Over the last several legislative sessions, the Legislature has enacted reforms that have resulted in a historic transformation of the Texas child welfare system. Today, the Department of Family and Protective Services removes fewer children into foster care and protects more children from abuse and neglect than ever before. Texas has become an example for the entire nation of how to successfully prioritize keeping kids with their families while keeping them safe. House Bill 2216builds on this success by improving the quality of services provided by DFPS to prevent foster care entries and strengthen families.
A Crisis in Dignity
The Texas Attorney General’s Office announced this week that it was intervening in a case involving McKenna West, an Alaskan woman who was paid to carry a child for another couple. The couple commanded her to undergo a late-term abortion after an ultrasound revealed her baby boy, who she calls Gabriel, had a treatable heart condition. McKenna...