Texas senators examined the question of whether commercial surrogacy has turned into a pipeline for foreign exploitation and “build‑a‑baby” arrangements during a Wednesday hearing.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick charged the Texas Senate Committee on Health and Human Services to investigate “the unethical and foreign interests exploiting the surrogacy and fertility industries in Texas” ahead of the 2027 legislative session.
Banning commercial surrogacy, the practice of paying a woman to carry and deliver a child for intended parents, and in vitro fertilization (IVF) are both part of the Texas GOP’s pro-life priority for the next legislative session.
Multiple witnesses and lawmakers at the committee hearing argued that lack of federal oversight regulating surrogacy and the absence of background-check requirements for intended parents leave the door open for child abuse, foreign exploitation, and risks to surrogate mothers.
Committee Chair Lois Kolkhorst (R–Brenham) cited a California case in which authorities removed 21 mainly surrogate-born children from a couple’s home after allegations of child abuse. She said surrogate mothers were allegedly misled about who they were carrying children for and noted the couple had alleged ties to the Chinese Communist Party.
Jennifer Lahl, founder of the Center for Bioethics and Culture Network, testified that most of Europe and Asia prohibit commercial surrogacy, treating it “akin to exploitation or slavery-like practices.”
She also said these foreign restrictions have helped grow the multi-billion-dollar surrogacy industry in the U.S., as foreigners use American surrogates to buy children that receive U.S. citizenship.
Texas is one of the many states where these arrangements are permitted. Texas law only requires the surrogate to have resided in the state for at least 90 days before the intended parents can obtain a court order validating the agreement, regardless of where they live.
To illustrate this, Kolkhorst pointed to a billboard along Interstate 35 advertising surrogacy opportunities for Texas women. Referring to the Dallas-based company’s website, Kolkhorst noted its staff includes two U.K. coordinators, a West Coast coordinator, and a certified Mandarin interpreter.
“I don’t think that we need a Mandarin interpreter in a Texas company,” Kolkhorst said. “What are we doing here?”
Lahl also testified that surrogacy pregnancies carry increased risks as compared to regular pregnancies.
Christian Ross described these risks firsthand. During her surrogate pregnancy, Ross suffered a chronic subchorionic hematoma, severe morning sickness, preeclampsia, multiple blood transfusions, and ultimately underwent an emergency C-section at 37 weeks. She is now unable to have children.
“If I could go back and redo this all over again, I never would have done this,” Ross told the committee. “It ruined my life, and likely that baby’s life as well.”
She also said she later learned the people presented to her as the intended parents were never the intended parents, leading to long legal battles after the child was taken overseas. The child eventually received a home with the genetic father.
“I bonded with him. I carried him, and I miss him still,” she said. “That is something you can’t prepare yourself for.”
Several senators were also concerned with what they called “Lego” or “Build-A-Baby” arrangements, where advances in assisted reproduction allow intended parents to assemble desirable characteristics by selecting sperm and egg donors from chosen ethnicities and using a grading scale for embryos.
“It’s just a really kind of gross practice,” Ross commented.
Kolkhorst also raised concerns that taxpayers could end up paying for surrogate care. Since the surrogacy industry often targets women of limited financial means, she wondered if their pregnancy-related care could end up being billed to Medicaid.
While no data exists to confirm this or how often it happens, senators agreed it needed to be looked into.
State Sen. César Blanco (D–El Paso) wanted to know if new restrictions could limit surrogacy options for couples who needed it as a last opportunity to grow their family.
Lahl responded that while the desire to have children is natural and understandable, “no one has a right to a child” and that “you don’t risk another woman’s health because you want to grow your family,” especially with so many children in foster care.
Lahl is not the only one making that case. Conservative commentator Allie Beth Stuckey has spent years arguing against commercial surrogacy on her podcast “Relatable.”
“Children are the unconsenting subjects of progressive social experiments,” she has said. They “are being placed on the altar of adult desires.”
Kolkhorst, who said she asked Patrick to add the issue to the interim charges, could file legislation on the topic when bill filing for the upcoming 90th Legislative Session opens on November 9, 2026.
The 90th Legislature will convene on January 12, 2027.
