This Section prohibits the proposed adoptive parents of a child or a person acting on their behalf from making any payments to or on behalf of a birth parent of the child, an alleged or presumed father of the child or the child other than those listed as allowed above.
Payments Made After Finalization of Adoption
This Section permits the proposed adoptive parents of a child or a person acting on their behalf to make any of the allowable payments after finalization of the adoption (at which point the proposed adoptive parents become “adoptive parents"), if the payments are included in the report to the juvenile court described below or an amendment to the report which is filed with the juvenile court.
Report Regarding Payments Must Be Submitted to Juvenile Court
This Section requires a report regarding payments related to the adoption to be provided to the juvenile court: (1) at the time of the hearing on the TPR petition in an independent adoption by a nonrelative; or (2) at the time of the hearing on any other TPR petition if a proposed adoptive parent of the child who is not a relative of the child has been identified at the time of the hearing.
This Section requires the report to list all transfers of anything of value made or agreed to be made by the proposed adoptive parents or by a person acting on their behalf to or on behalf of a birth parent of the child, an alleged or presumed father of the child or the child or to any other person in connection with the pregnancy, the birth of the child, the placement of the child with the proposed adoptive parents or the adoption of the child by the proposed adoptive parents.
The report must be itemized and must show the goods or services for which payment was made or agreed to be made. The report must include the dates of each payment, the names and addresses of each attorney, doctor, hospital, agency or other person or organization receiving any payment from the proposed adoptive parents, or a person acting on behalf of the proposed adoptive parents, in connection with the pregnancy, the birth of the child, the placement of the child with the proposed adoptive parents or the adoption of the child by the proposed adoptive parents.
104,17
Section 17
. 48.93 (1d) of the statutes is amended to read:
48.93 (1d) All records and papers pertaining to an adoption proceeding shall be kept in a separate locked file and may not be disclosed except under sub. (1g) or (1r), s. 46.03 (29), 48.432, 48.433 or, 48.57 (1) (j) or 48.434, or by order of the court for good cause shown.
Note: This Section creates a new exception to the statutory prohibition against disclosing records and papers pertaining to an adoption proceeding. This Section permits an agency that has placed a child for adoption or that appointed the guardian of a child who was adopted in an independent adoption to release information about the child's birth parents to the child's adoptive parents, and to release information about the child's adoptive parents to the child's birth parents, when authorized to do so, as described in the Note following the creation of s. 48.434, stats., above.
104,18
Section 18
. 48.988 (8) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
48.988 (8) (a) The sending or bringing of a child into a receiving state by a the child's parent, stepparent, grandparent, adult brother or sister, adult uncle or aunt, or a guardian and leaving the child with any such relative or non-agency guardian in the receiving state.
Note: Current law provides that the ICPC does not apply to the sending or bringing of a child into a receiving state by a parent, stepparent, grandparent, adult brother or sister, adult uncle or aunt, or a guardian and leaving the child with any such relative or nonagency guardian in the receiving state. This Section specifies that the ICPC does not apply to the sending or bringing of a child into a receiving state by the child's parent, stepparent, grandparent, adult brother or sister, adult uncle or aunt, or guardian and leaving the child with any such relative or nonagency guardian in the receiving state.
104,19
Section 19
. 115.355 of the statutes is created to read:
115.355 Assistance to schools for instruction on adoption. The department shall annually and upon request disseminate to appropriate public school staff information about materials and services available through the state adoption center under s. 48.551 which may serve as resources for instruction on adoption for pupils in grades kindergarten through 12.
Note: This Section requires DPI annually and upon request to disseminate to appropriate public school staff information about materials and services available through the state adoption center under s. 48.551, stats., which may serve as resources for instruction on adoption for pupils in grades kindergarten through 12.
104,20
Section 20
. 115.92 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
115.92 (1) Any school board may establish a program for school age parents who are residents of the school district. The program shall be designed to provide services and instruction to meet the needs of school age parents, including education on the skills required of a parent; family planning, including natural family planning; and information instruction on adoption and adoption services. The instruction provided on adoption and adoption services shall include instruction on the options available and the procedures followed in independent and agency adoptions, including current practices regarding a birth parent's involvement in the selection of an adoptive home and the sharing of information between birth parents and adoptive parents, instruction on the impact of adoption on birth parents and children who have been adopted and an explanation that the adoption process may be initiated even after a child has been born and has left the hospital. The program shall be coordinated with existing vocational and job training programs in the school district.
Note: This Section amends current law regarding school age parents programs by requiring those programs to provide “instruction on adoption and adoption services" rather than “information on adoption services". In addition, this Section specifies that the instruction on adoption and adoption services must include all of the following:
1. Information on the options available and the procedures followed in independent and agency adoptions, including current practices regarding a birth parent's involvement in the selection of an adoptive home and the sharing of information between birth parents and adoptive parents.
2. Information on the impact of adoption on birth parents and children who have been adopted.
3. An explanation that the adoption process may be initiated even after a child has been born and has left the hospital.
104,21
Section 21
. 948.24 (1) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
948.24 (1) (a) Places or agrees to place his or her child for adoption for anything exceeding the actual cost of the hospital and medical expenses of the mother and the child incurred in connection with the child's birth, and of the legal and other services rendered in connection with the adoption items listed in s. 48.913 (1) (a) to (m) and the payments authorized under s. 48.913 (2).
Note: Under current law, any person who places or agrees to place his or her child for adoption for anything other than the payments authorized under s. 948.24 (1) (a), stats., is guilty of a Class D felony, which is punishable by a fine not to exceed $10,000 or imprisonment not to exceed 5 years, or both.
The bill amends this criminal provision to correspond to changes the bill makes in children's code regarding payments related to adoption. Thus, under the bill, receiving any payment authorized by the bill in the children's code is not grounds for criminal prosecution.
Specifically, current s. 948.24 (1) (a), stats., prohibits any person from placing or agreeing to place his or her child for adoption for anything exceeding “the actual cost of the hospital and medical expenses of the mother and the child incurred in connection with the child's birth, and of the legal and other services rendered in connection with the adoption".
The bill replaces the quoted language with the phrase “the actual cost of the items listed in s. 48.913 (1) (a) to (m) and the payments authorized under s. 48.913 (2)". Section 48.913 (1) and (2), stats., as created by the bill, authorizes proposed adoptive parents to make various payments to a birth parent of a child or to an alleged or presumed father of a child.
Under current law and the bill, these provisions do not apply to the adoption of a foreign child under s. 48.839, stats.
104,22
Section 22
. 948.24 (1) (c) of the statutes is amended to read:
948.24 (1) (c) In order to receive a child for adoption, gives anything exceeding the actual cost of the hospital and medical expenses of the mother and the child incurred in connection with the child's birth, and of the legal and other services rendered in connection with the adoption and the items listed in s. 48.913 (1) (a) to (m) and the payments authorized under s. 48.913 (2).
Note: Under current law, any person who makes payments other than the payments authorized under s. 948.24 (1) (c), stats., in order to receive a child for adoption, is guilty of a Class D felony, which is punishable by a fine not to exceed $10,000 or imprisonment not to exceed 5 years, or both.
The bill amends this criminal provision to correspond to changes the bill makes in the children's code regarding payments related to adoption. Thus, under the bill, making any payment authorized by the bill in the children's code is not grounds for criminal prosecution.
Specifically, current s. 948.24 (1) (c), stats., prohibits any person, in order to receive a child for adoption, from giving anything exceeding “the actual cost of the hospital and medical expenses of the mother and the child incurred in connection with the child's birth, and of the legal and other services rendered in connection with the adoption".
The bill replaces the quoted language with the phrase “the actual cost of the legal and other services rendered in connection with the adoption and the items listed in s. 48.913 (1) (a) to (m) and the payments authorized under s. 48.913 (2)". Section 48.913 (1) and (2), stats., as created by the bill, authorize proposed adoptive parents and adoptive parents to make various payments related to the birth and adoption of a child.
Under current law and the bill, these provisions do not apply to the adoption of a foreign child under s. 48.839, stats.
104,23
Section 23
.
Initial applicability.
(1) Advertising related to adoption. The treatment of section 48.825 of the statutes first applies to advertisements placed on the effective date of this subsection.
(2) Time for hearing on termination of parental rights petition filed with independent adoptive placement petition. The treatment of section 48.837 (4) (a) of the statutes first applies to petitions filed under section 48.837 (2) and (3) of the statutes on the effective date of this subsection.
(3) Removal of child for adoptive placement. The treatment of section 48.64 (1m) of the statutes first applies to the removal of a child from a foster home, treatment foster home or group home on the effective date of this subsection.
(4) Time for filing petition for rehearing. The treatment of section 48.46 (1) of the statutes first applies to orders entered on the effective date of this subsection.
(5) Payment of birth parents' expenses.
(a) The treatment of sections 48.913 and 948.24 (1) (a) and (c) of the statutes first applies to the payment of expenses which are incurred on the effective date of this subsection.
(b) The treatment of section 48.422 (7) (bm) of the statutes first applies to petitions for termination of parental rights filed on the effective date of this subsection.
(c) The treatment of section 48.837 (1m), (2) (d) and (6) (b) of the statutes first applies to petitions for adoptive placement under section 48.837 (2) of the statutes filed on the effective date of this subsection.
(5m) Filing of adoption petitions. The treatment of section 48.90 (1) (a) of the statutes first applies to adoption petitions filed on the effective date of this subsection.
