Ohio lawmakers are moving to protect parents after an investigation revealed that a county child welfare agency had been tracking whether parents were “accepting” or “rejecting” of their children’s gender identity, and referring non-compliant parents to re-education programs.
The “Affirming Families First Act,” co-sponsored by State Rep. Gary Click, would affirm parents’ right to use their child’s given name and biological pronouns, and bar state agencies from spending funds on programs that classify refusing to affirm a child’s gender confusion as abuse or neglect.
The bill came directly out of reporting by investigative journalist Megan Brock, who testified in favor of the legislation Tuesday in Columbus. Her investigation found that the Cuyahoga County Division of Children and Family Services was selected as one of four agencies nationwide to pilot gender ideology-based child welfare interventions.
As part of its “Safe Identification” program, the agency maintained a database that logged the sexual orientation, transgender identity, and pronouns of every child in the system. Parents were labeled “accepting” or “rejecting” based on whether they affirmed a child’s claimed gender identity.
Parents flagged as “rejecting” could be referred to re-education programs. If they refused or failed to comply, child removal by CPS was listed as a possible next step.
“If we can’t protect our children from lies and raise them according to reality, without fear of retribution from the state, we no longer live in a free nation,” Brock testified.
Public records obtained during the investigation also showed that Cuyahoga County DCFS officials were communicating with Biden administration contacts about scaling similar interventions to the federal level.
Rep. Click promised action after being first contacted by Brock about the program more than two years ago. He has now co-sponsored the bill in the Ohio legislature.
The legislation does not prohibit children from receiving counseling or support. It specifically targets state-funded programs that frame a parent’s refusal to use preferred pronouns or opposite-sex names as evidence of abuse or neglect.
Ohio has trended Republican in recent election cycles, making the Cuyahoga County program’s scope and federal coordination particularly striking to critics of gender ideology in child welfare.
