Advertising related to adoption or other permanent physical placements of a child, delegation of parental power regarding the care and custody of a child for more than one year, unauthorized interstate placements of children, requesting a study of adoption disruption and dissolution, and providing penalties. (FE)

This bill expands the prohibition against advertising related to adoption to include communicating by any computerized communication system, including by electronic mail, Internet site, Internet profile, or any similar medium of communication provided via the Internet.

The bill also expands the prohibition against advertising related to adoption to prohibit a person from advertising: 1) for the purpose of finding a child to otherwise take into permanent physical custody; 2) that the person will find any other permanent physical placement for a child or arrange for or assist in any other permanent physical placement of a child; or 3) that the person will place a child in any other permanent physical placement.

In addition, the bill limits the current exception to the prohibition against advertising related to adoption that permits an individual seeking to place his or her own child for adoption to permit such an individual to advertise for adoption only if the child is under one year of age.

Delegation of parental powers Under current law, subject to certain exceptions, a parent who has legal custody of a child may, by a properly executed power of attorney, delegate to an agent, for no longer than one year, any of his or her powers regarding the care and custody of the child (parental powers).

This bill permits a parent who has legal custody of a child, by a properly executed power of attorney, to delegate to an agent, for longer than one year, any of his or her parental powers, but only if the court assigned to exercise jurisdiction under the Children's Code (juvenile court) approves that delegation.

Under the bill, a parent who wishes to delegate his or her parental powers to an agent for longer than one year, the agent to whom the parent wishes to delegate those powers, or an organization that is facilitating that delegation must file a petition with the juvenile court requesting the court's approval of that delegation.

The petition must have a draft copy of the power of attorney delegating those powers attached to the petition and must state, among other things, all of the following: 1) the relationship of the agent to the child; 2) whether the parent wishes to delegate to the agent full parental power or partial parental power and, if the parent wishes to delegate partial parental power, the specific powers that the parent wishes to delegate and any limitations on those powers; 3) the proposed term of the delegation of parental powers, the reasons for the delegation of parental powers, and whether the parent proposes to provide any support to the agent during that term; and 4) facts and circumstances showing that the delegation of parental powers would be in the best interests of the child and that the person nominated as agent is fit, willing, and able to exercise those powers.

The juvenile court must hold a hearing on a petition requesting the court's approval of a proposed delegation of parental powers. In determining the appropriate disposition of such a petition, the juvenile court must consider the best interests of the child as the prevailing factor and must also consider whether the person nominated as agent would be fit, willing, and able to exercise the parental powers to be delegated, the reasons for the delegation of parental powers, and the amount of support that the parent is willing and able to provide to the agent during the term of the delegation of parental powers. If the juvenile court determines that the proposed delegation of parental powers is in the best interests of the child, the juvenile court may approve the proposed delegation of parental powers and may also designate an amount of support to be paid by the child's parents to the agent. If the juvenile court approves the proposed delegation of parental powers, the parent and the person nominated as agent may execute a power of attorney delegating those powers as approved by the juvenile court.

Under the bill, any person who delegates his or her powers regarding the care and custody of a child for longer than one year without first obtaining the approval of the juvenile court is subject to a fine not to exceed $10,000 or imprisonment not to exceed nine months, or both.

Unauthorized interstate placements of children Under current law, the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children and certain other statutory provisions govern the interstate placement of children.

This bill prohibits any person from sending a child out of this state, bringing a child into this state, or causing a child to be sent out of this state or brought into this state for the purpose of permanently transferring physical custody of the child to a person who is not a relative of the child. A person who violates that prohibition is subject to a fine not to exceed $10,000 or imprisonment not to exceed nine months, or both. That prohibition, however, does not apply to a placement of a child that is authorized under the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children or any other statutory provisions governing the interstate placement of children or a placement of a child that is approved by a court of competent jurisdiction of the sending state or receiving state.

Study of adoption disruption and dissolution Finally, the bill requests the JLC to study adoption disruption and dissolution in this state. If the JLC undertakes such a study, the JLC must do all of the following:

1) study the extent of adoption disruption and dissolution in this state and the efforts by DCF, counties, and child welfare agencies to prevent such disruption and dissolution; 2) recommend legislation to define adoption disruption and adoption dissolution, to prevent adoption disruption and adoption dissolution in this state, to require DCF, county departments, and child welfare agencies to track and report on disrupted or dissolved adoptions; 3) consider legislative options to prepare prospective adoptive parents for adoption and to support adoptive parents after an adoption; and 4) submit its findings, conclusions, and recommendations to the 2015 legislature when it commences.