CV NEWS FEED // CatholicVote has learned that the Biden administration’s Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has filed an as-yet unpublished regulatory proposal that would eliminate the words “mother,” “father,” “paternity,” and “his” and “her” from childcare-related laws.
“This proposed regulation aligns with President Biden’s Executive orders” addressing “how the Federal Government should pursue a comprehensive approach to advancing equity for all, including members of the LGBTQI+ communities,” the unpublished document states.
“This regulation is also consistent with the recently enacted ‘Respect for Marriage Act,’” the document adds,
which requires recognition of any marriage between two individuals that is valid where created “for the purposes of any federal law, rule, or regulation in which marital status is a factor” and requires States to provide full faith and credit to marriages entered into in another State. Like the Respect for Marriage Act, this proposed rule recognizes the existence of and legal needs of diverse family structures.
The proposal was filed by the Office of Child Support Services (OCSS), the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), and the HHS.
The document “proposes to make changes to replace the gender-specific terms ‘mother’ and ‘father’ with the gender-neutral term ‘parent’ where such terms appear” in relevant law. “Additionally … we propose to remove the words, ‘his or her’ and replace it with ‘their.’”
Finally, the regulation “proposes to replace the gender-specific term ‘paternity’ with the gender neutral term ‘parentage,’” in order “to be inclusive of all family structures served by the child support services program.”
The document goes on to introduce and define the added word “parentage,” stating:
OCSS further proposes to define “parentage” to mean the establishment of the legal parent-child relationship in accordance with the laws of the State or Tribe. These proposed changes to chapter III of the child support regulations recognize developments in State laws regarding parentage establishment. The proposed rulemaking explains that consistent with title IV-D, States and Tribes have the option to expand their parentage establishment laws and procedures to include establishment of parentage for children of same-sex parents when establishment of paternity does not apply and that such services are eligible for title IV-D matching funds. The proposed rule also allows States to include same-sex parentage establishments in program performance reports. This proposed rulemaking does not change program requirements related to paternity establishment in cases involving different-sex parents.
CatholicVote Director of Government Affairs Tom McClusky called the Biden administration’s new proposal an “overhaul of the American family” and “a flashing red light” for Catholics who care about the future of their country.
“Concerned Catholics, including our bishops, have warned time and time again about the many executive orders and dangerous pieces of legislation cited in this new regulation,” McClusky said:
LGBTQ apologists have always assured us that their policy positions will only lead to more inclusion and more kindness toward persecuted minorities. But moments like this should serve as a wake-up call for Catholics. Our leaders have warned since before the redefinition of marriage in Obergefell that these piecemeal Democratic moves against the family would lead to an assault on our most basic beliefs – and even on our children. The Biden administration is proving they were right all along.
