U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand is announcing legislation to remove legal barriers to adoption by lesbian, gay and transgender parents.
Gillibrand, a New York Democrat, said Sunday she will introduce legislation this week that would prohibit discrimination against LGBT adoptive parents.
The Every Child Deserves a Family Act would prohibit any entity that receives federal funds from discriminating against adoptive or foster parents based on sexual orientation, gender identity or marital status.
New York is one of seven states that explicitly ban discrimination in adoption based on sexual orientation.
Louisiana, Mississippi, and Michigan prohibit same-sex couples from jointly adopting.
Four other states restrict same-sex couples from using the second-parent adoption process.
Gillibrand says the absence of a consistent national policy prevents thousands of children from growing up with devoted parents.
Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
