Proposed language that would bar private agencies from discriminating against potential adoptive or foster parents based on sexual orientation in Virginia has been stripped out of regulations to be weighed by the Virginia Board of Social Services.
Martin Brown, Commissioner of the Department of Social Services, requested that the board adopt the proposed regulations without the sexual orientation provision, which opponents had argued could infringe on the religious beliefs of private, faith-based adoption agencies.
Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli had previously advised the board that it lacked the authority to implement the new regulations.
The commissioner’s memo prompted a response from the gay rights organizations Equality Virginia and the Human Rights Campaign on Monday.
“The State Board of Social Services has the chance to put children first,” said Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign. “We ask members of the board to reject the Commissioner’s recommendations and eliminate discrimination in the adoption process.
“We also call on the legislature to pass legislation that makes the best interest of the child the sole basis for adoption, not whether someone is gay or whether two caring adults are able to be married.”
