ALBANY, N.Y. — The “Love Makes a Family” campaign was officially launched by Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Tuesday to advocate for his proposal to legalize gestational surrogacy in New York.
The campaign includes the creation of the Love Makes a Family Council, as well as a petition where New Yorkers can endorse the governor’s proposal, a new campaign website, and video testimonials.
“New York was the first big state to pass marriage equality, and we are a national leader on LGBTQ rights,” Cuomo said in a statement. “It is shameful that we are only one of three states that does not allow LGBTQ individuals and people struggling with fertility to use gestational surrogacy to start families.”
Current New York law prohibits gestational surrogacy, creating legal uncertainty for parents using reproductive technology to conceive a child. Forty-seven other states permit gestational surrogacy.
Cuomo’s budget proposal includes legislation that establishes criteria for surrogacy contracts and a surrogate’s bill of rights, which the governor says would provide the strongest protections for parents and surrogates in the nation.
The legislation also streamlines the “second-parent adoption” process, removing outdated barriers and extending common-sense protections for New Yorkers looking to start their families.
