the supreme court will decide if a catholic preschool can take state money and turn away kids with two moms. argument is on election day. of course it is.

via the Supreme Court docket, SCOTUSblog and K-12 Dive

The Archdiocese of Denver has a document about what happens if a child with two moms enrolls in one of its schools. Enrolling that child, it says, is "likely to lead to intractable conflicts." That sentence is now on its way to the Supreme Court.

The case is St. Mary Catholic Parish v. Roy, No. 25-581, and the docket has it set for argument on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. That is Election Day. Somebody at One First Street has a sense of humor, or no calendar.

what the case is about

Colorado launched universal preschool in 2022, money that Becket, the religious-liberty firm representing the parishes, puts at "more than $6,000 per eligible child," usable at public, private or religious schools. To take it, a school has to give children "an equal opportunity to enroll and receive preschool services regardless of race, ethnicity, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, gender identity," and a list of other categories, the parishes' own petition quotes.

St. Mary in Littleton and St. Bernadette in Lakewood, with the archdiocese and two parents, say they cannot sign that. The archdiocese "does not recognize same-sex relationships or transgender status," the petition says, and its guidance tells schools to use pronouns and bathrooms by "biological sex." Colorado's brief is blunter: their witnesses "testified that they would deny enrollment to a gender-diverse child or the child of same-sex or gender-diverse parents." The state says the rule exists so "all Colorado parents, including Catholic parents and same-sex parents, know their children will not be excluded."

what the court agreed to decide

The Tenth Circuit sided with Colorado in September 2025, finding the conditions "neutral and generally applied to every preschool, regardless of religion," per SCOTUSblog. The justices took the case on April 20 but only on two of its three questions, both technical tests under the 1990 Employment Division v. Smith ruling. They declined the third, which asked them to overrule Smith outright. The Justice Department has filed in support of the parishes.

Translation for the group chat: this is not a case about whether churches can be Catholic. They can, and nobody is making them take state money. It is about whether a state that pays for preschool for everyone is allowed to insist that "everyone" includes our kids. If you have been following the court's last few terms, and we have, from trans prisoners on down, you already know which way the wind blows. Pack a snack. It is going to be a long Election Day.