Tallahassee, FL (WTXL)--Next month is STD awareness month and it's needed because STD rates are on the rise among teens.  According to the center for disease control each year, there are approximately 19 million new STD infections, and almost half of them are among youth aged 15 to 24. ABC 27's Lauren Dorsett takes a look at the prevalence of STD's among teens in our area, and the challenges in changing risky behavior.

Dwight Kemp is a student at Florida State. He's also the president of FSU Today. A student organization designed to promote health and safe sex practices.

"I actually learned how little people know about it," said Kemp.

Dwight says he was motivated to get involved in the peer group after finding out two of his friends had a contracted sexually transmitted infection.

"They have the idea that 'oh that won't happen to me' or he/she is clean," said Kemp.

Planned Parenthood says too many teens are putting themselves at risk.

"The last CDC study that came out said that one in four sexually active teenage girls have contracted a sexually transmitted infection," said Erica Merrell.

And while that was a national study, the local statistics should still be cause for alarm. In Leon County for the past three years there has been an average of 700 new STD cases among 15-19 year olds five new HIV cases among 13-19 year olds. 

So we decided to ask some high schoolers: Are sexually active teens using protection?

"High school? No I don't think their having safe sex," said Diana Ortiz.

"Are teens having safe sex? 'Yeah, majority of the time' how come not all the time? "Not thinking," said high school boy.

Well, according to a CDC study in 2007, 39% of currently sexually active high school students did not use a condom during their last sexual intercourse.

No one wants to see an increase in risky sexual behavior among teens, the questions is how to prevent it, that's what lawmakers are prepared to battle out across the aisle.

"This is a social issue we're all living with the effects of kids making bad decisions on the basis of a lack of information," said Fitzgerald.

Representative Keith Fitzgerald is sponsoring a bill in the Florida House. It calls for more comprehensive sex education. It states school boards that have mandated sex education policies should go beyond abstinence 'only' education.

"In those counties that have abstinence only we see a relationship between poor outcomes with respect to STD's and teen pregnancies," said Fitzgerald.

But others say abstinence only education does work pointing to a decline in sexually activity from 1991 to 2005. Representatives of the Florida Catholic Conference a strong opponent of the bill say kids aren't getting a clear message when it comes to sex.

"For instance we say 'say no to drugs' not 'don't use drugs but if you're going to use them don't get addicted don't overdose and here's how to avoid that," said Michael Sheedy.

Instead Sheedy says there should be more encouragement to abstain.

"By omitting abstinence standards we think it opens it up too much," said Sheedy.

But on the grassroots level young people like Dwight are finding their own ways to educate.

"Even if you feel sex before marriage is something your child shouldn't be engaged with, at the very least they need to be armed with information," said Kemp.

If the Florida Healthy Teens Act Bill does pass parents would still have the right to withdraw their kids.