OCR Text |
Show OpsmilliSiiteir By ' "ff (j U.S. Senator U ' 1 for Utah j THE FAMILY PROTECTION ACT: BRINGING AUTHORITY BACK HOME Few people in Utah would argue with the statement state-ment that a society is only as strong as its most basic unit - the family. Cultural patterns and traditions have made Utahns among the most family-oriented people peo-ple in the world. No wonder, then, that I have received an increasing increas-ing number of letters from Utahns concerning federal programs which weaken the family, usurp parental authorily, and interject Washington bureaucrats into in-to areas which, frankly, are none of.thcir business. To counteract this trend, I am cosponsoring "The Family Protection Act" -- a landmark bill which would return authority to the family over such matters as education, religion and domestic relations. rela-tions. It would help to bring jurisdiction of the family back home, where it belongs. There are approximately approx-imately 1,()(H) federal programs pro-grams which have a direct impact on the family structure, struc-ture, oftentimes adversely. In an obvious example, organizations funded by the federal government provide contraceptive and abortion services to minors without their parents' concent. The Family Protection Act recognizes that parents should be notified under such circumstances as pari of their right and responsibility respon-sibility to direct the religious and moral upbringing up-bringing of their children. It also allows parents, whose children attend federally funded schools, to participate in decisions regarding the child's enrollment enroll-ment in religious courses. And it provides parents with the option of visiting their child's classroom and reviewing his or her textbooks. text-books. The bill mandates that state legislatures, rather than federal agencies, should have primary authority over programs dealing with child abuse, spouse abuse, and juvenile delinquency. Returning that authority to the states will help to ensure that programs pro-grams fit the needs of the communities, not the whims of a Washington bureaucrat. An important aspect of the bill - consistent with my concern that the federal government is invading the sanctity of the family -- is that its provisions provide families with opportunities, not mandates. The Family Protection Act may not be a panacea for the government's threat to the family -- Inn it represents a refreshing change from the kind of anti-family thinking which has prevailed in the nation's capital. |