# 119-s-5593: Yaeli Martinez Child Protection Act

119-s-5593, Yaeli Martinez Child Protection Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Schmitt, Eric [R-MO] (R-MO); status introduced (as of 2026-10-16).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5593
- As of: 2026-10-16
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-5593
- Congress: 119
- Title: Yaeli Martinez Child Protection Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-09-29
- Sponsor: Sen. Schmitt, Eric [R-MO] (R-MO)
- Cosponsors: 1
- Policy area: Families
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2026-10-16

## Summary

**Protect parents' right to affirm their child's sex.** This bill would bar use of federal child-welfare funds for medical or social "sex-rejecting interventions," require foster‑care housing and training rules, and create federal enforcement and private lawsuits to enforce those limits. - Families and parents: Parents and guardians would get explicit statutory protections and a federal private right to sue if a state or agency takes adverse actions tied to a parent's affirmation of a child's sex. - Children in foster care and foster parents: States would be required to provide sex-aligned sleeping quarters and corresponding bathrooms for children age 4 and older and may not authorize sex-rejecting interventions or change pronouns/titles without parental consent. Federal foster-care payments would not cover sex-rejecting interventions. - States, tribes, and agencies: Recipients of CAPTA and Title IV funds would need new certifications, training, and policies and face mandatory penalties and withholding for violations set at 5% for a first finding, 10% for a second, and 15% for a third or subsequent finding, capped at 15% per grant period. Covered entities that accept funds would waive certain immunity defenses and face heightened civil liability rules.

## Cosponsors (1)

- Sen. Lee, Mike [R-UT] (R-UT), 2026-09-30T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- New foster-care protections for parents: benefit, high. If enacted, the bill would require State plans and child‑welfare entities to protect parents, guardians, and caregivers who affirm a child’s sex. It would prohibit treating such affirmation as abuse or parental unfitness and forbid sex‑marker changes in records while a child is in foster care. For…
- New federal lawsuits and remedies: benefit, medium. If enacted, parents, guardians, caregivers, foster parents, prospective foster or adoptive parents, and children could file federal lawsuits for adverse State actions or violations of the bill’s child‑welfare rights. Plaintiffs would not have to exhaust state remedies first. Courts could award decl…
- Limits on federal child-welfare funding: cost, high. If enacted, the bill would bar federal Title I, Part B, and Part E funds from being used to provide, promote, refer to, or place children in settings that enable specified "sex‑rejecting interventions." States could not get Part E payments or federal matching for amounts spent on those intervention…
- Limits on interstate custody enforcement: mixed, medium. If enacted, the bill would change when State courts must recognize or enforce custody and visitation orders tied to seeking specified interventions. Courts could not exercise jurisdiction in some cases based on a child seeking an intervention available in that State. Orders made in violation of the…
- Definitions for child-welfare protections: mixed, low. If enacted, the bill would define key terms used in its child-welfare rules. It would define ‘‘adverse State action,’’ ‘‘covered entity,’’ ‘‘affirmation,’’ and ‘‘sex‑rejecting intervention.’’ The definitions would say sex is an immutable biological category and would exclude certain medically indic…

## Related bills

- 119-s-4952: Protecting American Taxpayers Act
- 119-s-4668: Protect College Sports Act of 2026
- 119-s-2010: TERMS Act
- 119-s-3752: SAVE America Act
- 119-s-2907: Chloe Cole Act
- 119-s-1162: SHORT Act

## Sources
- [119-s-5593 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/5593)

## Related
- [119-s-4952: Protecting American Taxpayers Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4952)
- [119-s-4668: Protect College Sports Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4668)
- [119-s-2010: TERMS Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2010)
- [119-s-3752: SAVE America Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3752)
- [119-s-2907: Chloe Cole Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2907)
- [119-s-1162: SHORT Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1162)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5593 (as of 2026-10-16).