Court rules Texas can place LGBTQ+ foster kids into unsupportive homes
AUSTIN (KXAN) — A federal court judge ruled March 13 that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) cannot require Texas' Department of Family and Protective Services to place LGBTQ+ children in supportive foster homes.
District Judge Jeremy D. Kernodle, appointed to the court in 2018 by President Donald Trump, wrote that HHS overstepped its statutory authority by creating "a new category of foster children" and by requiring "new and untested methods in fostering."
"HHS’s interpretation of its rulemaking authority runs into another problem: the major questions doctrine. It’s highly unlikely that Congress would authorize HHS to issue a rule with such sweeping social policy implications by using the statutory language here," wrote Kernodle, citing the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in West Virginia v. EPA.
He also called HHS' stance, which was that "safe and proper care" for children includes affirming LGBTQ+ status, "untenable."
"HHS insists that 'safe and proper care' requires that States provide for 'LGBTQI+ foster youth' exactly as outlined in the Final Rule," Kernodle wrote, "The Court [does not] owe any deference to HHS’s mere assertion that the Final Rule falls within a permissible interpretation of 'safe and proper care'...Congress did not delegate to HHS the authority to compel States to support and affirm 'LGBTQI+ foster children' under a general statutory guarantee of 'safe and proper care.'"
Kernodle's ruling can be read below:
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton called the ruling a "tremendous victory" in a March 21 press release.
"The Biden Administration had no authority to force radical gender ideology onto vulnerable children and demand compliance from foster care providers under threat of lost funding,” Paxton said. “I will always fight to protect our values and ensure that Texas children are not used as pawns in the federal government’s social experiments.”
The rule was implemented under former HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. It would have prevented conversion therapy and retaliation against foster parents for supporting an LGBTQ+ child.
“Every child deserves a safe and loving home,” Becerra said in an April 29, 2024 press release. “When any child comes into government care, they should have supports and services that meet their specific needs. By addressing the needs of LGBTQI+ children, this rule brings us one step closer to ensuring that all children have the opportunity to thrive.”
The HHS, now led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is unlikely to appeal the decision.