Faith based Agencies that handle adoptions and foster care may soon have less red tape to deal with.
President Trump moved on Friday to repeal an Obama-era regulation that bars federally funded adoption and foster-care programs from serving families based on their religious beliefs.
The Department of Health and Human Services issued a proposed regulation that would require grant recipients to comply with laws protecting religious liberty, as well as other nondiscrimination statutes. Conflicts in some states have centered on whether foster-care agencies can reject parents based on sexual orientation.
Administration officials said the action is needed to address a crisis in foster care.
A senior administration official told the Washington Times, “Today, the administration is proposing a regulation to fulfill President Trump’s promise to allow faith-based social service providers who receive HHS grants to continue serving their communities without compromising their beliefs.”
The official noted that the Obama administration imposed the rule in its final weeks in office.
The administration has been signaling such a move, saying the former policy has harmed foster-care services. For example, in January, the administration granted a waiver from the Obama rule for Miracle Hill Ministries in South Carolina, which only works with heterosexual Christian families in a federally funded foster care program. Advocates say Miracle Hill wouldn’t be able to continue recruiting parents under the current rule.