The Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in a case brought by Catholic preschools that contend their exclusion from a state-funded program, based on their admissions policy for LGBTQ+ families, is unconstitutional. Colorado maintains that the schools' refusal to admit children from these families violates the state's anti-discrimination law.
St. Mary Catholic Parish and the Archdiocese of Denver argue that their policy is rooted in religious teachings about same-sex marriage and that excluding them infringes upon their free-exercise rights. The Trump administration has expressed support for the Catholic institutions.
A ruling in favor of the preschools could potentially limit a significant 1990 Supreme Court decision, authored by Justice Antonin Scalia, which stated that religious practices do not provide exemptions from generally applicable laws. This decision has long been a focal point for the conservative legal movement.
The Supreme Court has previously ruled in favor of religious schools in similar disputes, allowing them to participate in programs offering public aid to private schools in Maine and Montana. However, in 2025, the court was evenly divided on a proposal for a publicly funded Catholic charter school in Oklahoma, with Justice Amy Coney Barrett recusing herself.
The Colorado program in question, established by a 2020 ballot measure, provides public funding for preschools selected by parents. The plaintiffs, represented by the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, assert that since Colorado permits other preschools to prioritize children with disabilities or those from low-income families, admissions based on religious beliefs concerning gender and same-sex marriage should also be permissible. The Catholic preschools claim their enrollment has decreased by 20% since the program's inception, while Colorado argues that other admissions preferences align with state anti-discrimination rules.