This bill, named after civil rights icon John Lewis, aims to prevent discrimination in child welfare services based on religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, and marital status. Right now, some child welfare agencies can refuse to work with LGBTQ individuals, same-sex couples, single parents, or people of certain religions, which shrinks the pool of available foster and adoptive families. The bill would change that by requiring any agency that receives federal funding for child welfare to serve all qualified families equally, regardless of these characteristics.

The bill addresses a real problem: LGBTQ youth make up at least 30% of children in foster care but face higher rates of discrimination, placement instability, and poor mental health outcomes while in the system. Same-sex couples are actually seven times more likely to foster and adopt than different-sex couples, but discrimination prevents many from doing so. The bill would require states to update their laws and practices to eliminate discrimination, provide training to caseworkers and judges, collect better data on LGBTQ youth in the system, and establish a national resource center to help agencies serve LGBTQ children better. It also explicitly prohibits conversion therapy—the discredited practice of trying to change someone's sexual orientation or gender identity—in child welfare settings.