Family And Education Policy Reform of 2022 - Saxenheim

Rationale

These reforms modernize family, education, and religious policies to reduce government overreach, promote parental freedoms, and better align with societal values while ensuring balanced public benefits.

Proposed Changes

	Law	Previous	Proposed
1	Parental Leave Policy	Mandatory one-year leave for both parents; employers may not contact them	State-mandated reproduction targets; penalties for childless couples
2	Mobile Phones in Schools	Left to teacher discretion	Smartphones banned on school grounds
3	State-Funded Faith Schools	State funds secular schools only	Permit existing state-funded faith schools
4	Homeschooling Regulation	Homeschooling allowed with curriculum standards, testing, and inspections	Unrestricted right to homeschool with no state oversight
5	Religious Education in Schools	Strictly secular education	Optional religious classes

1

Parental Leave Policy

Previous law

Mandatory one-year leave for both parents; employers may not contact them

State-mandated reproduction targets; penalties for childless couples

2

Mobile Phones in Schools

Previous law

Left to teacher discretion

Smartphones banned on school grounds

3

State-Funded Faith Schools

Previous law

State funds secular schools only

Permit existing state-funded faith schools

4

Homeschooling Regulation

Previous law

Homeschooling allowed with curriculum standards, testing, and inspections

Unrestricted right to homeschool with no state oversight

5

Religious Education in Schools

Previous law

Strictly secular education

Optional religious classes

Proposer

Party

Homeland Alliance

A movement for citizens who believe that a nation's strength begins at home. The Homeland Alliance works to defend national interests, support hardworking families, and build a future based on stability, responsibility, and opportunity for all.

Core pillars

KH

Karin Herrmann

Activist · Age 46

88,648 social followers

A reality TV star turned people’s champion, she parlays her celebrity into political influence, channelling working-class frustrations into a media-savvy crusade for traditional values and law and order.

⭐ Celebrity ✨ Charismatic 🌟 Idealist 📺 Media Savvy 🔨 Working Class Background

Timeline

Draft

4 November 2022
Vote Open

4 November 2022
Vote Closed

3 January 2023
Became Law

3 January 2023

Vote tally

Live tally across each chamber. Weighted by seats held.

Bundesrat

Passed

34Yes 33No 2Not voted 69 seats

For: 34 / 69 seats (49.3%)

Against: 33 · Abstained: 0 · Not voted: 2

50.1% of those voting must vote in favour (actual = 50.7%)

Party	Seats	Vote	Reason
Alliance For Digital Freedom And Rights	23	No	We strongly oppose these changes. They represent a clear move away from our liberal and secular principles towards greater state control over private life and the imposition of traditional, often obsolete social values. A democratic government should protect families and children without infringing upon individual autonomy rather than dictate how people live, how many children they should have, or what values they must follow. We believe parental leave should empower both parents without coercing reproduction, education should rely on professional judgement rather than blanket bans, and homeschooling should remain a freedom subject to reasonable safeguards. Above all, our country must remain firmly secular: public schools should be secular institutions, and religious belief must remain a matter of individual freedom rather than something promoted or financed by the state. These principles are central to the ADFR's vision of a free, pluralist and liberal society.
Homeland Alliance Proposer	10	Yes	No reason given
Left Forward	10	No	The idea that the state should set reproductive targets and punish couples who do not have children says a lot about the view of family behind this proposal. Having children is a deeply personal decision. Women are not here to meet birth targets, and young people should not grow up with the feeling that their private lives belong to the state. The same pattern appears in education. Banning phones, removing oversight from homeschooling, and bringing state funded religious schools back into the system all reduce the space in which young people can make decisions for themselves. Children need protection and good education, but they also need rights and room to develop into independent adults
Saxenheim Workers’ Union	24	Yes	These reforms strengthen family and parental freedoms while reducing unnecessary state interference in education and religious life. Allowing greater choice in homeschooling and religious education, recognising existing faith schools, and giving schools a clear smartphone policy can provide families and communities with greater control while maintaining a stable educational environment.
Empty seats	5	Not voted

Bundestag

Passed

320Yes 310No 20Not voted 650 seats

For: 320 / 650 seats (49.2%)

Against: 310 · Abstained: 0 · Not voted: 20

50.1% of those voting must vote in favour (actual = 50.8%)

Party	Seats	Vote	Reason
Alliance For Digital Freedom And Rights	219	No	We strongly oppose these changes. They represent a clear move away from our liberal and secular principles towards greater state control over private life and the imposition of traditional, often obsolete social values. A democratic government should protect families and children without infringing upon individual autonomy rather than dictate how people live, how many children they should have, or what values they must follow. We believe parental leave should empower both parents without coercing reproduction, education should rely on professional judgement rather than blanket bans, and homeschooling should remain a freedom subject to reasonable safeguards. Above all, our country must remain firmly secular: public schools should be secular institutions, and religious belief must remain a matter of individual freedom rather than something promoted or financed by the state. These principles are central to the ADFR's vision of a free, pluralist and liberal society.
Homeland Alliance Proposer	91	Yes	No reason given
Left Forward	91	No	The idea that the state should set reproductive targets and punish couples who do not have children says a lot about the view of family behind this proposal. Having children is a deeply personal decision. Women are not here to meet birth targets, and young people should not grow up with the feeling that their private lives belong to the state. The same pattern appears in education. Banning phones, removing oversight from homeschooling, and bringing state funded religious schools back into the system all reduce the space in which young people can make decisions for themselves. Children need protection and good education, but they also need rights and room to develop into independent adults
Saxenheim Workers’ Union	229	Yes	These reforms strengthen family and parental freedoms while reducing unnecessary state interference in education and religious life. Allowing greater choice in homeschooling and religious education, recognising existing faith schools, and giving schools a clear smartphone policy can provide families and communities with greater control while maintaining a stable educational environment.
Empty seats	52	Not voted

Voting record

Every vote must state a public reason. Most recent first.

Left Forward

Voted Nov. 13, 2022

No

“The idea that the state should set reproductive targets and punish couples who do not have children says a lot about the view of family behind this proposal. Having children is a deeply personal decision. Women are not here to meet birth targets, and young people should not grow up with the feeling that their private lives belong to the state. The same pattern appears in education. Banning phones, removing oversight from homeschooling, and bringing state funded religious schools back into the system all reduce the space in which young people can make decisions for themselves. Children need protection and good education, but they also need rights and room to develop into independent adults”

Alliance For Digital Freedom And Rights

Voted Nov. 11, 2022

No

“We strongly oppose these changes. They represent a clear move away from our liberal and secular principles towards greater state control over private life and the imposition of traditional, often obsolete social values. A democratic government should protect families and children without infringing upon individual autonomy rather than dictate how people live, how many children they should have, or what values they must follow. We believe parental leave should empower both parents without coercing reproduction, education should rely on professional judgement rather than blanket bans, and homeschooling should remain a freedom subject to reasonable safeguards. Above all, our country must remain firmly secular: public schools should be secular institutions, and religious belief must remain a matter of individual freedom rather than something promoted or financed by the state. These principles are central to the ADFR's vision of a free, pluralist and liberal society.”

Saxenheim Workers’ Union

Voted Nov. 5, 2022

Yes

“These reforms strengthen family and parental freedoms while reducing unnecessary state interference in education and religious life. Allowing greater choice in homeschooling and religious education, recognising existing faith schools, and giving schools a clear smartphone policy can provide families and communities with greater control while maintaining a stable educational environment.”