Secret Meeting Pushes Kentucky Anti-Adoption Bill Through Committee
March 9, 2009
After a huge rally last week , the Kentucky Senate Judiciary Committee advanced a controversial bill that would prohibit adoption or foster parenting by any person "cohabiting with a sexual partner outside of a marriage”. While this bill is clearly aimed at the LGBT community, it could also prevent other unmarried Kentuckians from serving as adoptive or foster parents. Chris Hartman, director of the Fairness Campaign, sent this update on Kentucky’s proposed adoption ban.
In a secret meeting called late last Thursday evening, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed a statewide adoption ban, SB 68, unanimously, without debate. The bill, estimated by the Williams Institute at UCLA Law (.PDF) to cost Kentucky over $5 million and leave scores of children without an adopted family each year, seeks to ban unmarried couples from providing adoptive or foster care in the Commonwealth. By 4pm the next day, much of the staff as well as the official legislative website in Frankfort had still not been updated on the bill’s Thursday-night passage, even as it received its first reading on the Senate floor. It will go on to a second reading this Monday, with the final reading on Tuesday afternoon, when it will be voted on by the entire State Senate. The Fairness Campaign is holding a rally at the Capitol in Frankfort on Tuesday (3/10) at 1pm. Please join child welfare advocates and fair-minded Kentuckians as we remind our elected representatives that this bill is wrong for Kentucky. Imposing restrictions on otherwise qualified adoptive and foster care applicants is bad policy, and with over 7,000 children in need of home this bill works against the best interest of Kentucky's most vulnerable children to be further disadvantaged.
If you live in Kentucky, please plan to attend the rally on Tuesday. HRC will be issuing an action alert today to encourage our Kentucky members to urge their state legislators to oppose the adoption ban. We'll post the link to the alert once it's available. **UPDATE** Use HRC's action alert to tell Kentucky legislators to say no to the adoption ban.
