Life & Family Life
Foster care children win with Governor’s signing of HB 3859
Governor Greg Abbott signed HB 3859 into law today, allowing people and institutions with sincerely held religious beliefs the opportunity to serve children in the foster care system without violating their consciences. “We are very grateful to Governor Abbott for signing HB 3859, and for all of the hard work of Rep. James Frank and…
Read MoreHB 1335: Parental choice helps children in foster care and with special needs, too
Michael Barba Associate Director of Public Policy My name is Michael Barba and I am testifying on HB 1335 on behalf of the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops. The Principle of Parental Choice. We strongly support parental choice and we applaud Rep. Simmons for authoring this bill, both because it: recognizes that parents are the…
Read MoreSB 892: expands a diverse network of foster care providers
Jennifer Carr Allmon The Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops support SB 892. This bill ensures that Texas will maintain and expand a broad and diverse network of foster care providers. In light of the foster care crisis that Texas has endured, the passage of this bill is an essential tool in reform. Since 1727, Catholic…
Read MoreHB 64 & HB 1537: Death penalty serves no purpose in Texas today
Michael Barba The Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops support HB 64 and 1537. We thank Reps. Dutton and Farrar for filing this legislation. Analysis of Capital Punishment. There are four goals or ends of punishment which the bishops use to analyze whether a punishment is legitimate and should be applied: 1. the punishment results in the…
Read MoreHB 2858: addresses horrors of human trafficking
Jennifer Carr Allmon As executive director of the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops, I’m testifying in support of HB 2858. Many of our Catholic Charities agencies provide assistance to victims of human trafficking. While I worked at Catholic Charities in Houston, I served on the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Anti-Trafficking Task Force. In that…
Read MoreHB 1155: Disrespectful of the human body
Jennifer Carr Allmon The Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops opposes HB 1155. We oppose this bill because it allows for the cremation of human remains using alkaline hydrolysis. The dehydration of human remains in a vat of chemicals is disrespectful of the human body and does not allow for burial of the body. Treating the dead…
Read MoreHB 3859: ensures broad and diverse network for foster care reform
Jennifer Allmon Executive Director, Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops The Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops is in support of HB 3859. This bill ensures that Texas will maintain and expand a broad and diverse network of foster care providers. In light of the foster care crisis that Texas has endured, the passage of this bill is…
Read MoreSB 1018: Denies the dignity of families
Michael Barba I am testifying against SB 1018 on behalf of the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops. Background. The licensing requirements maintained by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) were established in order to ensure the quality of care for children housed in family residential centers. DFPS first established an emergency version…
Read MoreHB 1799: Good cooperation to keep children safe in public and private schools
Lisette Allen The Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops support of HB 1799. In our own operation of schools, we have established a program called Safe Environment, through which we train all staff how to recognize early signs of potential abuse and prevent it from occurring. We maintain policies governing adult-student interactions, including on social media.…
Read MoreHB 35: Protects dignity of the human person
Jennifer Carr Allmon The Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops supports H.B. 35 because it seeks to protect the dignity of the human person. In particular, the Bishops are grateful to Chairman Cook and his staff for their role in bringing this issue to light. The revisions contained in H.B. 35 are long overdue and provide…
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