Massachusetts officials have reversed course on a contentious foster care policy that barred religious families from obtaining licenses unless they agreed to affirm children’s LGBTQ identities.
The news marks a significant victory for religious liberty advocates and the Trump administration.
The Department of Children and Families removed language from its licensing requirements that mandated foster parents support and affirm the LGBTQIA+ identity of children placed in their care.
The policy change came after federal regulators issued a warning and religious families filed a constitutional lawsuit.
Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative legal organization, challenged the gender identity mandate in federal court on First Amendment grounds.
The group represented multiple religious foster families who refused to sign agreements contradicting their faith-based beliefs about biological sex.
In September, the Administration for Children and Families sent correspondence to the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families stating the policy violated constitutional protections.
Federal regulators announced they would launch an investigation into the matter.
According to an announcement from Alliance Defending Freedom on Wednesday, the state agency adopted amended licensing rules on Friday.
The updated policy took effect immediately upon adoption.
The revised requirements now ask foster parent applicants to support the individual identity and needs of children rather than specifically their sexual orientation and gender identity.
This language change represents a fundamental shift in the state’s approach to foster care licensing.
DCF Commissioner Staverne Miller addressed the policy modification in a statement provided to Fox News Digital.
“The Department of Children and Families’ top priority is providing a safe and supportive home for all children in foster care,” Miller said.
“We are also committed to ensuring that no one is prevented from applying or reapplying to be a foster parent because of their religious beliefs.”
Legal documents revealed that DCF based its decision on communications from the Administration for Children and Families indicating the state policy violated applicants’ constitutional rights.
The department implemented the changes on an emergency basis to prevent potential escalation by federal authorities.
The lawsuit centered on two religious foster families, Greg and Marianelly Schrock and Nick and Audrey Jones, who foster young children but declined to sign the gender contract.
The Schrocks had their license revoked in June after refusing to comply with the requirement.
Alliance Defending Freedom senior counsel Johannes Widmalm-Delphonse welcomed the policy change.
“Massachusetts has told us that this new regulation will no longer exclude Christian and other religious families from foster care because of their commonly held beliefs that boys are boys and girls are girls,” he said in Wednesday’s announcement.
Widmalm-Delphonse indicated the legal battle may continue until religious freedoms are fully protected.
“Our clients—loving, caring foster families who have welcomed vulnerable children into their homes—as well as many other families affected by this policy, are eager to reapply for their licenses,” he added.
“This amendment is a step in the right direction, and we commend Massachusetts officials for changing course. But this case will not end until we are positive that Massachusetts is committed to respecting religious persons and ideological diversity among foster parents.”
Additional foster families came forward with similar experiences under the previous policy.
Lydia and Heath Marvin, who were not involved in the federal lawsuit, told Fox in November that they also lost their licenses over the gender identity requirement.
The Marvins had fostered eight children under age four since 2020.
They lost their licenses in April after unsuccessfully requesting religious accommodation from the state agency.
Lydia Marvin explained their position to Fox.
“We would absolutely love, care for, and support any child in our home, but this was asking us to go against our Christian faith,” she said.
