together, we arrived at orientation to find the twins assigned to different classes. The next few weeks were very stressful for our family.”

Haavisto told Frederickson about her situation which prompted him to author this bill. “The bill took on a life of its own,” said Frederickson, “We received calls from parents across the state and nation in support of the bill.

“We had no idea how many families with twins were experiencing problems with their school administrators,” continued Frederickson. “It was surprising to learn that schools thought they knew the children better than the parents.”

Bipartisan sponsorship of the bill in the Senate and House allowed for the bill to pass the Senate and the House unanimously.

Haavisto’s family visited with Governor Pawlenty after the signing. After shaking hands with Haavisto’s twins, he said, “This is a good law. Now no one can keep you from being together in school.”

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