Arizona Gov. Ducey signed SB 1399 shielding faith-based adoption agencies that deny LGBTQ+ and minority-religion families

On April 6, 2022, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey signed Senate Bill 1399 into law, enacting A.R.S. § 8-921 as Chapter 115 of the 55th Legislature's second regular session. The statute bars state government from taking "discriminatory action" against faith-based adoption and foster-care agencies or contractors that decline to provide placement services "based on or in a manner consistent with the person's religious belief." The bill was sponsored by Sen. Sine Kerr (R-Liberty) and championed by the Center for Arizona Policy, a conservative Christian lobbying group.

Kerr said the measure was meant to preempt LGBTQ nondiscrimination protections in adoption and foster care before Arizona adopted any, citing states where religious agencies had faced consequences for religion-based placement decisions. She acknowledged no Arizona provider had faced penalties for operating consistent with its religious views. The bill cleared the House on a party-line 31-26 vote before reaching the governor's desk.

Opponents — including the Human Rights Campaign, the Anti-Defamation League, the ACLU of Arizona, and local foster and adoptive families — warned that the law gives state-funded agencies broad license to turn away LGBTQ+ prospective parents and minority-religion families on religious grounds. Because faith-based providers make up a substantial share of Arizona's licensed agencies, critics said the law would shrink placement options in a system where foster children already outnumber licensed families by roughly four to one.