{"id":2572529,"date":"2026-02-23T08:48:58","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T13:48:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/colorado-bill-would-take-kids-away-from-parents-who-refuse-to-trans-them\/"},"modified":"2026-02-23T08:54:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T13:54:09","slug":"colorado-bill-would-take-kids-away-from-parents-who-refuse-to-trans-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/colorado-bill-would-take-kids-away-from-parents-who-refuse-to-trans-them\/","title":{"rendered":"Bill Would Remove Kids From Parents Who Won&#8217;t Trans Them"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fcolorado-bill-would-take-kids-away-from-parents-who-refuse-to-trans-them%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2572529&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article describes Colorado SB 26-018, a Democratic-backed bill titled \u201cConcerning Legal Protections for The Dignity of a Minor,\u201d which would require courts to consider a child\u2019s gender identity in custody decisions and allegedly favor parents who affirm that identity, including support for related medical or social transitions. Critics argue the measure could enable state intervention to remove transgender-identified children from parents who do not affirm their child\u2019s gender identity,effectively expanding government involvement in family decisions. The bill would tie custody determinations to whether the parties recognize the child\u2019s identity as a member of a protected class under Colorado law, including \u201csexual orientation\u201d and \u201cgender identity.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The piece cites anecdotes of children allegedly removed from their homes in other states when parents did not affirm gender identity, and bodies of cases in Montana, Indiana, Texas, and Arizona as context for potential abuse of such authority. It also notes a prior attempt in Colorado, HB 1312 (the \u201cKelly Loving Act\u201d), which would have barred parents from misgendering or deadnaming their child and could have facilitated custody removal if parents refused to affirm a child\u2019s desire to socially or medically transition. After substantial opposition\u2014thousands of emails and hundreds of testifiers\u2014the problematic provision was removed, but supporters claim the rest of the bill remains.<\/p>\n<p>In recent action, Senator Katie Wallace introduced an amendment to gut Section 2 of SB 26-018, removing the requirement to consider a minor\u2019s gender identity in custody decisions; the amendment was adopted unanimously, leading to questions about further efforts to reinstate it and possible influence from the governor. The article notes Colorado\u2019s Democratic majorities and suggests the bill could set a precedent for other states. It draws contrasts with California,where Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed a similar measure in 2023, and ends with a call for opposition to what the author describes as an overreach into parental rights and child welfare. The piece is written by Zachary Mettler for the Daily Citizen (Focus on the Family).  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Colorado&rsquo;s Democrat state legislators want to force transgenderism on parents, requiring them to affirm their child&rsquo;s &ldquo;gender identity&rdquo; or risk losing custody.<\/p>\n<p>Radical lawmakers introduced &ldquo;Concerning Legal Protections for The Dignity of a Minor&rdquo; (<a href=\"https:\/\/leg.colorado.gov\/bill_files\/110723\/download\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">SB 26-018<\/a>) on Jan. 14, and the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.legistorm.com\/organization\/summary\/131224\/Colorado_Senate_Judiciary_Committee.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Senate Judiciary Committee<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/leg.colorado.gov\/bills\/SB26-018\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">passed<\/a>&nbsp;the bill, referring it to the full Senate&nbsp;on Feb. 18.<\/p>\n<p>In its intended form, the bill&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/dailycitizen.focusonthefamily.com\/colorado-bill-would-force-parents-to-accept-childs-new-gender-identity\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">requires<\/a>&nbsp;courts to consider whether parents embrace their child&rsquo;s &ldquo;gender identity&rdquo; when determining custody. Courts must favor parents who support their child&rsquo;s &ldquo;preferred name and pronouns&rdquo; and push their child to receive harmful and damaging &ldquo;transgender&rdquo; drugs, hormones, and surgeries.<\/p>\n<p>The bill states courts must &ldquo;consider whether the parties recognize the child&rsquo;s identity as it relates to a protected class&rdquo; when &ldquo;determining parenting time and the allocation of decision-making responsibility.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Defining the &ldquo;protected classes,&rdquo; the bill&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/dailycitizen.focusonthefamily.com\/colorado-bill-would-force-parents-to-accept-childs-new-gender-identity\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">references<\/a>&nbsp;the <a href=\"https:\/\/codes.findlaw.com\/co\/title-24-government-state\/co-rev-st-sect-24-34-601\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act<\/a>, which includes individual&rsquo;s &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/under-tim-walz-minnesota-banned-christian-teachers\/\" title=\"Under Tim Walz, Minnesota Banned Christian Teachers\">sexual orientation&#038;rdquo<\/a>; and &ldquo;gender identity.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<h2>Kids Removed from Parents<\/h2>\n<p>While the bill seeks to regulate custody disputes, it also opens the door for courts or child protective services to remove transgender-identified kids from the custody of parents who believe in biological reality and don&rsquo;t want to irreversibly harm their child with drugs and surgeries.<\/p>\n<p>SB 26-018 would establish &ldquo;de jure&rdquo; what is already happening in Colorado and in&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Erin4Parents\/status\/2012164022741930242\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">other states<\/a>&nbsp;around the country &mdash; &nbsp;even in red states like&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.idsnews.com\/article\/2024\/03\/us-supreme-court-rejects-appeal-indiana-parents-who-lost-custody-transgender-teen\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Indiana<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/thenationaldesk.com\/news\/americas-news-now\/montana-14-year-old-moved-to-canada-after-gender-identity-custody-dispute-parents-say-krista-and-todd-kolstad-glasgow-helena-montana-gov-greg-gianforte-transgender-lgbtq-rights-trans-child-juvenile-laws-republican\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Montana<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.denvergazette.com\/2024\/11\/21\/texas-father-who-lost-court-fight-over-transitioning-son-vows-appeal-d1e6a767-6044-59b7-a56f-19e3442a9f08\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Texas<\/a>,&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/02\/26\/dad-lost-custody-after-questioning-sons-transgender-identity\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Arizona<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>When Krista and Todd Kolstad&rsquo;s 14-year-old daughter&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/thenationaldesk.com\/news\/americas-news-now\/montana-14-year-old-moved-to-canada-after-gender-identity-custody-dispute-parents-say-krista-and-todd-kolstad-glasgow-helena-montana-gov-greg-gianforte-transgender-lgbtq-rights-trans-child-juvenile-laws-republican\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">landed<\/a>&nbsp;in a Montana hospital for suicidal thoughts, her parents had no idea she would soon be taken from them. After the Kolstads&rsquo; daughter revealed her desire to &ldquo;change genders,&rdquo; Montana Child and Family Services removed her from their custody and relocated her to a treatment facility in Wyoming focused on &ldquo;gender therapy.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;They have a complete agenda. We have no voice, no voice in court,&rdquo; Todd said. &ldquo;They just gag ordered us and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/all-the-maskless-celebs-at-super-bowl-2022-and-some-of-their-old-posts-that-didnt-age-well\/\" title=\"All The Maskless Celebs At Super Bowl 2022, And Some Of Their Old Posts That Didn\u2019t Age Well\">threatened jail time<\/a>.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Likewise, Mary and Jeremy Cox&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/dailycitizen.focusonthefamily.com\/indiana-family-loses-custody-of-son-religious-beliefs-supreme-court-wont-hear-case\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">lost custody<\/a>&nbsp;of their 16-year-old son for refusing to affirm his sexual identity confusion.<\/p>\n<p>In courtroom proceedings, the Indiana Department of Child Services &mdash; &nbsp;while using <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >biologically incorrect pronouns &#038;mdash<\/a>; argued the Coxes&rsquo; son needed to be in a home &ldquo;where she is accepted for who she is,&rdquo; not one that will &ldquo;tell her how she should think and how she should feel.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Too many courts across the country already feel emboldened to allow the state to kidnap children from &ldquo;non-affirming&rdquo; parents &mdash;&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/heritageaction.com\/stopsb18\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">even without<\/a>&nbsp;any allegations of abuse or neglect. If SB 26-018&nbsp;in its original form&nbsp;becomes law, this deceptive scheme will only get much worse.<\/p>\n<h2>Colorado Legislators Tried This Before<\/h2>\n<p>If you&rsquo;re feeling a sense of d&eacute;j&agrave; vu, it&rsquo;s because Colorado legislators&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/05\/02\/colorado-democrats-push-trans-bill-that-was-too-radical-for-california\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">tried to enact<\/a>&nbsp;this exact measure last year.<\/p>\n<p>State Democrats advanced the &ldquo;Kelly Loving Act&rdquo; (<a href=\"https:\/\/content.leg.colorado.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/documents\/2025A\/bills\/2025a_1312_01.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">HB 1312<\/a>), which&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/media\/colorados-totalitarian-transgenderism-bill-sparks-concerns-from-parents\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">would have<\/a>&nbsp;prohibited parents from &ldquo;misgendering&rdquo; or &ldquo;deadnaming&rdquo; their child, likening such practices to &ldquo;abuse,&rdquo; equivalent to &ldquo;threatening, humiliating, or [other] intimidating actions, including assaults or other abuse.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>One provision of the legislation would have&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/05\/02\/colorado-democrats-push-trans-bill-that-was-too-radical-for-california\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">facilitated<\/a>&nbsp;the state removing a child from their parents&rsquo; custody if they refused to &ldquo;affirm&rdquo; their child&rsquo;s desire to &ldquo;socially&rdquo; or &ldquo;medically transition.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>After 18,000 Coloradans sent emails&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cocatholic.org\/take-action\/action-alerts\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">opposing<\/a>&nbsp;the bill and 700 showed up to testify against the legislation, the provision was removed from the final bill.<\/p>\n<p>Colorado&rsquo;s radical legislators took the half loaf they could get and passed the rest of HB 1312. Now, they&rsquo;re back for the other half.<\/p>\n<p>Erin Lee, founder and director of Protect Kids Colorado, is sounding the alarm about SB 26-018. &ldquo;Colorado is passing laws to TAKE CHILDREN AWAY FROM PARENTS who will not trans them,&rdquo; Lee has&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Erin4Parents\/status\/2011955979274125489\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">warned<\/a>. &ldquo;If you won&rsquo;t tell your child they&rsquo;re born in the wrong body &amp; sterilize them, the state will take them.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We must fight SB 26-018, and we must have federal legislation to ensure this stops happening everywhere,&rdquo; she added.<\/p>\n<p>Primary sponsors of the bill&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/leg.colorado.gov\/bills\/SB26-018\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">include<\/a>&nbsp;Sens. Katie Wallace and Chris Kolker and Reps. Meg Froelich and Lorena Garc&iacute;a.<\/p>\n<h2>Latest Action<\/h2>\n<p>When Wallace&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/sg001-harmony.sliq.net\/00327\/Harmony\/en\/PowerBrowser\/PowerBrowserV2\/20260218\/-1\/18184\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">introduced the legislation<\/a>&nbsp;in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Feb. 18, she made a stunning announcement. She requested an amendment wholly gutting Section 2 of her own bill &mdash; the portion requiring courts to consider minors&rsquo; &ldquo;gender identity.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Wallace clearly was not happy doing so. &ldquo;It pains us to remove this provision,&rdquo; the senator said. &ldquo;In leaving this section behind, we are leaving behind children with disabilities, and indigenous children, and many others.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We look forward to fighting another day for this effort,&rdquo; Wallace concluded.<\/p>\n<p>The amendment to gut the provision was unanimously adopted. But why would a state senator choose a &ldquo;painful&rdquo; decision to gut a portion of her own bill if it&rsquo;s so crucial to&nbsp;&ldquo;protect&rdquo; children? It&rsquo;s quite possible Gov. Jared Polis intervened to quash the far-reaching provision.<\/p>\n<p>However, there&rsquo;s no guarantee other <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/four-big-deadlines-in-2025-that-will-test-gop-trifecta-leadership-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Four big deadlines in 2025 that will test GOP trifecta leadership - Washington Examiner\">lawmakers won&#038;rsquo<\/a>;t seek to bring back Section 2 &mdash; &nbsp;perhaps even as the bill advances.<\/p>\n<p>Democrats massively outnumber Republicans in the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Colorado_General_Assembly\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Colorado General Assembly<\/a>&nbsp;by a 43-21 margin in the House and a 23-12 margin in the Senate. In the coming days, the full Colorado Senate will consider the legislation.<\/p>\n<p>Colorado&rsquo;s uber-left legislature has never seen a bad idea it didn&rsquo;t like. The radical idea that kids should be taken away from &ldquo;non-affirming&rdquo; parents was opposed by California Gov. Gavin Newsom. When a similar bill came across his desk in 2023, Gov. Newsom refused to sign the legislation.<\/p>\n<p>In his&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.ca.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/AB-957-Veto-Message.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">veto message<\/a>, he &ldquo;urge[d] caution when the Executive and Legislative branches of state government attempt to dictate &mdash; in prescriptive terms that single out one characteristic &mdash;&nbsp;legal standards for the Judicial branch to apply.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>It&rsquo;s crazy to say, but Colorado should follow California&rsquo;s lead.<\/p>\n<p>Parents everywhere must firmly and vocally oppose&nbsp;Colorado lawmakers&rsquo; attempt to kidnap children and obliterate parental rights. If the bill&nbsp;in its intended form&nbsp;becomes law in Colorado, there&rsquo;s no telling where it will metastasize to next.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Zachary Mettler works as a staff writer and communications liaison for the Daily Citizen at Focus on the Family. In his role, he writes about current political issues, U.S. history, political philosophy, and culture. Mettler earned his bachelor&rsquo;s degree from William Jessup University and is an alumnus of the Young Leaders Program at The Heritage Foundation. In addition to the Daily Citizen, his written pieces have appeared in the Daily Wire, the Washington Times, the Washington Examiner, Newsweek, Townhall, the Daily Signal, the Christian Post, Charisma News, and other outlets.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Colorado Dems push custody for affirming child&#8217;s gender<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2969,"featured_media":2572530,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/capitaol-1-e1771529709529.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546,33651],"tags":[73674,74343,72137,71834],"class_list":["post-2572529","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist","category-the-western-journal","tag-child-welfare-2","tag-family-law-2","tag-parental-rights-2","tag-transgender-rights-2"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/capitaol-1-e1771529709529.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2572529","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2969"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2572529"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2572529\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2572533,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2572529\/revisions\/2572533"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2572530"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2572529"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2572529"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2572529"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}