Michigan to refuse to serve prospective parents

[Toothfairy]

http://www.freep.com/story/news/politic ... /71062938/

The decision came after the bill was placed on the Senate's agenda at the last minute -- and with no notice Wednesday -- passed and quickly concurred in by the House of Representatives.

"The state has made significant progress in finding more forever homes for Michigan kids in recent years and that wouldn't be possible without the public-private partnerships that facilitate the adoption process," Snyder said in a statement. "We are focused on ensuring that as many children are adopted to as many loving families as possible regardless of their makeup."

ACLU attorney Brooke Tucker said the group is looking at ways to challenge of the law on constitutional grounds.

Critics of the bills have derided the legislation as state-sanctioned discrimination against same-sex and unmarried couples — especially because many of the faith-based agencies receive public funding from the state.

But supporters say it will help keep all options open for adoptive parents, while not forcing the agencies to compromise their principles for fear of legal retaliation or face closure because of a loss of state funding.

Snyder office included letters from Bethany Christian Services and the Michigan Catholic Conference, which account for 25-30% of the foster care and adoption placements in the state, that expressed fear that Michigan would be like Washington D.C.. Boston, San Francisco or Illinois where faith-based agencies were forced to close when they had to choose between opening their doors to all or risk losing funding.

"If House bills 4188-4190 are not signed into law, and if statewide policy changes in a way that would force Catholic agencies to choose between violating strongly held religious beliefs or ceasing cooperation with the state, the agencies will cease to cooperate," Paul Long, President of the Michigan Catholic Conference wrote Snyder.

In the 2014-15 budget year, $19.9 million in state and federal funds went toward supporting agencies for adoption and foster care services, according to the state Department of Human Services. Nearly $10 million of that total went to faith-based agencies that would be covered under the religious objection bills. Currently, there are 13,000 children in foster care and 2,200 of those have a goal of getting adopted. The state doesn't have a break down of how many children in foster care or awaiting adoption are placed in faith-based foster care settings.

Under current state practice, an adoption or foster care agency can decline the placement of a child in their care for any reason, said Bob Wheaton, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

The bills landed on Gov. Snyder's desk on Wednesday after a swift passage in the Senate and concurrence in the House. Every Republican voted for the bills, save for Sen. Tory Rocca, R-Sterling Heights, who joined all of Michigan's Senate Democrats in voting against them.

Democrats also tried to get amendments passed that would, among other things: require faith-based agencies to provide their policies in writing to potential clients, as well as on their websites and displayed in their facilities, and comply with state and federal civil rights laws; prohibit adoption agencies that receive more than $500,000 in state funding from being able to use the religious objection argument; allow for second parent adoptions for unmarried couples. Every amendment failed.

The Michigan Catholic Conference lauded the Governor's quick signature, saying: "It is critically important to solidify the State's long-standing partnership with faith-based child placement agencies operating collectively in the best interest of the state's most vulnerable children."

But Dana Nessel, the attorney for April DeBoer and Jayne Rowse, the same sex couple at the center of Michigan's marriage case before the U.S. Supreme Court, said if the high court rules in favor of legalizing same sex marriage, "It will feel as though our victory may be a little more hollow with this type of legislation."

Even if there is a positive ruling by the Supreme Court, "In Michigan, what's the point of a same sex couple being able to adopt if you can't find any agency to work with you," Nessel added.

"Gov. Snyder has a history of siding with extreme corporate donors, but sacrificing the health and well-being of children is a new low — even for him," said Lonnie Scott, executive director of the group. "Children deserve loving homes and our elected officials should be held accountable for supporting this blatant act of discrimination."

Snyder signed another bill Thursday that could have an impact on low-income families by discontinuing cash assistance for families who have a child who is chronically truant from school. Supporters said the bill will encourage families to make sure their kids are in school, but critics said it punishes entire families for the actions of one child in the family.

The stupidest shit I've read this morning :angry-banghead: Let's allow kids to wait in foster care instead of allowing them to go to good homes. Wonder if these fools adopted any children. Maybe more christian families should step up and take in these kids with no homes. Michigan stop electing stupid people.

The last bill is fucking stupid! Wtf? How is cutting off a parents cash assistance helping with truancy?

[FloraKitty35]

Another example of fiscal conservatives pissing away money.

[doggie]

I love how it is all about the children unless faith is involved then faith is more important.

[quiversR4hunting]

http://www.freep.com/story/news/politics/2015/06/11/snyder-michigan-same-sex-adoption-religious/71062938/

Snyder signed another bill Thursday that could have an impact on low-income families by discontinuing cash assistance for families who have a child who is chronically truant from school. Supporters said the bill will encourage families to make sure their kids are in school, but critics said it punishes entire families for the actions of one child in the family.

The stupidest shit I've read this morning :angry-banghead: Let's allow kids to wait in foster care instead of allowing them to go to good homes. Wonder if these fools adopted any children. Maybe more christian families should step up and take in these kids with no homes. Michigan stop electing stupid people.

The last bill is fucking stupid! Wtf? How is cutting off a parents cash assistance helping with truancy?

I agree we have to stop electing stupid people the bad thing is that congress keeps gerrymandering the districts.

Gov Snyder has also decided to fix Michigan roads by elimination of the Earned Income Tax Credit. http://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/p ... /71029230/

For those not familiar with the earned income tax credit, here is how you "earn" it:

Is your AGI less than:

•$14,590 ($20,020 for married filing jointly) if you do not have a qualifying child,

•$38,511 ($43,941 for married filing jointly) if you have one qualifying child,

•$43,756 ($49,186 for married filing jointly) if you have two qualifying children, or

•$46,997 ($52,427 for married filing jointly) if you have more than two qualifying children?

Bottom line these people are either poor or living paycheck to paycheck. What do poor and paycheck to paycheck people do with money when they get it? Spend it on things like rent, mortgage, food, fix the car. Tax breaks for the working poor always goes right back into the economy because they are too poor to save (sad to say).

So in summary, Gov Snyder is an ass. He hates disadvantage people (kids in foster care, kids going to public schools, working poor, etc, etc). He is such a fat cat that continues to make money off the backs of the middle class and poor of Michigan.

Even my devoutly Catholic mother- called Snyder out today for denying kids an adoptive home based on sexual orientation. (if my mom was a nun she would be one of the Nuns on the Bus that fights for social justice)

Snyder makes me :angry-banghead: :angry-banghead: :angry-banghead:

[Rubaiyat]

This makes me want to scream. Has anyone thought to ask the kids? I've worked in children's mental health for over 15 years. I've worked with kids in pretty much every situation you can think of, to include many many adopted and foster children (or, as we tend to refer to them: "children.") Aside from the occasional "holy crap these new people are weird" that most kids get when you shove them into a stranger's home, I've yet to have even a single child complain that their new caretakers were same sex, or too old, or too young, or not married enough, or... well now, that's bizarre, they just don't seem to be complaining about much at all when placed in a loving, supportive home. Mostly what they seem to be really bothered by is ABUSE or NEGLECT, not the sexuality of the person feeding them, telling them they did great, and kissing them goodnight.

There is infinite variety in parenting. If there was one right way, we'd all do it, with perfect results. Kids need homes with people who love them. Period. They genuinely (in my humble and limited experience, having not been adopted myself) don't seem to care much about the little things like sexuality or gender or age, when that big contingency is in place.

Cue Mrs. Lovejoy: Won't somebody thing of the children?!?!

I'm gonna need more coffee....

[church_of_dog]

See now, from the thread title I was expecting an entirely different story -- one where some business owner in Michigan had decided to play out an exquisite response to the "won't-serve-gay-couples" stories we've seen in the news lately, and say that they were religiously opposed to people adding to the population, and they would be declining to serve pregnant women (or those they suspect to be pregnant) (or those who talk about wanting to become pregnant).

I started down the thought-path of how good it would feel for those anti-LBGTQ folks to get a taste of their own medicine.

And then I opened the thread and returned to reality... :lol:

[smittykins]

And I thought it meant owners of bars and restaurants with liquor licenses refusing to serve pregnant women due to potential harm to the fetus.

[SoybeanQueen]

Just ridiculous. Hope all of those "perfect" families are willing to step up.