Bill Text: CA AB724 | 2017-2018 | Regular Session | Amended

California Assembly Bill 724 (Prior Session Legislation)

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

Bill Title: Intercountry adoption finalized in a foreign country.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 6-0)

Status: (Vetoed) 2018-09-29 - Vetoed by Governor. [AB724 Detail]

Download: California-2017-AB724-Amended.html

Amended IN Senate August 20, 2018

Amended IN Senate July 03, 2017

Amended IN Senate June 20, 2017

Amended IN Assembly April 26, 2017

Amended IN Assembly April 20, 2017

Amended IN Assembly March 20, 2017

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 724

Introduced by Assembly Member Choi
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Acosta, Gallagher, Lackey, Patterson, and Voepel)
(Coauthor: Senator Anderson)

February 15, 2017

An act to amend Section 8904 of, and to repeal and add Section 8919 of of, the Family Code, relating to intercountry adoption.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 724, as amended, Choi. ~~Foreign adoption: domestication.~~ Intercountry adoption finalized in a foreign country.

Existing law requires a Hague adoption certificate or, in outgoing cases, a Hague custody declaration obtained from the United States Secretary of State pursuant to the procedures set forth in specified federal regulations to be recognized as a final valid adoption for purposes of all state and local laws.

Existing law ~~establishes a process for readoption in this state.~~ generally provides for the adoption of a child native to a foreign country by a prospective adoptive parent or parents who are California residents that is either finalized in another country or this state. A licensed adoption agency facilitating an intercountry adoption that will be finalized in a foreign country is required to provide specific services that include certification to the federal government whether this state’s intercountry adoption requirements have been met. Existing law requires each resident of the state who adopts a child through an intercountry adoption that is finalized in a foreign country to readopt the child in this state if it is required by the United States Department of Homeland Security, and requires this readoption to include at least one postplacement in-home visit, ~~the~~ a home study report, and ~~the~~ final adoption order. Existing law also authorizes a resident of the state who adopts a child through an intercountry adoption that is finalized in a foreign country to readopt the child in this ~~state, and requires this readoption to meet the standards described above.~~ state.

This bill would repeal these readoption provisions and would instead establish a process to domesticate a foreign adoption ~~decree.~~ decree or grant a readoption. The bill would require the state to recognize as full and final a foreign adoption decree, as specified, without the need for readoption or any other legal proceeding, if certain criteria are met. The bill would require, ~~within the sooner~~ by the earlier of 60 days of the adoptee’s entry into the United States or the adoptee’s ~~16th~~ 18th birthday, each state resident who adopts a child through an intercountry adoption that is finalized in a foreign country to file a petition with the court ~~to obtain a court declaration~~ to domesticate the foreign decree of adoption and to provide each adoption agency that provided the parent with adoption services with a file-marked copy of the petition within 5 business days of filing. The bill would authorize the court to grant the petition if the petitioner provides the court with copies of specified documents. adoption or readopt the child. The bill would require the adoption agency that placed the child for adoption to file the petition if the adoptive parent fails to do so. The bill would prohibit a court from granting the petition unless certain criteria are met, including the condition that the court receives a report from at least one postadoption home visit performed by a licensed adoption agency. The bill would require the clerk of the ~~court, within 10 business days after issuance of the~~ ~~domestication of the foreign judgment, to submit to the State Registrar the order, and upon receipt by the State Registrar,~~ court to submit an order granting the petition to the State Registrar, with the required fee, and would require the State Registrar to issue a delayed registration of birth, as specified. The bill would require, if a person who has adopted a child through an intercountry adoption that is finalized in a foreign county fails to file a petition to obtain a court declaration to domesticate the foreign adoption decree within 60 days of the child’s entry into the United States or the child’s 16th birthday, whichever is sooner, and fails to provide a copy of that petition to each adoption agency that provided the adoption services to the parent, the adoption agency that placed the child for adoption to file a petition to domesticate the foreign decree of adoption within 90 days of the child’s entry into the United States and to provide a file-marked copy of the petition to the adoptive family and to any other adoption agency that provided services to the adoption family. The bill would require the adoptive parent or parents to be liable to the adoption agency for all costs and fees incurred as a result of the good faith actions taken by the adoption agency to fulfill this requirement. The bill would permit the State Department of Social Services to take appropriate disciplinary action against an adoption agency that fails to file a petition under these circumstances. The bill would entitle, if a petition has not been filed to domesticate the foreign adoption decree within 90 days of the child’s entry into the United States, any interested party, as defined, to file a petition to domesticate the foreign adoption decree. This bill would authorize an adoptive parent, if an adoption finalized in a foreign country according to the laws of that country does not meet statutory requirements, to readopt the child pursuant to the domestication of a foreign adoption decree procedure described above, and would require, upon entry of an order of readoption, the clerk of the court, within 10 business days after the entry of an order of readoption, to submit to the State Registrar the order, and upon receipt by the State Registrar, would require the State Registrar to issue a delayed registration of birth.

This bill would require a court that finds a child may be the subject of human trafficking or specified types of abuse to notify all appropriate authorities.
This bill would, if a licensed adoption agency has a written agreement for which postadoption services have been paid, require the licensed adoption agency to provide those services, and would also make technical, nonsubstantive changes to the other services a licensed adoption agency facilitating an intercountry adoption is required to provide.

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section 8904 of the Family Code is amended to read:

8904.

For an intercountry adoption that will be finalized in a foreign country, the licensed adoption agency shall provide all of the following services:

(a) Assessment of the suitability of the applicant’s home.

(b) Certification to the ~~Immigration and Naturalization Service~~ United States Citizenship and Immigration Services that this state’s intercountry adoption requirements have been met.

(d) Postadoption services pursuant to any written agreement between the licensed adoption agency and any other person or entity for which the postadoption services have been paid.

SECTION 1.SEC. 2.

Section 8919 of the Family Code is repealed.

SEC. 2.Section 8919 is added to the Family Code, to read:
8919.
(a)The state shall recognize as full and final a foreign adoption decree so that the child shall receive United States citizenship pursuant to Section 320.1 of Title 8 of the Code of Federal Regulations, without the need for readoption or any other legal proceeding, if all of the following are true:
~~(1)The child was born in a foreign country.~~
~~(2)The child was not a citizen of the United States at the time of birth.~~
~~(3)The child was adopted by a resident of this state in a foreign proceeding in which the adoption was finalized pursuant to the laws of the country from which the child was adopted.~~
(4)As a result of that foreign adoption, the child was granted lawful entry into the United States as an immediate relative of the adoptive parent or parents, at least one of whom is a United States citizen.
(b)In order to establish a record by which an adoptee can prove the facts of the foreign adoption that resulted in United States citizenship, each state resident who adopts a child through an intercountry adoption that is finalized in a foreign country shall, within the sooner of 60 days of the adoptee’s entry into the United States or the adoptee’s 16th birthday, file a petition to obtain a formal court declaration to domesticate the foreign decree of adoption and shall provide each adoption agency that provided the parent with adoption services with a file-marked copy of the petition within five business days of filing.
~~(c)The petition to domesticate the foreign adoption decree may be granted if the petitioner supplies the court with copies of all of the following documents:~~
~~(1)The foreign decree, order, or certification of adoption that evidences finalization of the adoption in the foreign country.~~
~~(2)The child’s passport or foreign birth certificate.~~
(3)A certified translation of all documents described in this subdivision that are not written in English. The court shall accept the certified translation, if any, that was completed abroad for purposes of obtaining the child’s visa or passport.
~~(4)A report from at least one in-home postplacement visit.~~
~~(5)A copy of the home study completed as part of the adoption process.~~
(d)If at the hearing the court denies the petition for domestication of the foreign judgment, the court shall state the reasons for the denial on the record, and shall take any actions necessary to protect the health and safety of the child, including, but not limited to, an immediate referral to the county child welfare agency. A denial of the petition, or any party’s failure to file the petition, shall not affect the state’s automatic recognition of the foreign judgment pursuant to subdivision (a), with all of the attendant benefits of that recognition.
(e)Within 10 business days after domestication of the foreign judgment, the clerk of the court shall submit to the State Registrar the order domesticating the foreign adoption. Upon receipt of the order, the State Registrar shall issue a delayed registration of birth in accordance with Section 102600 of the Health and Safety Code that lists the adoptive parent or parents as the child’s legal parent or parents.
(f)If a person who has adopted a child through an intercountry adoption that is finalized in a foreign country fails to file a petition to obtain a court declaration to domesticate the foreign adoption decree within 60 days of the child’s entry into the United States or the child’s 16th birthday, whichever is sooner, and fails to provide a copy of that petition to each adoption agency that provided the adoption services to the parent, then the adoption agency that placed the child for adoption shall file a petition to domesticate the foreign adoption decree within 90 days of the child’s entry into the United States, and shall provide a file-marked copy of the petition to the adoptive family and to any other adoption agency that provided services to the adoptive family within five business days of filing. The adoptive parent or parents shall be liable to the adoption agency for all costs and fees incurred as a result of good faith actions taken by the agency to fulfill this requirement. If the adoption agency fails to file such a petition as required by this subdivision, the State Department of Social Services may take appropriate disciplinary action against the agency.
(g)(1)If no petition has been filed to domesticate the foreign adoption decree within 90 days of the child’s entry into the United States, then any interested party may file a petition to domesticate the foreign adoption decree of any adoptee residing in this state. The requirement of standing to file a petition under this subdivision shall be liberally construed in favor of allowing the action to proceed at any time during the adoptee’s life, whether minority or adulthood, in order to protect the best interests of the adoptee. The court may cause the order domesticating the foreign judgment to be entered nunc pro tunc, and shall join each adoptive parent as a party to the case. The court shall also have the authority to join any other necessary persons or entities in order to require production of any documents necessary for the court to make the appropriate determination. After joining the adoptive parents as parties, the court may dismiss any interested party whose continued participation in the case is not necessary to protect the best interests of the child.
(2)For purposes of this subdivision, “interested party” includes, but is not limited to, the adoptee, whether minor or an adult, an adoptive parent, whether acting with or without the consent of the other adoptive parent, a legal guardian or conservator of the adoptee, any biological or adoptive relative of the adoptee within the second degree, any adoption agency that provided services to the adoptive family or the adoptee, and any public child welfare agency that has taken the adoptee into protective custody. The filing of a domestication petition by an interested party shall not be construed to grant, nor used as the basis to grant, any rights of legal or physical custody over the child to the interested party.
(h)(1)If an adoption finalized in a foreign country according to the laws of that country does not meet all of the requirements of subdivision (a), the adoptive parent may readopt the child by following the domestication of the foreign adoption decree procedure set forth in subdivision (c).
(2)Within 10 business days after the entry of an order of readoption, the clerk of the court shall submit to the State Registrar the order of readoption. Upon receipt of the order, the State Registrar shall issue a delayed registration of birth in accordance with Section 102600 of the Health and Safety Code that lists the adoptive parent or parents as the child’s legal parent or parents.

SEC. 3.

Section 8919 is added to the Family Code, to read:

8919.
(a) The state shall recognize as a full and final adoption a foreign adoption decree so that the child shall receive United States citizenship pursuant to Part 320 (commencing with Section 320.1) of Subchapter C of Chapter 1 of Title 8 of the Code of Federal Regulations, or successor provisions, without the need to domesticate the foreign adoption decree, readopt the child, or any other legal proceeding, if all of the following are true:
(1) The child was born in a foreign country.
(2) The child was not a citizen of the United States at the time of birth.
(3) The child was adopted by a resident of this state in a foreign proceeding in which the adoption was finalized pursuant to the laws of the country from which the child was adopted.
(4) As a result of that foreign adoption, the child was granted lawful entry into the United States as an immediate relative of the adoptive parent or parents, at least one of whom is a United States citizen.
(b) In order to establish a record by which an adoptee can prove the facts of the foreign adoption, each adoptive parent who has finalized an intercountry adoption in a foreign country shall file a petition to domesticate the foreign adoption decree or to readopt the child by the earlier of 60 days of the adoptee’s entry into the United States or the adoptee’s 18th birthday. The petition shall include all of the following:
(1) A certified or otherwise official copy of the foreign decree, order, or certification of adoption that reflects finalization of the adoption in the foreign country.
(2) A certified or otherwise official copy of the child’s foreign birth certificate or passport.
(3) A certified translation of all documents described in this subdivision that are not written in English. The court shall accept the certified translation, if any, that was completed abroad for purposes of obtaining the child’s visa or passport.
(4) Proof of the adoptive parents or parents’ United States citizenship.
(5) A report from at least one postadoption home visit by an adoption agency licensed to provide intercountry adoption services in this state pursuant to Section 8900.
(6) A copy of the home study completed for the international adoption process by an adoption agency licensed to provide intercountry adoption services in this state pursuant to Section 8900. An update of the home study shall not be required for the court to grant the petition for domestication of the foreign adoption decree or readoption.
(c) If an adoptive parent who has adopted a child through an intercountry adoption that is finalized in a foreign country fails to file a petition pursuant to subdivision (b) by the earlier of 60 days of the child’s entry into the United States or the child’s 18th birthday or fails to provide a copy of the petition to each adoption agency that provided the adoption services to the adoptive parent, then the adoption agency that placed the child for adoption shall file the a petition within 90 days of the child’s entry into the United States, and shall provide a file-marked copy of the petition to the adoptive parent and to any other adoption agency that provided services to the adoptive parent within five business days of filing. An adoptive parent shall be liable to the adoption agency for all costs and fees incurred as a result of good faith actions taken by the adoption agency to fulfill its requirement pursuant to this subdivision. If the adoption agency fails to file a petition as required by this subdivision, the department may take appropriate disciplinary action against the adoption agency.
(d) The court shall not grant a petition filed pursuant to this section unless the court receives a copy of the reports described in paragraphs (5) and (6) of subdivision (b). The court shall consider all of these reports when deciding whether to grant or deny the petition. If the court denies the petition, the court shall state the reasons for the denial on the record.
(e) If the court finds that the child may be the subject of human trafficking or may be a child who is described in Section 300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, the court shall, in accordance with existing law, notify all appropriate authorities.
(f) The court may enter the order granting the petition nunc pro tunc pursuant to Section 8601.5, except that the order may not be dated prior to the date the child lawfully entered the United States.
(g) Within 10 business days after entry of the order granting the petition, the clerk of the court shall submit the order with the appropriate fee to the State Registrar. Upon receipt, the State Registrar shall issue a delayed registration of birth in accordance with Section 102695 of the Health and Safety Code that lists the adoptive parent or parents as the child’s legal parent or parents.