Baggy Pants Ban Zips Though Florida Senate

Saggy pants bill passes state Senate
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 15, 2011 12:40 PM CDT
Baggy Pants Ban Zips Though Florida Senate
Siplin says a lot of school districts are afraid to enforce dress codes and a law would help them.   (AP Photo/Mel Evans)

Florida State Sen. Gary Siplin's long quest to get the law behind baggy pants bans is nearing fruition. Siplin's bill to make it illegal for students on campuses to wear clothes exposing their underwear has passed the state Senate, and a similar bill is making its way through the House, reports the Orlando Sentinel. The maximum penalty for offenders would be a 3-day school suspension.

Most school districts in the state already ban droopy pants, but Siplin—who says the public is sick of seeing people's "nasty and dirty" underwear—argues that enacting a law would give the various bans more teeth. Siplin, who is black, rejects the ACLU's fears that the law would disproportionately affect minority students. "It's not confined to minorities. I'm sure you've seen white kids do it," he says. (More Florida stories.)

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