Testimony of Anne LaMonica, Associate Director
in Opposition to Section 5 of
S.B.6, AN ACT CONCERNING SUPPORTS
FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES
Committee on Children
Public Hearing
March 3, 2026
The Connecticut Catholic Public Affairs Conference, the public policy office of the Catholic Bishops of Connecticut, opposes Section 5 of S.B. 6, N ACT CONCERNING SUPPORTS FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES.
On March 2, 2026, the United States Supreme Court vacated the Ninth Circuit’s stay of a district court’s decision regarding parents’ rights. The majority recounted:
Under long-established precedent, parents—not the State—have primary authority with respect to the upbringing and education of children.’ Pierce v. Society of Sisters, 268 U. S. 510, 534– 535 (1925); accord, Meyer v. Nebraska, 262 U. S. 390, 399– 400 (1923).” Mirabelli v. Bonta, 607 U.S. ___ (2026).
Pierce v. Society of Sisters, a landmark case that ruled against Oregon’s compulsory public education laws, which essentially banned nonpublic education, established that:
The fundamental liberty upon which all governments in this Union repose excludes any general power of the State to standardize its children by forcing them to accept instruction from public teachers only. The child is not the mere creature of the State; those who nurture him and direct his destiny have the right, coupled with the high duty, to recognize and prepare him for additional obligations. Id. at 535.
While S.B. 6 does not take away the right of parents to direct the education of their children, it creates a presumption of potential guilt on those that remove their children from public schools. In contrast, parents, who never enroll their children in public schools and instead choose nonpublic schools, are not placed on a list that is shared between public entities.
Compulsory lists of law-abiding citizens should be avoided. Immigrant parents might refrain from choosing an education that better suits their children’s needs if they know that they will be marked and placed in a state database. This sets a bad precedent of marking a class of people based on their private choices in the exercise of their Constitutional rights.
Instead, this committee might consider, if not already, requiring Department of Children and Families caseworkers to notify school administrators, whether public or nonpublic, when an enrolled child has an open case. The Conference agrees and supports Education Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker’s testimony on how section 5 conflicts with FERPA.