Tennessee Senate approves bill allowing adoption agencies not to place with same-sex couples News
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Tennessee Senate approves bill allowing adoption agencies not to place with same-sex couples

The Tennessee Senate on Tuesday approved HB 836, a bill that would allow child welfare agencies to discriminate against LGBTQ+ families in adoption proceedings based on “religious or moral convictions or policies.” The bill was approved by the House last April and is awaiting review by Tennessee Governor Bill Lee, who has expressed an intent to sign HB 836 into law.

As passed on Tuesday, HB 836 holds that, “No private licensed child-placing agency shall be required to perform, assist, counsel, recommend, consent to, refer, or participate in any placement of a child for foster care or adoption when the proposed placement would violate the agency’s written religious or moral convictions or policies.” Supporters of HB 836 see the bill as a necessary protection against potential lawsuits hostile to religious beliefs. Seven states have enacted similar measures, including Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Alabama, South Dakota, Virginia and Michigan.

HB 836’s passage in Tennessee mirrors efforts by the Trump administration to develop a national rule affording similar protections. President Donald Trump’s proposed rule would do away with an Obama-era measure preventing discriminatory foster care agencies from receiving federal funding.

Tennessee adoption practices are not expected to change should HB 836 become law. Rather, the bill would provide legal protections for agencies that deny adoption to LGBTQ+ families based on religious beliefs and moral convictions. Opponents of HB 836 have expressed concerns that the bill interferes with LGBTQ+ rights and limits the potential for needy children to be fostered or adopted.