April 19, 2022

Dear Friends, 

From Covid lockdowns and mandates to increased concern about progressive curricula being taught in public schools, many families have chosen to homeschool their children even after the reopening of public schools.

According to the Census Bureau, only 3% of students were homeschooled before the pandemic. After schools were closed in spring 2020 and began virtual learning, some parents were unimpressed with the way their children’s education was being handled and believed home education was a better alternative. 

During the 2020-2021 school year, the number of homeschooled students increased by 63% as reported by 18 states. Though the number has dropped 17% this school year, the percentage remains higher than the pre-pandemic level.

With parental rights being ignored, school choice is becoming increasingly popular. HB 33 would create “Education Savings Accounts” to allow parental choice in education in Louisiana and create a stream of state funding for students not enrolled in public school. HB 33 is scheduled for floor debate tomorrow!

The Department of Interior announced that oil and gas leases on federal lands are set to resume, albeit at an 80% drop. Additionally, royalty rates (TAX) will rise 50%, further increasing domestic production prices.

At a time when Biden should be encouraging domestic production, especially in the Gulf area of Louisiana, he raises its cost.

Larry Behrens, Communications Director for the energy non-profit Power the Future, commented that “This latest offering [from Biden administration] is an 80 percent reduction in available land and a new tax thrown at producers to escape blame for soaring gas prices.”
Once again, the Biden administration is window dressing instead of focusing on the problem itself, which is largely self-inflicted. Energy workers will be blamed for not producing enough and the administration will continue to offer failure-ridden policies that are nothing more than media talking-points for argument's sake!

In the continued assault on children, stay-at-home-moms are the new target of the left.

Feminist author Jill Filipovic claims that stay-at-home moms are responsible for producing sexist men and bring more harm than help. Furthermore, they are “psychologically and emotionally worse off than working mothers by just about every measure.”

Quite the accusation for a whole class of people, especially since Jill provides no evidence.

This is just an attack meant to dismantle the nuclear family. God created moms and dads for a reason, and the opportunity to raise a child is one of His greatest blessings and responsibilities! 

Stay-at-home-moms deserve encouragement and commendation, not criticism.

Friends, each day we continue to see attacks on Christian values and the nuclear family. Many of the bills in this legislative session are aimed at restoring the values hoped for at our nation’s founding and those which honor God’s design. Please pray that our lawmakers would have the courage to fight for our rights and make Louisiana an even better state to raise a family.

In His Service, 

Gene Mills
President, Louisiana Family Forum

P.S. Louisiana Family Forum is honored to join Right On Crime, Lighthouse Christian Fellowship Church, State Representative Rick Edmonds, and others in the community to lead a Day of Prayer Service to commemorate National Crime Victims’ Rights Week in Baton Rouge on April 27th. Learn more here.