Arizona lawmakers are on track to repeal a law that forbids sex education promoting a "homosexual lifestyle," following a federal lawsuit.

The Arizona House voted 55-5 to approve a floor amendment Wednesday afternoon introduced by Rep. T.J. Shope, R-Coolidge, that would repeal the so-called "No promo homo" law.

The proposal still needs a final vote of the full Senate before advancing to Gov. Doug Ducey.

Shope told The Arizona Republic that he considered the 1991 legislation "antiquated" and his amendment would resolve the pending lawsuit.

"I was 6 years old whenever the law was passed in the first place," he said.

The suit filed last month by Equality Arizona questions the constitutionality of the law. It names state schools Superintendent Kathy Hoffman and members of the Arizona State Board of Education as defendants.

On the House floor, Rep. Andrés Cano, D-Tucson, identified himself as the youngest LGBT lawmaker in the chamber.

"Repealing this divisive, discriminatory language is not a Republican win or a Democratic win," he said. "It is a win for Arizona and all her beautiful, diverse and, yes, LGBT people."

The renewed push to repeal the law can, in part, be credited to Hoffman, a Democrat and former educator who took office in January. She has called the law "anti-LGBTQ" and called for lawmakers to repeal it in her State of Education speech in February.

"I believe this law is indefensible and its repeal is long overdue," she wrote in a statement Wednesday as calls for a repeal heightened. "I urge the Legislature to take immediate action and remove this law from statute."

It appears a repeal will come with broad support, even from organizations that previously trumpeted support for the law.

"The unfortunate, continued misrepresentation of the law perpetuates a skewed view of its intent," Cathi Herrod, executive director of the conservative Center for Arizona Policy, wrote in a statement. "Upon review of the lawsuit, which reads more like a political statement than a legal pleading, I support and agree with efforts by Arizona lawmakers to repeal the current law’s contested provisions."

The Arizona Attorney General's Office sent a letter to Speaker of the House Rusty Bowers and Senate President Karen Fann Tuesday, informing the lawmakers that Attorney General Mark Brnovich's office would not intervene to defend the law.

The letter may have prompted state lawmakers to begin reworking the law.

Sen. Martín Quezada, D-Glendale, introduced a bill this year and in previous years to completely repeal the 1991 no promo homo law, but each year Republican leadership has killed those bills.

He wrote in a text message that he would only accept a complete repeal.

"It's exactly my bill," he wrote after reading the amendment. "I'm very happy. Huge victory for AZ students."

The Phoenix chapter of GLSEN, which advocates for LGBT students, called for a full repeal in a statement Tuesday.

"The resolution of the lawsuit is now in the Legislature’s hands," the statement read. "We call on the Arizona State Legislature to pass a 'clean repeal' bill that removes Section C from the statute."

It's unclear if the lawsuit from Equality Arizona would vanish immediately if a repeal passed.

At this point, the State Board of Education could still choose to defend the lawsuit in court. Members may review with attorneys in a closed-door executive session on April 15.

Lawsuit refers to 2 unnamed students

Arizona's law, enacted in 1991, bars K-12 public-school sexual-education instruction that:

Promotes a homosexual lifestyle.

Portrays homosexuality as a positive alternative lifestyle.

Suggests that some methods of sex are safe methods of homosexual sex.

The lawsuit identifies two unnamed students, a 12-year-old in Tucson who identifies as queer and a 15-year-old gay student at a public high school in metro Phoenix.

The 15-year-old, referred to in the complaint as “A.A.,” claims that he was harmed by the curriculum ban, and bullied often for being gay. In the complaint, the student said he heard from older students that when others have asked about safe sex for gay people, teachers have avoided the question.

“A.A. is afraid to ask questions relevant to LGBTQ people for fear that his questions will lead to further harassment and bullying from his peers,” the complaint reads.

The student said he is also worried that he won’t learn medically accurate information about his sexual health to stay safe, according to the complaint.

Who voted no

Five Republican state representatives voted against the proposal:

Rep. John Fillmore, R-Apache Junction.

Rep. Mark Finchem, R-Oro Valley.

Rep. Anthony Kern, R-Glendale.

Rep. Warren Petersen, R-Gilbert.

Rep. Bret Roberts, R-Maricopa.

Reach the reporter at Lily.Altavena@ArizonaRepublic.com or follow her on Twitter @LilyAlta.

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