Arkansas Gay Foster Parenting Ban Dies in Committee
LITTLE ROCK -- A bill to ban gay people and unmarried couples from adopting children or becoming foster parents failed to clear a House committee Tuesday.Senate Bill 959 by Sen. Shawn Womack, R-Mountain Home, failed in a voice vote in the House Judiciary Committee. The measure passed in the Senate this month in a 20-7 vote.
The bill failed for lack of a motion when it came before the House committee Tuesday morning, but in the afternoon Rep. Jim Woods, R-Springdale, who supported the bill, asked for a vote."I suspect a lot of (lawmakers) will get phone calls over the next few days, and a lot of House members will be upset that they didn't get a chance to vote on this," Womack said after the afternoon vote.Womack did not rule out another try on the bill, however, saying "that depends on when we go home."
The bill is a response to a June 2006 state Supreme Court decision upholding a lower court ruling that struck down a state regulation banning gays from becoming foster parents.
Pulaski County Circuit Judge Timothy Fox ruled in December 2004 that in imposing the ban the state Child Welfare Review Board overstepped the authority granted by the Legislature.
After the ruling, the state stopped asking prospective foster parents about their sexual orientation.Womack testified Tuesday his bill would not be unconstitutional. The courts struck down the state regulation only on the basis of separation of powers, he said."
They did not go to the issue of whether this was unconstitutional on its face," Womack said.
He said a Florida law banning adoption by gays has been challenged and upheld three times. He also noted Gov. Mike Beebe said during his campaign a child raised by gay parents might be stigmatized.
Asked Tuesday about Womack's bill, Beebe said he has "constitutional concerns with, not one aspect of it, but virtually all of it."Several committee members raised concerns about the bill."What about somebody who five years ago engaged in a homosexual act but otherwise has been a heterosexual?" asked Rep. David Johnson, D-Little Rock.
Womack said prospective adoptive or foster parents would be asked to state their sexual orientation. Later, Womack added, "Well, what if we have someone that's a sex offender from years ago?"
"If I were a homosexual and I wanted to adopt, I just don't mark the box, and then someone has an idea that I am a homosexual, how would they follow up and how would they prove that?" asked Rep. David "Bubba" Powers, D-Hope."
They would put on evidence for the court to make a determination, just like they would on any other aspect of your qualifications," Womack said.Walt McKay of Mountain Home, a licensed counselor, testified children, especially those who have been put up for adoption or removed from their home, need a stable environment.
"Statistically, homosexuals and heterosexuals who aren't married are not able to provide it," he said.
Rep. Kathy Webb, D-Little Rock, asked McKay if he was aware of research by organizations such as the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychiatric Association which suggests the development, adjustment and well-being of children with homosexual parents does not differ greatly from that of children with heterosexual parents.
"It's really difficult to find an unbiased opinion on either side," McKay said.Rep. Steve Harrelson, D-Texarkana, asked McKay if he believed a 60-year-old celibate homosexual without a partner would be unable to provide a healthy environment for a child.
"I'd have to take that on a case-by-case basis," McKay said"And that's exactly what I'm asking DHS to do," Harrelson said.The committee heard testimony from two teenagers who have been raised by homosexuals. Shay Stout, 15, of Shannon Hills, testified that he has never been harassed by his peers because he has lesbian parents.
Devon Bearden, 15, of Little Rock, said she has been in a home with a mother and a father and in a home with her lesbian grandmother, and "the best one was with my nana."
Woods proposed an amendment to the bill allowing a gay person to adopt a child if he or she is related to the child. The bill already includes an exception allowing an unmarried cohabiting adult to adopt a relative.
The committee rejected the amendment in a voice vote.
"I don't believe anybody should be adopted or go into a home that doesn't have a male figure and a female figure in the house, unless they're blood related," Woods said in an interview.
Johnson said he voted against adopting the amendment because he did not believe it made the bill better. He said he opposed the bill because "the Legislature should stay away from excluding an entire class of people, many of whom may be very well qualified to be foster parents or adoptive parents."
The Morning News' Doug Thompson contributed to this report.
For all information related to this story please see:
http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2007/03/28/topics/assembly07/032807lrleggayban.txt
The bill failed for lack of a motion when it came before the House committee Tuesday morning, but in the afternoon Rep. Jim Woods, R-Springdale, who supported the bill, asked for a vote."I suspect a lot of (lawmakers) will get phone calls over the next few days, and a lot of House members will be upset that they didn't get a chance to vote on this," Womack said after the afternoon vote.Womack did not rule out another try on the bill, however, saying "that depends on when we go home."
The bill is a response to a June 2006 state Supreme Court decision upholding a lower court ruling that struck down a state regulation banning gays from becoming foster parents.
Pulaski County Circuit Judge Timothy Fox ruled in December 2004 that in imposing the ban the state Child Welfare Review Board overstepped the authority granted by the Legislature.
After the ruling, the state stopped asking prospective foster parents about their sexual orientation.Womack testified Tuesday his bill would not be unconstitutional. The courts struck down the state regulation only on the basis of separation of powers, he said."
They did not go to the issue of whether this was unconstitutional on its face," Womack said.
He said a Florida law banning adoption by gays has been challenged and upheld three times. He also noted Gov. Mike Beebe said during his campaign a child raised by gay parents might be stigmatized.
Asked Tuesday about Womack's bill, Beebe said he has "constitutional concerns with, not one aspect of it, but virtually all of it."Several committee members raised concerns about the bill."What about somebody who five years ago engaged in a homosexual act but otherwise has been a heterosexual?" asked Rep. David Johnson, D-Little Rock.
Womack said prospective adoptive or foster parents would be asked to state their sexual orientation. Later, Womack added, "Well, what if we have someone that's a sex offender from years ago?"
"If I were a homosexual and I wanted to adopt, I just don't mark the box, and then someone has an idea that I am a homosexual, how would they follow up and how would they prove that?" asked Rep. David "Bubba" Powers, D-Hope."
They would put on evidence for the court to make a determination, just like they would on any other aspect of your qualifications," Womack said.Walt McKay of Mountain Home, a licensed counselor, testified children, especially those who have been put up for adoption or removed from their home, need a stable environment.
"Statistically, homosexuals and heterosexuals who aren't married are not able to provide it," he said.
Rep. Kathy Webb, D-Little Rock, asked McKay if he was aware of research by organizations such as the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychiatric Association which suggests the development, adjustment and well-being of children with homosexual parents does not differ greatly from that of children with heterosexual parents.
"It's really difficult to find an unbiased opinion on either side," McKay said.Rep. Steve Harrelson, D-Texarkana, asked McKay if he believed a 60-year-old celibate homosexual without a partner would be unable to provide a healthy environment for a child.
"I'd have to take that on a case-by-case basis," McKay said"And that's exactly what I'm asking DHS to do," Harrelson said.The committee heard testimony from two teenagers who have been raised by homosexuals. Shay Stout, 15, of Shannon Hills, testified that he has never been harassed by his peers because he has lesbian parents.
Devon Bearden, 15, of Little Rock, said she has been in a home with a mother and a father and in a home with her lesbian grandmother, and "the best one was with my nana."
Woods proposed an amendment to the bill allowing a gay person to adopt a child if he or she is related to the child. The bill already includes an exception allowing an unmarried cohabiting adult to adopt a relative.
The committee rejected the amendment in a voice vote.
"I don't believe anybody should be adopted or go into a home that doesn't have a male figure and a female figure in the house, unless they're blood related," Woods said in an interview.
Johnson said he voted against adopting the amendment because he did not believe it made the bill better. He said he opposed the bill because "the Legislature should stay away from excluding an entire class of people, many of whom may be very well qualified to be foster parents or adoptive parents."
The Morning News' Doug Thompson contributed to this report.
For all information related to this story please see:
http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2007/03/28/topics/assembly07/032807lrleggayban.txt
