Lawmakers in Oklahoma have passed legislation to protect religious foster and adoption agencies. All that’s needed is for Gov. Mary Fallin, R-OK, to sign the bill.
SB 1140 protects adoption groups against lawsuits, the loss of public funding, and certificate revocation by the Oklahoma Department of Human Services if the sole reason for any of these actions is child placement rejection based on morals or religion. Opponents say that it is state-funded bigotry because groups can be selective while receiving state and federal dollars.
The bill is similar to laws in Virginia, Rhode Island, Michigan, Texas, North Dakota, Mississippi, and South Dakota….
The state’s Catholic bishops praised lawmakers. Bishops David Konderla and Paul Coakley said proponents “understand … the importance of not only protecting faith-based services, but of the dire need to find more families for” Oklahoma’s foster children.