Parental Rights in Alabama
Alaska Parental Rights News
April 10, 2023
House Bill 6 (HB6), the Parental Rights Protection Act, was pre-filed on January 20, 2023, by Representative Kenneth Paschal and 3 cosponsors. It has been placed on the House Judiciary Committee calendar for Wednesday, April 12, at 1:30 p.m. in Room 200. HB6 seeks to protect parental rights as a fundamental right in state code and to shield Alabama families from governmental overreach. You can read the bill here . HB6 will codify existing precedent of the U.S. Supreme Court and the Alabama Supreme Court. Please take a moment today to contact as many of these committee members as you can and urge them to vote “Yes” on HB6. If one of these is your representative, be sure to contact them and let them know you live in their district. Communicate to them that you deeply appreciate their commitment to doing what is right in Montgomery, and always be courteous in your communications. Your message should be in your own words, but can be as simple as this: I want to thank you for your commitment to doing what is right in Montgomery. And I urge you to vote “Yes” on HB 6, the Parental Rights Protection Act. This bill will codify existing Supreme Court precedent and preserve Alabama’s families from unnecessary and harmful state overreach. Thank you. Below are the House Judiciary Committee Members:
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Alabama State Law
Protected
Alabama House Bill 6 was signed on June 6th, 2023.
2016: HB112 proposing a parental rights amendment to the Alabama Constitution of 1901, was introduced by Rep. Matt Fridy with 12 cosponsors on Feb. 3. It was assigned to the House Judiciary Committee; no further action was taken.
2015: SB135 was introduced by Sen. Sanford on March. 3, 2015, to preserve the fundamental right of parents to direct the upbringing, education, and care of their child. It passed the Senate Health Committee on April 15 by a 5-1 vote. Companion bill HB213 was introduced by Rep. Butler with 18 cosponsors on March 10. It was scheduled for a hearing in the House Judiciary Committee on April 1, but was not voted on in committee.
2014: SB 203, a statute to preserve fundamental parental rights, was introduced by Sen. Sanford on January 15, 2014. The bill died in committee.
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Alabama Courts
"Strict Scrutiny" Applied to Parental Rights
Alabama courts have repeatedly recognized the rights of parents to oversee the care of their children as a fundamental right deserving of the strict scrutiny standard. However, this precedent is subject to change.
In Ex parte E.R.G., 73 So.3d 634, 648-49 (Ala. 2011), the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that, despite Troxel, "the State must have a compelling interest to justify encroaching on the fundamental right of a parent to decide what is in the best interests of his or her child," (id. at 649).