1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Student Non-Discrimination Act of 2018 . 2. Findings and purposes (a) Findings Congress makes the following findings: (1) Public school students who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (referred to in this Act as LGBT ), or are perceived to be LGBT, or who associate with LGBT people, have been and are subjected to pervasive discrimination, including harassment, bullying, intimidation, and violence, and have been deprived of equal educational opportunities, in schools in every part of the Nation. (2) While discrimination of any kind is harmful to students and to the education system, actions that target students based on sexual orientation or gender identity represent a distinct and severe problem that remains inconsistently and inadequately addressed by current Federal law. (3) Numerous social science studies dem­on­strate that discrimination at school has contributed to high rates of absenteeism, academic underachievement, dropping out, and adverse physical and mental health consequences among LGBT youth. (4) When left unchecked, discrimination in schools based on sexual orientation or gender identity can lead, and has led, to life-threatening violence and to suicide. (5) Public school students enjoy a variety of constitutional rights, including rights to equal protection, privacy, and free expression, which are infringed when school officials engage in or fail to take prompt and effective action to stop discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. (6) Provisions of Federal statutory law expressly prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, disability, and national origin. Numerous Federal courts have correctly interpreted the prohibitions on sex discrimination to include discrimination based on sex stereotypes, sexual orientation, and gender identity. However, the absence of express Federal law prohibitions on discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity has created unnecessary