WASHINGTON, D.C. – Recently, U.S. Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Tim Scott (R-SC) introduced the Child Welfare Inclusion Act, legislation to protect faith-based foster care providers.

“It is unacceptable for the government to make it more difficult for a child to find a safe, stable, and loving family,” said Senator Tillis. “When a family decides to adopt or foster a child, they deserve to get help from the provider of their choice. Faith-based adoption and foster care providers have a history of connecting children with loving homes, and this legislation ensures those providers can continue their child welfare services free of discrimination.”

“Far too many children are waiting, right now, either for adoption or foster families,” said Russell Moore, President of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. “Our government must not stand in the way of those seeking to care for them. It is difficult to imagine a more important goal for child welfare policy than the goal of seeing vulnerable children who need a loving home be united with families committed to caring for them. Protecting the rights of faith-based adoption and foster care agencies only ensures that more children will have access to the love and support they so desperately need. This is precisely what the Child Welfare Provider Inclusion Act would do.”

In addition to Senators Tillis and Scott, the bill is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Roy Blunt (R-MO), Mike Braun (R-IN), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), John Cornyn (R-TX), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Steve Daines (R-MT), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), John Kennedy (R-LA), James Lankford (R-OK), Mike Lee (R-UT), James Risch (R-ID), Ben Sasse (R-NE), Rick Scott (R-FL), and Roger Wicker (R-MS). 

Companion legislation was introduced in the House by U.S. Representative Mike Kelly (R-PA). The bill is supported by the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Heritage Action, and the Family Research Council.

Background

• The Child Welfare Provider Inclusion Act would protect child welfare providers from being discriminated against for acting in accordance with their deeply held religious beliefs.
• Specifically, the bill would prohibit federal, state, and local government agencies that receive federal adoption assistance funding from discriminating against child welfare service providers based on the providers’ unwillingness to take action contrary to their sincerely held religious beliefs.
• This would include all agencies that receive funding under Part B (Child and Family Services) or Part E (Federal Payments for Foster Care, Prevention, and Permanency) of Title IV of the Social Security Act.

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