Text of ID HCR 35 (2024)

LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-seventh Legislature Second Regular Session - 2024 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 35 BY STATE AFFAIRS COMMITTEE A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 1 STATING FINDINGS OF THE LEGISLATURE AND RECOGNIZING MOTHER'S DAY THROUGH 2 FATHER'S DAY AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO RAISE AWARENESS ABOUT THE CHALLENGES 3 FACING TRADITIONAL FAMILIES AND THE ALARMING RATE AT WHICH THE TRADI- 4 TIONAL AMERICAN FAMILY IS DECLINING. 5 Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Idaho: 6 WHEREAS, traditional families designed by God have been the foundation 7 of societies since creation. As such, traditional families operate as a 8 source of security in their communities, often attending to societal trou- 9 bles before law enforcement involvement is needed, thereby serving as the 10 cornerstone of a functional society. In a letter entitled The Crucial Role 11 of Families submitted to the United Nations by the International Federation 12 for Family Development in consult with the U.N. Economic and Social Council 13 division, the authors state: "Children growing up in healthy, married, 14 two-parent families are more likely to lead happy, healthy and successful 15 lives than those who have not experienced the same level of family security 16 and stability... Governments cannot afford to fully replace the functions 17 families perform for the benefit of their members and for the good of soci- 18 ety. The family is the most powerful, the most humane and, by far, the most 19 economical system known for building competence and character."; and 20 WHEREAS, the freedom to exercise these beliefs and values based in the 21 truth of the laws of nature and nature's God has been protected by the Consti- 22 tution of the United States since its inception; and 23 WHEREAS, the International Federation for Family Development has 24 stated: "As basic and essential building blocks of societies, families have 25 a crucial role in social development. They bear the primary responsibility 26 for the education and socialization of children as well as instilling values 27 of citizenship and belonging in the society."; and 28 WHEREAS, compared to peers in two biological parent married families, 29 children who lived with a single parent with no cohabiting partner were five 30 times more likely to be sexually abused, children who lived in a stepfamily 31 with a married biological and non-biological parent were eight to nine times 32 more likely to be sexually abused, and children who lived with a single par- 33 ent with a partner in the home were twenty times more likely to be sexually 34 abused; and 35 WHEREAS, traditional families consisting of a natural mother and fa- 36 ther, children, grandparents, and extended family have declined drastically 37 since 1960 when approximately 77.5% of children lived with their two par- 38 ents, who were married; and 39 WHEREAS, according to census data, in 1960, just 13% of all households 40 were single-person households. In 2018, that figure was 28%; and 41 WHEREAS, today, only 17.8% of Americans live in traditional nuclear 42 families; and 43 2 WHEREAS, in 1950, 27% of marriages ended in divorce. Today, about 45% 1 do; and 2 WHEREAS, in 1960, 72% of Americans were married. In 2017, nearly half of 3 Americans were single; and 4 WHEREAS, in 1960, approximately 5% of children were born to unmarried 5 women. Now, about 40% are; and 6 WHEREAS, American children are more likely to live in a single-parent 7 household than children from any other country; and 8 WHEREAS, according to the International Federation for Family Develop- 9 ment, "Those who build stable families have a higher life expectancy, lower 10 risks of mental illness, alcoholism and domestic violence. The children 11 show lower infant mortality rate, lower risk drug addiction, and lower in- 12 cidences of engaging in criminal activities after puberty, higher academic 13 achievements, lower incidence of mental illnesses and fewer teenage un- 14 wanted pregnancies. A stable family is the lowest cost option for both its 15 members and the State."; and 16 WHEREAS, the people who suffer the most from the decline in traditional 17 family values and structure are the most vulnerable, especially children; 18 and 19 WHEREAS, those born into poverty and living with both parents have an 20 80% chance of climbing out of it. Those born into poverty with a single 21 mother have a 50% chance of remaining stuck in poverty; and 22 WHEREAS, even in high-crime, inner-city neighborhoods, well over 90% 23 of children from safe, stable homes do not become delinquents. By contrast, 24 only 10% of children from unsafe, unstable homes in these neighborhoods 25 avoid crime; and 26 WHEREAS, 63% of youth who commit suicide, 90% of all homeless or runaway 27 children, 85% of all children who show behavior disorders, 80% of rapists 28 with anger problems, 71% of all high school dropouts, 75% of all adolescent 29 patients in chemical abuse centers, and 85% of youths in prisons come from 30 fatherless homes; and 31 WHEREAS, research demonstrates children who grow up in families with 32 traditional values and gender roles are more likely to have traditional val- 33 ues and gender role expectations themselves; and 34 WHEREAS, there is an unprecedented attack on these beliefs and the cele- 35 bration of these beliefs; and 36 WHEREAS, much remains to be done to ensure that traditional family roles 37 and values are both celebrated and encouraged to provide the most nurturing 38 and healthy environment possible to raise the next generation of American 39 children. 40 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the members of the Second Regular Ses- 41 sion of the Sixty-seventh Idaho Legislature, the House of Representatives 42 and the Senate concurring therein, that the Idaho Legislature: 43 (1) Supports the designation of Mother's Day through Father's Day as 44 Traditional Family Values Month in the State of Idaho; 45 (2) Recognizes the value of a traditional family consisting of the nat- 46 ural female mother and male father, children, aunts, uncles, grandparents, 47 and other extended family; 48 (3) Recognizes the first week of Traditional Family Values Month, in- 49 cluding Mother's Day, as a celebration of motherhood; 50 3 (4) Recognizes the second week of Traditional Family Values Month as a 1 celebration of sons, brothers, and uncles; 2 (5) Recognizes the third week of Traditional Family Values Month as a 3 celebration of grandparents; 4 (6) Recognizes the fourth week of Traditional Family Values Month as a 5 celebration of daughters, sisters, and aunts; 6 (7) Recognizes the fifth and final period of Traditional Family Values 7 Month, including Father's Day, as a celebration of fatherhood and marriage 8 between a man and a woman; 9 (8) Recognizes the evidence-based physical and mental health benefits 10 children receive when raised in a home with a traditional family; 11 (9) Recognizes the evidence-based results that children flourish when 12 raised in a home with an involved biological father; 13 (10) Recognizes the immeasurable benefits children receive in the de- 14 velopment of character, morality, virtue, and spirituality that traditional 15 American family values foster; and 16 (11) Encourages communities, schools, churches, businesses, corpora- 17 tions, and other stakeholders who all benefit from the cohesiveness, peace, 18 tranquility, and civility of communities built on strong traditional family 19 values, along with the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare whose mission 20 is to strengthen the health, safety, and independence of Idahoans, to take 21 part in celebrating Traditional Family Values Month in the State of Idaho. 22