For every 100 children in foster care in America these days, there are only 57 licensed foster homes available, according to reports. The Administration for Children and Families estimates there are some 330,000 children in foster care as of the latest numbers from about a year ago.
Joe Biden made that problem more critical by removing from the system Christian families who refused his demands to affirm LGBT beliefs to the children.
Now President Donald Trumps is rolling back Biden’s punishment.
Officials in the Department of Health and Human Services have posted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on the federal register that will rescind a 2022 Biden order.
A report posted by Washington Examiner said ACF Assistant Secretary Alex Adams said the Trump administration wants to send the message “We need more foster homes.”
That would contradict the Biden-era rule that excluded responsible and qualified families because of their biblical beliefs.
“Your most likely families to raise their hand and volunteer as a foster family are those who have sincerely held religious convictions,” Adams explained. “So the message that you send is so important. The message we’re trying to send is we’re going to roll out the red carpet for everybody.”
In fact, a 2024 study from the Bipartisan Policy Center discovered Christian families were twice as likely as non-Christians to seek permission to be foster parents.
“Nearly two-thirds of foster parents went to church weekly, compared with only 40% of the U.S. population,” the report said.
The rule already had been trashed by a federal court in Texas which concluded the affirmation demand was compelled speech and was forbidden by the Constitution.
Adams said the notice is a definitive move to prevent states from making such demands anyway.
Terry Schilling of the American Principles Project which opposes gender mutilations for minors told the Washington Examiner he “applauds HHS and the White House for putting families first.”
Biden, Schilling confirmed, targeted families “for their faith and religious beliefs.”
State agencies already have been warned, via letters, they cannot exclude foster families over those deeply held religious beliefs.
