Overall Vote Recommendation

Yes

Principle Criteria

Free Enterprise

Property Rights

Personal Responsibility

Limited Government

Individual Liberty

In Layman's Terms

SJR 34 proposes a constitutional amendment affirming that parents are the primary decision-makers for their children and recognizing their fundamental rights and responsibilities in raising them. The committee substitute frames the amendment as a broad constitutional affirmation rather than creating a new legal standard for when the government may intervene.

Digest

SJR 34 proposes an amendment to the Texas Constitution to expressly recognize and affirm the rights and responsibilities of parents. The resolution would add a new Section 37 to Article I of the Texas Constitution declaring that parents have both the responsibility to nurture and protect their children and the corresponding fundamental right to exercise the care, custody, and control of their children, including making decisions regarding their upbringing. The proposed language states that these principles are intended to enshrine rights and responsibilities that are "deeply rooted in this nation's history and traditions."

Rather than creating new statutory duties or regulatory programs, the resolution would elevate parental rights to constitutional status by incorporating them into the Texas Bill of Rights. If approved by voters, the amendment would provide constitutional recognition of parents as the primary decision-makers concerning the upbringing of their children, potentially affecting the legal framework under which future laws and government actions involving parental authority are evaluated.

The proposed constitutional amendment would be submitted to Texas voters at the November 4, 2025, constitutional amendment election. The ballot proposition would ask voters whether to approve "The constitutional amendment affirming that parents are the primary decision makers for their children."

The Committee Substitute for SJR 34 substantially revises the proposed constitutional amendment by replacing the Senate engrossed version's detailed constitutional standard with a broader declaration of parental rights and responsibilities. The Senate engrossed version established that a parent has the inherent right to exercise the care, custody, and control of the parent's child and further prohibited the state or a political subdivision from interfering with those rights unless the interference was both essential to further a compelling governmental interest and narrowly tailored to achieve that interest. This language effectively incorporated a strict-scrutiny standard into the Texas Constitution for government actions affecting parental rights.

The Committee Substitute removes those judicial standards entirely. Instead of creating an express constitutional limitation on government action, it declares that the people of Texas affirm that parents have both the responsibility to nurture and protect their children and the corresponding fundamental right to exercise care, custody, and control of their children, including making decisions regarding their upbringing. The substitute also adds language stating that these rights and responsibilities are "deeply rooted in this nation's history and traditions," shifting the amendment from a constitutional test governing state interference to a broader statement of constitutional principle.

The Committee Substitute also modifies the ballot proposition. The Senate engrossed version asked voters to approve "The constitutional amendment establishing parents as the primary decision-makers for their children." The substitute revises this to "The constitutional amendment affirming that parents are the primary decision-makers for their children." This change reflects the substitute's overall approach of affirming existing parental rights rather than creating a new constitutional standard governing when the state may interfere with those rights.

Author (1)

Bryan Hughes

Co-Author (5)

Brandon Creighton

Brent Hagenbuch

Bob Hall

Lois Kolkhorst

Angela Paxton

Sponsor (5)

James Frank

Jeff Leach

Giovanni Capriglione

James Talarico

Lacey Hull

Co-Sponsor (4)

Helen Kerwin

Terri Leo-Wilson

Jared Patterson

Joanne Shofner

Contact the Author

Sen. Bryan Hughes

Capitol Phone:

(512) 463-0101

Capitol Office:

CAP 3E8

E-Mail:

[email protected]

Visit Official Website

Fiscal Notes

According to the Legislative Budget Board (LBB), SJR 34 is not expected to have any fiscal impact on the state other than the cost of publication. Because the measure proposes a constitutional amendment rather than implementing a new program or regulatory requirement, the only direct state expenditure identified is the constitutionally required publication of the proposed amendment before it is submitted to voters. The LBB estimates that this publication cost will be $191,689.

The fiscal note does not identify any ongoing state expenditures, staffing requirements, or administrative costs associated with the proposed amendment itself. Likewise, it does not anticipate any changes to state revenues or other fiscal effects beyond the one-time publication expense required for constitutional amendments.

The LBB also concludes that no fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated, indicating that local governments are not expected to incur additional costs or realize savings if the proposed constitutional amendment is approved by voters.

Vote Recommendation Notes

SJR 34 proposes a constitutional amendment affirming that parents have both the responsibility to nurture and protect their children and the corresponding fundamental right to exercise the care, custody, and control of their children, including making decisions regarding their upbringing. By placing these principles in the Texas Constitution, the resolution provides stronger constitutional recognition of parental authority than currently exists in state law and reinforces parents as the primary decision-makers for their children.

Although the Committee Substitute removes the Senate engrossed version's explicit constitutional standard requiring government interference to satisfy a compelling governmental interest and be narrowly tailored, it continues to advance the underlying objective of constitutionally affirming parental rights. The substitute shifts from establishing a judicial standard of review to expressing a constitutional principle, preserving legislative flexibility while still strengthening the legal recognition of parental authority.

The LBB reports no fiscal impact beyond the one-time publication cost associated with placing the proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot, and no fiscal impact is anticipated for local governments. Because the resolution strengthens constitutional protections for parental rights without expanding government programs or imposing ongoing taxpayer costs, Texas Policy Research recommends that lawmakers vote YES.

Free Enterprise

The resolution does not regulate businesses, markets, employment, or commercial activity. It has no material effect on competition, regulatory burdens, or private enterprise.

Property Rights

The proposed constitutional amendment concerns parental rights and responsibilities and does not alter ownership, use, or control of private property, eminent domain, or contractual property interests.

Personal Responsibility

Unlike the Senate engrossed version, the committee substitute expressly recognizes that parents have the responsibility to nurture and protect their children alongside the corresponding right to direct their upbringing. This balances constitutional rights with parental obligations and reinforces the principle that parents, rather than the state, bear primary responsibility for raising their children.

Limited Government

Although the Committee Substitute omits the Senate engrossed version's explicit strict-scrutiny limitation on government interference, it nevertheless places parental rights in the Texas Constitution, providing an additional constitutional constraint on future government action affecting the parent-child relationship. It creates no new agency, regulatory program, or ongoing governmental authority.

Individual Liberty

The resolution constitutionally affirms that parents have the fundamental right to exercise the care, custody, and control of their children, including making decisions regarding their upbringing. By elevating parental rights into the Texas Constitution, it strengthens protections for family autonomy and limits the likelihood that those rights rest solely on judicial interpretation.

Committee Vote Information

Senate Committee on State Affairs: 11Y/0N
House Committee on Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence: 8Y/0N (3 Absent)

Related Legislation

HJR 112 (Same As)

View Bill Text and Status