At a previous meeting, the Senate Judiciary Committee heard SB 143 on parental rights, authored by Sen. Liz Brown. The bill:
- Provides that a governmental entity may not substantially burden certain parental rights unless the burden is in furtherance of a compelling governmental interest and is the least restrictive means of furthering the governmental interest.
- Prohibits a governmental entity from: (1) advising, directing, or coercing a child to withhold certain information from the child’s parent; or (2) denying a child’s parent access to certain information.
- Allows a parent to bring an action against a governmental entity for certain violations and provides for certain relief.
- Specifies that the parent of a child does not have a right to access certain medical care on behalf of the child if the child does not have an affirmative right of access to the medical care.
Testimony in support of the bill was provided by the Alliance for Defending Freedom and six members of the public. The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana testified against the bill.
On January 15, 2025, the bill was heard for amend and vote. The committee amended the bill by a 10-1 vote to do the following:
- Defines a compelling governmental interest as protecting the welfare of a child from abuse or neglect and protecting the health, safety, and welfare of children.
- Establishes that a governmental entity may not substantially burden certain fundamental rights of a parent unless the burden, as applied specifically to the parent and child, is required to advance a compelling governmental interest.
- Specifies that certain information about a child may not be released to a parent that is the subject of a criminal investigation related to the child.
- Provides that the rights of parents chapter does not waive attorney-client privilege as governed by the Rules of Professional Conduct of the Indiana Supreme Court.
The amended bill passed 9-2.
Read the bill at: https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2025/bills/senate/143