Indiana Gov. Braun signed SB143, barring schools from withholding student information from parents and enabling forced outing of LGBTQ students

On April 24, 2025, Indiana Governor Mike Braun signed Senate Bill 143, titled "Parental rights," into law, with an effective date of July 1, 2025. The statute bars government entities — including public schools and the Indiana Department of Child Services — from substantially burdening a parent's right to direct the upbringing, education, and health care of their child unless the government advances a compelling interest through the least restrictive means. It also prohibits those entities from advising, directing, or coercing a child to withhold information from a parent and from denying a parent access to information about their child, subject to carve-outs where a court has ordered information withheld or during a criminal investigation involving a parent.

Senator Liz Brown of Fort Wayne authored the measure. The ACLU of Indiana warned that the law undermines the privacy of LGBTQ+ youth and can compel schools to disclose a student's gender identity to parents against the student's wishes — the "forced outing" concern raised for transgender and gender-nonconforming students who may not be safe disclosing their identity at home.