Lame Duck Session
You’ll be surprised how many people still don’t know what’s happening in our state
The election may be behind us, but the real battle begins now in the lame duck session of our state legislature. We were back in Trenton this week, seated behind a committee room table, advocating for your values and serving as a voice of principled dissent against the anti-parent agenda that continues to advance in our state.
It’s easy to make noise online about what’s wrong in our state or to criticize election results. But unless you’ve seen firsthand how hard it is to defend the rights, responsibilities, and relationships between parents and their children, you may not realize what’s truly at stake.
This past Monday, it was business as usual in Trenton. Lawmakers advanced a bill from the Senate Education Committee that further erodes parental rights in the area of children’s mental health care.
Senate Bill 2380 would allow school personnel to initiate referrals to private mental health professionals for children of any age before notifying parents. Even more concerning, parents would have no say in selecting the provider. Instead, they are sidelined again and excluded from choosing a counselor who reflects their child’s needs and their family’s values. Parents have to give their consent before any treatment, but not before the referral.
Clearly, this legislation undermines the family unit and shifts critical decisions about a child’s well-being away from those who know and love them best.
To make matters worse, the issue of consent is compounded by a separate Senate bill (S1188)—already advanced by the Senate Health Committee on February 22, 2024—that would lower the age of consent for mental health services to 14.
We are not misreading the implications. If both bills become law, a school principal could refer a 14-year-old for a mental health assessment and treatment by a private licensed counselor without ever informing the parent or obtaining their consent. Parents would be completely excluded from decisions about their child’s professional care and not even know it’s happening!
This isn’t a hypothetical—it’s exactly what will happen if these bills become law.
Friends, this should not surprise us.
There is a battle underway in our Statehouse over our values. This legislative session has made the divide in worldviews unmistakably clear.
Good bills that protect girls’ sports and spaces, and promote transparency in curriculum are routinely denied even a committee hearing by the Democratic majority that controls the legislature. Meanwhile, harmful bills that undermine parental rights and jeopardize the health and safety of children are advancing. Many have already passed out of committee and are likely to be voted on before the session ends on January 12, 2026.
This new resource from the New Jersey Family Policy Center offers a quick snapshot of the nonstop legislative battle in the 2024–2025 session.
Download the PDF (CLICK HERE), forward it to your friends, and share the JPEG version in this email on social media.
You’ll be surprised how many people still don’t know what’s happening in our state.
