As the Texas Supreme Court weighs how to apply the state’s newly ratified parental rights amendment, a public policy foundation filed an amicus brief Jan. 5 that urges the justices to adopt a robust interpretation of the amendment to strongly protect parent-child relationships.
The brief, filed by the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF), responds to the court’s request for additional arguments on how Section 37 of Article I of the Texas Constitution should apply to existing statutes governing the termination of parental rights. According to a Jan. 6 TPPF press release, the justices specifically asked how the amendment should be interpreted in cases where the state seeks to permanently sever the legal relationship between a parent and a child.
The amendment provides that “a parent has the responsibility to nurture and protect the parent's child and the corresponding fundamental right to exercise care, custody, and control of the parent's child, including the right to make decisions concerning the child’s upbringing.”
The case arises from a termination of parental rights dispute and marks the first time Texas’ high court will interpret and apply the amendment since voters approved it in November 2025 with roughly 70% support, as CatholicVote previously reported.
TPPF, which assisted lawmakers in drafting the amendment during the legislative process, argues the provision reinforces longstanding U.S. and Texas Supreme Court precedent recognizing the parent-child relationship as a fundamental right that warrants strong protection from government intrusion.
“In November, an overwhelming majority of Texans took the historic step of voting to make Texas the first state in the nation to enshrine affirmative protections for fundamental parental rights in its constitution,” TPPF Vice President of Policy Andrew Brown said in the release. “The Foundation’s brief encourages the Supreme Court of Texas to interpret and apply the parental rights amendment in a manner consistent with desires of Texans, who expect their government to treat the parent-child relationship as sacred and safeguard it accordingly.”
On the specific issue of termination, TPPF argues that ending parental rights should be used only in limited circumstances and subjected to the highest level of judicial scrutiny.
Chance Weldon, senior attorney and the director of litigation for the Center for the American Future at TPPF, said the amendment clarifies rights that courts have long acknowledged.
“For generations, our Constitution has implicitly recognized the natural right of parents to direct the care and upbringing of their children. The new language adopted last year makes that fundamental right explicit,” Weldon said. “The Court should take that guidance from the voters seriously.”
The court’s forthcoming decision could shape how the amendment influences Texas family law, particularly in child welfare cases involving permanent termination of parental rights.