The U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Committee this month approved an amendment which would allow child-welfare agencies to refuse to work with LGBTQ adoptive parents. The amendment, proposed during debate over a federal spending bill July 11, passed largely along party lines, 29-23.

The spending bill awaits approval by the full House, and a similar spending bill in the U.S. Senate contains no such provision.

Federal policy currently allows states to prohibit discrimination against lesbian, gay and bisexual adoptive parents and foster parents. Ten states currently have laws allowing contracted children’s services agencies to refuse to work with prospective LGBTQ parents based on religious belief. Missouri is not one of these states; Kansas is.