1 State's "Free-Range Parenting" Law Is Now in Effect — You'll Be Shocked It's Illegal Everywhere Else

By Murphy Moroney

Governor Gary Herbert announced on March 23 that Utah was the first state in the US to pass a bill that officially legalizes free-range parenting throughout the state. The law officially went into effect on May 8, and this is especially big news because letting your kid mill about without you right by their side is still illegal in every other state.

The new law gives children who are at least 9 years old more independence, allowing them to do the following without supervision:

  • travel to and from school, either by by walking, running, or biking
  • travel to and from nearby recreational facilities, like parks
  • play outside
  • be in a car unattended, except in certain circumstances
  • stay home alone

Sen. Lincoln Fillmore, a politician who supported the bill, told Yahoo Lifestyle that he doesn't see the issue with giving kids more autonomy: "I feel strongly about the issue because we have become so over-the-top when 'protecting' children that we are refusing to let them learn the lessons of self-reliance and problem-solving that they will need to be successful as adults."

The reason for instituting the law is pretty straightforward: to prevent parents from getting in hot water for "letting kids playing basketball in their yards or walking to school alone." Specifically, lawmakers are looking to avoid cases that mirror what happened in Maryland in 2015, when a couple was investigated for negligence for allowing their 6- and 10-year-old children to walk home from a park.

And apparently, other states are looking to follow suit.

Phil Steck, a Democratic state assemblyman, is planning on proposing a similar bill in New York. "When I was a child, you let your dogs and your children out after breakfast and . . . they had to be home for dinner," he told the Associated Press. "I felt I gained a lot more from just playing on the street than my children did from being in organized sports activities."

Brandon Logan, a conservative politician from Texas, agrees that kids should have a longer leash. He explained that he's planning on working with local lawmakers to have a bill in the works for 2019. "We expect adults to be independent, and we expect parents to raise their children to be independent, and you can't do that whenever children are being micromanaged."