Early Victories This Legislative Session

The 2025 legislative session is barely underway, and already we’re seeing victories for parental rights.

First, in Virginia, a bill aimed at removing the state’s religious exemption for homeschoolers was defanged in the Senate Committee on Education and Health.

Senate Bill 1031 (SB1031), sponsored by Sen. Stella Pekarsky (D-36), underwent numerous edits and rewrites during its brief life, frustrating those who wanted to speak against it; it was hard to express their concerns when they couldn’t tell what they were speaking against! But rather than be silenced, the opposition only grew, highlighting “lack of transparency” as just another reason to kill the bill.

Finally, the sponsor in committee offered an amendment to turn the bill into a “study committee,” which is essentially a way to save face while withdrawing the bill. Instead of removing the right of parents, based on their religious convictions, to opt out of mandatory public-school attendance, the measure now would create a committee, made up of specific stake holders such as religiously exempt parents, school administrators, and a representative from the Home Educators Association of Virginia (HEAV), to study the situation and make recommendations to a future legislature. The committee’s views will not be binding, and that’s if the committee ever convenes. It is likely this new measure will die in the Appropriations Committee.

In short, parents in Virginia can breathe a sigh of relief that SB 1031 is no longer a threat. We salute our allies at HEAV and Home School Legal Defense Association for taking the lead on defeating that measure.

Second, Senate Bill 143 (SB143) in Indiana, called the Parents’ Bill of Rights, passed the Senate on Monday by a bipartisan vote of 44-5. The bill includes a clear statement that parental rights are fundamental, and that the state can only limit these rights by the least restrictive means necessary to advance a compelling governmental interest (the “strict scrutiny” standard).

In an IPB News article, Sen. Liz Brown (R-Fort Wayne), the bill’s sponsor, said that under this bill, unless the state has a compelling interest (such as protection from abuse), “they’re going to stay out of the relationship between a parent and child.”

This is the third time we have worked to bring parental rights to Indiana law, and the first time we have made it through the Senate. Given the level of support there, we are hopeful the bill will do well in the House as well, which is its next hurdle. It was referred to the House for consideration on January 28.

As in Virginia, we are not alone in this campaign, and we salute our friends at Alliance Defending Freedom and the Indiana Family Institute for their hard work on this bill.

Third, in Montana, Senate Bill 50 (SB 50) was heard in the Senate Public Health, Welfare, and Safety Committee on January 16. And while no vote has yet been taken, senators at the hearing pushed back against those who opposed the bill during testimony. The bill, sponsored by Senator Emrich, would simply require the Department of Child and Family Services or law enforcement personnel to get a warrant before they remove a child from his home, unless there is good reason to believe the child would suffer physical or sexual abuse in the time it would take to get the warrant. This is a common-sense due process protection that is already the law in many states, and we are hopeful we will see Montana catch up this year.

If you live in Montana, please take a moment to call or email your state senator and let them know you appreciate their support of SB 50 to prevent unwarranted family separations. You can find your lawmaker by entering your address on the map search bar here.

Together, we are seeing great success around the country early in this legislative season.

But there is more to come.

We are already working with key allies to bring parental rights protections (or, in some instances, additional parental rights protections) in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Wyoming, and New York—and the legislative session in most of these states hasn’t even started yet.

And that’s not to mention our key work in the U.S. Congress, where we are currently securing lead sponsors for the Parental Rights Amendment, and promoting other bills to address child welfare reform in the areas of Adoption and Safe Families Act timelines and the problem of “Hidden Foster Care.”

So, please stay tuned for further news and, when necessary, timely alerts to support the good bills, defeat the bad ones, and secure parental rights in your state and in Congress.

Together, we can protect children by empowering parents through quality legislation where you live!