Denver, CO -- One Colorado, the state’s leading advocacy organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) Coloradans and their families, issued the following statement from Executive Director, Daniel Ramos on the Department of Health and Human Services announcement of a new regulation that will allow tax-payer funded adoption agencies to refuse placement into LGBTQ homes.

‍“It’s shameful that on the first day of National Adoption Awareness Month, the Trump Administration announces another attack on LGBTQ youth and families. If put into effect, this new regulation will harm the nearly 6,000 children in Colorado’s foster care system as well as parents seeking to adopt, and will have rippling effects throughout the entire LGBTQ community. The proposed regulation cites the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) as the basis of denying equal protections to LGBTQ families. Freedom of religion is important, but that freedom does not give the federal government and tax-payer funded adoption agencies license to discriminate against hardworking, compassionate LGBTQ families seeking to adopt.”  

‍Daniel Ramos, Executive Director, One Colorado. The Department of Health and Human Services announced on Friday, November 1, 2019 that they are moving forward with the proposed regulation.