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There are many child welfare and adoption professionals in Virginia who are eager to welcome same-sex couples as adoptive families--the Board's decision does not represent the opinon of all agencies.  I agree that if an agency received public money that should absolutely not discriminate against Virginia citizens.  Catholic Charities places children from foster care, so technically they do receive public money.  And yes, heterosexual couples would be restricted from adopting in VA if they are not married, but truth be told, this restriction disproportionately affects same-sex couples since marriage is not an option in VA.-

The Board members are appointed by the Governor for a four year term, and I believe they can serve no more than two consecutive terms. 

It is a big deal.  If there are two parents raising a child together, both should have the legal status that gives them the right to make medical decisions, to speak on behalf of the child with teachers, to put the child on his or her health insurance,  to avoid custody issues if the legal parent should become ill or die.  There is too much vulnerability for both the child and the parents if only one is legally recognized.

There are a few options.  First, we will continue to work with the more friendly agencies and open more doors for LGBT prospective parents.  We will also encourage lawmakers to draft legislation that would remove restrictions based on marital status.  It is very possible that a lawsuit will ensue in VA, as it has in Arkansas and Florida, both of which resulted in overturning the restrictions/bans on adoption.  Any and all of these paths are possible. 

It was a 7-2 vote. If you are interested in finding out more about who voted in favor, or against, it should be published somewhere and I would encourage you to thank the two brave people who did the right thing for children.

Fortunately, adoption agencies have quite a bit of latitude in how they work with same-sex couples.  Some are willing to write a home study for the primary applicant, and to indicate that there is another member of the household.  They get to know that other person as well so they can be confident in the ability of both adults to provide high quality parenting.  They simply do not indicate that they are a "couple," but they do the diligent work of assessing each person, the home, etc. as they would for any prospective adoptive parent.  Again, this is not ideal, but for agencies that value all families and are committed to finding every possible family, it's the best we can do.

The majority of kids in foster care were born into families with heterosexual parents, and those were clearly toxic environments.  Sexual orientation does not determine one's ability to parent, it's about the commitment and capacity you have to support a child through all life stages, and to stay engaged and involved.  30 years of research on kids raised by gay parents confirms that the outcomes are very good, and there is not reason (other than prejudice) to prevent gay people from adopting.

That is the point, and a good one.  If two people conceive a child in an act of passion both parents have legal rights to that child whether they intended to conceive, whether they stay in the child's life, etc.  It's just a given.  When two people adopt, they should both have the same legal connection from day one--it's what's best for the child.

If an agency receives absolutely no public funds, it is not unreasonable for them to set their own policies (though not ideal).  As long as the LGBT community has other options--and they will because there are a growing number of friendly agencies, allowing a few to opt out is not the end of the world.

We need to continue to educate people, to talk about this issue more openly, to point to examples of same-sex couples raising children in our own neighborhoods, going to the same schools, soccer games, dance classes, etc. and demystify the idea that our families are really so different.  We also need to support the agencies that are more open and progressive in their policies.

If you finalize an adoption in DC or another state, and both members of the couples are legal parents via adoption, those rights are recognized in Virginia through something called Full Faith and Credit--a federal law that requires states to fully recognize adoptions from other states.