IV 
113TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. CON. RES. 69 
Expressing the sense of Congress that efforts by mental health practitioners 
to change an individual’s sexual orientation is dangerous and harmful 
and should be prohibited from being practiced on minors. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 4, 2013 
Ms. SPEIER (for herself, Mr. CICILLINE, Mr. DEUTCH, Mr. ELLISON, Mr. 
GRIJALVA, Mr. KEATING, Mr. MORAN, Ms. TSONGAS, Mr. SEAN PATRICK 
MALONEY of New York, Ms. SCHWARTZ, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. MCGOV-
ERN, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. POCAN, Mrs. DAVIS of California, and Mr. 
LOWENTHAL) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of Congress that efforts by mental 
health practitioners to change an individual’s sexual ori-
entation is dangerous and harmful and should be prohib-
ited from being practiced on minors. 
Whereas being lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or gender 
nonconforming is not a disorder, disease, illness, defi-
ciency, or shortcoming; 
Whereas the American Psychological Association’s 2008 reso-
lution on Transgender, Gender Identity, and Gender Ex-
pression Non-discrimination states that ‘‘discrimination 
and prejudice against people based on their actual or per-
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•HCON 69 IH 
ceived gender identity or expression detrimentally affects 
psychological, physical, social, and economic well-being’’; 
Whereas the development of all children and adolescents into 
healthy and productive adults is a national priority and 
ending prejudice and injustice based on sexual orientation 
and gender nonconformity is a human rights issue; 
Whereas the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American 
Counseling Association, the American Psychiatric Asso-
ciation, the American Psychological Association, the 
American School Counselor Association, the National As-
sociation of School Psychologists, and the National Asso-
ciation of Social Workers, together representing more 
than 480,000 health and mental health professionals, 
have all taken the position that homosexuality is not a 
mental disorder and thus is not something that needs to 
be or can be ‘‘cured’’; 
Whereas the American Psychological Association, American 
Psychiatric Association, National Association of Social 
Workers, American Counseling Association Governing 
Council, and American Psychoanalytic Association have 
not found ‘‘sexual orientation change efforts to be safe or 
effective’’; 
Whereas the American Psychological Association’s 2009 reso-
lution on Appropriate Affirmative Responses to Sexual 
Orientation Distress and Change Efforts ‘‘concludes 
there is insufficient evidence to support the use of psy-
chological interventions to change sexual orientation’’; 
Whereas the American Psychiatric Association has opposed 
since 2000 ‘‘any psychiatric treatment, such as ‘repar-
ative’ or conversion therapy, which is based upon the as-
sumption that homosexuality per se is a mental disorder 
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•HCON 69 IH 
or based upon the a priori assumption that a patient 
should change his/her homosexual orientation’’; 
Whereas the American Psychological Association’s Task 
Force on Appropriate Therapeutic Responses to Sexual 
Orientation’s systematic review of peer-reviewed journal 
literature on sexual orientation change efforts concluded 
that ‘‘attempts to change sexual orientation may cause or 
exacerbate distress and poor mental health in some indi-
viduals, including depression and suicidal thoughts’’; 
Whereas the American Psychological Association issued a res-
olution on Appropriate Affirmative Responses to Sexual 
Orientation Distress and Change Efforts in 2009 advis-
ing parents, guardians, young people, and their families 
‘‘to avoid sexual orientation change efforts that portray 
homosexuality as a mental illness or developmental dis-
order and to seek psychotherapy, social support, and edu-
cational services that provide accurate information on 
sexual orientation and sexuality, increase family and 
school support, and reduce rejection of sexual minority 
youth’’; 
Whereas the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psy-
chiatry published a practice principles in 2012 in the 
Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adoles-
cent Psychiatry stating Principle 6: ‘‘Clinicians should be 
aware that there is no evidence that sexual orientation 
can be altered through therapy, and that attempts to do 
so may be harmful,’’ and finding that ‘‘There is no em-
pirical evidence adult homosexuality can be prevented if 
gender nonconforming children are influenced to be more 
gender conforming. Indeed, there is no medically valid 
basis for attempting to prevent homosexuality, which is 
not an illness. On the contrary, such efforts may encour-
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•HCON 69 IH 
age family rejection and undermine self-esteem, connect-
edness and caring, important protective factors against 
suicidal ideation and attempts. . . . Given that there is 
no evidence that efforts to alter sexual orientation are ef-
fective, beneficial or necessary, and the possibility that 
they carry the risk of significant harm, such interventions 
are contraindicated.’’; 
Whereas the National Association of Social Workers prepared 
a 1997 policy statement in which it stated ‘‘Social stig-
matization of lesbian, gay and bisexual people is wide-
spread and is a primary motivating factor in leading 
some people to seek sexual orientation changes. Sexual 
orientation conversion therapies assume that homosexual 
orientation is both pathological and freely chosen. No 
data demonstrates that reparative or conversion therapies 
are effective, and, in fact, they may be harmful.’’; 
Whereas the American Counseling Association Governing 
Council issued a position statement in April of 1999 in 
which it stated ‘‘We oppose the promotion of ‘reparative 
therapy’ as a ‘cure’ for individuals who are homosexual.’’; 
Whereas the American Psychoanalytic Association updated 
its position statement in June 2012, on attempts to 
change sexual orientation, gender, identity, or gender ex-
pression, and in the statement the association states ‘‘As 
with any societal prejudice, bias against individuals based 
on actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity 
or gender expression negatively affects mental health, 
contributing to an enduring sense of stigma and perva-
sive self-criticism through the internalization of such 
prejudice. Psychoanalytic technique does not encompass 
purposeful attempts to ‘convert’, ‘repair’, and change or 
shift an individual’s sexual orientation, gender identity or 
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•HCON 69 IH 
gender expression. Such directed efforts are against fun-
damental principles of psychoanalytic treatment and 
often result in substantial psychological pain by rein-
forcing damaging internalized attitudes.’’; 
Whereas in 2010, the World Professional Association for 
Transgender Health released a statement urging the de- 
pathologization of gender variance in which it states 
‘‘The expression of gender characteristics, including iden-
tities, that are not stereotypically associated with one’s 
assigned sex at birth is a common and culturally diverse 
human phenomenon which should not be judged as inher-
ently pathological or negative.’’; 
Whereas research by Caitlyn Ryan et al. entitled ‘‘Family Re-
jection as a Predictor of Negative Health Outcomes in 
White and Latino Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Adults’’ 
published in 2009, found that certain young people expe-
rienced sexual orientation change efforts as a form of re-
jection, and that minors who experience family rejection 
based on their sexual orientation face especially serious 
health risks and that such youth were 8.4 times more 
likely to report having attempted suicide, 5.9 times more 
likely to report high levels of depression, and 3.4 times 
more likely to use illegal drugs compared with peers from 
families that reported no or low levels of family rejection; 
and 
Whereas several States have enacted or are considering legis-
lation and other measures to prohibit sexual orientation 
change efforts in children and adolescents: Now, there-
fore, be it 
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
concurring), 
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•HCON 69 IH 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This resolution may be cited as the ‘‘Stop Harming 
Our Kids Resolution of 2013’’. 
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING SEXUAL ORI-
ENTATION CHANGE EFFORTS DIRECTED AT 
MINORS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—It is the sense of Congress that 
sexual orientation change efforts directed at minors are 
discredited and ineffective, have no legitimate therapeutic 
purpose, and are dangerous and harmful. 
(b) STATE ENCOURAGEMENT.—Congress encourages 
each State to take steps to protect minors from efforts 
that promote or promise to change sexual orientation or 
gender identity or expression based on the premise that 
being lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or gender non-
conforming is a mental illness or developmental disorder 
that can or should be cured. 
(c) SEXUAL ORIENTATION CHANGE EFFORTS DE-
FINED.—In this resolution, the term ‘‘sexual orientation 
change efforts’’ means any practice by a licensed mental 
health provider, health care provider, or counselor that 
seeks or purports to impose change of an individual’s sex-
ual orientation or gender identity or expression, including 
reducing or eliminating sexual or romantic attractions or 
feelings toward a person of the same gender and efforts 
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•HCON 69 IH 
to change behaviors, gender identity, or gender expression. 
Such term does not include counseling that— 
(1)(A) provides acceptance, support, and under-
standing of a person; 
(B) facilitates a person’s coping, social support, 
and identity exploration and development; 
(C) provides developmentally appropriate coun-
seling for a person seeking to transition from one 
gender to another; or 
(D) provides sexual orientation- and gender 
identity-neutral interventions to prevent or address 
unlawful conduct or unsafe sexual practices; and 
(2) does not seek to change sexual orientation 
or gender identity or expression. 
Æ 
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