Ohio committee hears proponent testimony on bill to designate ‘Natural Family Month’

The House Community Revitalization Committee heard proponent testimony for House Bill 262 on a measure to designate the weeks between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day as “Natural Family Month.” Witnesses representing faith-based groups and family-policy organizations testified in favor of the bill and described it as a symbolic recognition of married, opposite-sex parenting as a social ideal.

Supporters told the committee the bill is intended as a civic signal rather than a regulatory change. “The sponsors of Ohio House Bill 262 have made a very modest proposal,” said Gary Langford, who testified later in the hearing. “They proposed that the Ohio Revised Code merely designate the weeks between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day as natural family month and that is the entire proposal.”

In opening testimony, Linda Harvey, president of Mission America and a board member of the Protect Ohio Children Coalition, urged lawmakers to adopt the bill as affirmation of motherhood and fatherhood. “I am Linda Harvey, I’m president of Mission America and I also serve on the board of the Protect Ohio Children…