Texas Sues Biden Admin Over Foster Care Rule Requiring Special Placements For LGBTQ Youth

Texas attorney general Ken Paxton sued the Biden administration Tuesday over a rule that forces states to embed gender ideology into the foster care system.

The rule, which was finalized in April, requires states to ensure foster care placements affirm a child’s gender identity or sexual orientation. Along with exacerbating a “growing shortage” of providers, Texas’ lawsuit argues the rule “shoehorns gender ideology into a statutory scheme that allows no room for it,” conditioning federal funding on the state’s acceptance of particular views of gender.

“The Biden Administration is attempting to hold the Texas foster care system hostage to force unscientific, fringe beliefs about gender upon the entire country,” Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a statement. “The new rule directly violates federal law and threatens to undermine our vital foster care programs, putting children who need safe, loving homes at risk.”

The lawsuit argues the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has no statutory authority to enforce the rule, as Title IV “does not address sexual orientation or gender identity.”

“These is no clear statutory basis for a new condition requiring separate placement conditions for LGBTQI+ children,” the lawsuit contends. “Accordingly, States like Texas were not on fair notice that their receipt of federal funds for foster care could be burdened by a regulatory mandate to affirm LGBTQI+ wards.”

Paxton was among a group of Republican attorneys general who opposed the rule when it was proposed in September 2023.

Under the final rule, designated placements for LGBTQI+ youth must establish an environment that “supports the child’s LGBTQI+ status or identity,” undergo training to support the child’s gender-related needs and facilitate access to “resources, services, and activities that support their health and well-being.”

The HHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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