Bill Text: FL H0787 | 2010 | Regular Session | Comm Sub

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

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Bill Title: Child Abduction Prevention [SPSC]

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Passed) 2010-05-11 - Approved by Governor; Chapter No. 2010-59 [H0787 Detail]

Download: Florida-2010-H0787-Comm_Sub.html

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CS/HB 787

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to child abduction prevention; providing a
3	short title; amending s. 61.45, F.S.; authorizing
4	additional persons to move to have certain restrictions
5	placed in parenting plans upon showing of a risk that one
6	party may violate the court's parenting plan by removing a
7	child from this state or country or by concealing the
8	child's whereabouts; authorizing courts to impose certain
9	restrictions in parenting plans upon a specified finding;
10	authorizing a court to impose certain restrictions in
11	addition to or in lieu of a requirement that a child's
12	passport be surrendered; authorizing a court to impose
13	specified restrictions upon entry of an order to prevent
14	removal of a child from this state or country; providing
15	additional factors that may be considered in assessing the
16	risk that a party may violate a parenting plan by removing
17	a child from this state or country or by concealing the
18	child's whereabouts; providing that violations may subject
19	a violator to specified penalties or other consequences;
20	providing an effective date.
21
22	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
23
24	Section 1. This act may be cited as the "Child Abduction
25	Prevention Act."
26	Section 2. Section 61.45, Florida Statutes, is amended to
27	read:
28	61.45 Court-ordered parenting plan; risk of violation;
29	bond.-
30	(1) In any proceeding in which the court enters a
31	parenting plan, including a time-sharing schedule, including in
32	a modification proceeding, upon the presentation of competent
33	substantial evidence that there is a risk that one party may
34	violate the court's parenting plan by removing a child from this
35	state or country or by concealing the whereabouts of a child, or
36	upon stipulation of the parties, upon the motion of another
37	individual or entity having a right under the law of this state,
38	or if the court finds evidence that establishes credible risk of
39	removal of the child, the court may:
40	(a) Order that a parent may not remove the child from this
41	state without the notarized written permission of both parents
42	or further court order;
43	(b) Order that a parent may not remove the child from this
44	country without the notarized written permission of both parents
45	or further court order;
46	(c) Order that a parent may not take the child to a
47	country that has not ratified or acceded to the Hague Convention
48	on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction unless the
49	other parent agrees in writing that the child may be taken to
50	the country;
51	(d) Require a parent to surrender the passport of the
52	child or require that:
53	1. The petitioner place the child's name in the Children's
54	Passport Issuance Alert Program of the United States Department
55	of State;
56	2. The respondent surrender to the court or the
57	petitioner's attorney any United States or foreign passport
58	issued in the child's name, including a passport issued in the
59	name of both the parent and the child; and
60	3. The respondent not apply on behalf of the child for a
61	new or replacement passport or visa; or
62	(e) Require that party to post bond or other security in
63	an amount sufficient to serve as a financial deterrent to
64	abduction, the proceeds of which may be used to pay for the
65	reasonable expenses of recovery of the child, including
66	reasonable attorney's fees and costs, if the child is abducted.
67	(2) If the court enters a parenting plan, including a
68	time-sharing schedule, including in a modification proceeding,
69	that includes a provision entered under paragraph (1)(b) or
70	paragraph (1)(c), a certified copy of the order should be sent
71	by the parent who requested the restriction to the Passport
72	Services Office of the United States Department of State
73	requesting that they not issue a passport to the child without
74	their signature or further court order.
75	(3) If the court enters an order under paragraph (1)(a) or
76	paragraph (1)(b) to prevent the removal of the child from this
77	state or country, the order may include one or more of the
78	following:
79	(a) An imposition of travel restrictions that require that
80	a party traveling with the child outside a designated geographic
81	area provide the other party with the following:
82	1. The travel itinerary of the child.
83	2. A list of physical addresses and telephone numbers at
84	which the child can be reached at specified times.
85	3. Copies of all travel documents.
86	(b) A prohibition of the respondent directly or
87	indirectly:
88	1. Removing the child from this state or country or
89	another specified geographic area without permission of the
90	court or the petitioner's written consent;
91	2. Removing or retaining the child in violation of a child
92	custody determination;
93	3. Removing the child from school or a child care or
94	similar facility; or
95	4. Approaching the child at any location other than a site
96	designated for supervised visitation.
97	(c) A requirement that a party register the order in
98	another state as a prerequisite to allowing the child to travel
99	to that state.
100	(d) As a prerequisite to exercising custody or visitation,
101	a requirement that the respondent provide the following:
102	1. An authenticated copy of the order detailing passport
103	and travel restrictions for the child to the Office of
104	Children's Issues within the Bureau of Consular Affairs of the
105	United States Department of State and the relevant foreign
106	consulate or embassy.
107	2. Proof to the court that the respondent has provided the
108	information in subparagraph 1.
109	3. An acknowledgment to the court in a record from the
110	relevant foreign consulate or embassy that no passport
111	application has been made, or passport issued, on behalf of the
112	child.
113	4. Proof to the petitioner and court of registration with
114	the United States embassy or other United States diplomatic
115	presence in the destination country and with the destination
116	country's central authority for the Hague Convention on the
117	Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, if that
118	convention is in effect between this country and the destination
119	country, unless one of the parties objects.
120	5. A written waiver under the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. s.
121	552a, as amended, with respect to any document, application, or
122	other information pertaining to the child or the respondent
123	authorizing its disclosure to the court and the petitioner.
124	6. A written waiver with respect to any document,
125	application, or other information pertaining to the child or the
126	respondent in records held by the United States Bureau of
127	Citizenship and Immigration Services authorizing its disclosure
128	to the court and the petitioner.
129	7. Upon the court's request, a requirement that the
130	respondent obtain an order from the relevant foreign country
131	containing terms identical to the child custody determination
132	issued in this country.
133	8. Upon the court's request, a requirement that the
134	respondent be entered in the Prevent Departure Program of the
135	United States Department of State or a similar federal program
136	designed to prevent unauthorized departures to foreign
137	countries.
138	(e) The court may impose conditions on the exercise of
139	custody or visitation that limit visitation or require that
140	visitation with the child by the respondent be supervised until
141	the court finds that supervision is no longer necessary and
142	orders the respondent to pay the costs of supervision.
143	(4)(3) In assessing the need for a bond or other security,
144	the court may consider any reasonable factor bearing upon the
145	risk that a party may violate a parenting plan by removing a
146	child from this state or country or by concealing the
147	whereabouts of a child, including but not limited to whether:
148	(a) A court has previously found that a party previously
149	removed a child from Florida or another state in violation of a
150	parenting plan, or whether a court had found that a party has
151	threatened to take a child out of Florida or another state in
152	violation of a parenting plan;
153	(b) The party has strong family and community ties to
154	Florida or to other states or countries, including whether the
155	party or child is a citizen of another country;
156	(c) The party has strong financial reasons to remain in
157	Florida or to relocate to another state or country;
158	(d) The party has engaged in activities that suggest plans
159	to leave Florida, such as quitting employment; sale of a
160	residence or termination of a lease on a residence, without
161	efforts to acquire an alternative residence in the state;
162	closing bank accounts or otherwise liquidating assets; or
163	applying for a passport or visa or obtaining travel documents
164	for the respondent, a family member, or the child;
165	(e) The party has sought to obtain the child's birth
166	certificate or school or medical records;
167	(f)(e) Either party has had a history of domestic violence
168	as either a victim or perpetrator, child abuse or child neglect
169	evidenced by criminal history, including but not limited to,
170	arrest, an injunction for protection against domestic violence
171	issued after notice and hearing under s. 741.30, medical
172	records, affidavits, or any other relevant information; or
173	(g)(f) The party has a criminal record;.
174	(h) The party is likely to take the child to a country
175	that:
176	1. Is not a party to the Hague Convention on the Civil
177	Aspects of International Child Abduction and does not provide
178	for the extradition of an abducting parent or for the return of
179	an abducted child;
180	2. Is a party to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects
181	of International Child Abduction, but:
182	a. The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of
183	International Child Abduction is not in force between this
184	country and that country;
185	b. Is noncompliant or demonstrating patterns of
186	noncompliance according to the most recent compliance report
187	issued by the United States Department of State; or
188	c. Lacks legal mechanisms for immediately and effectively
189	enforcing a return order under the Hague Convention on the Civil
190	Aspects of International Child Abduction;
191	3. Poses a risk that the child's physical or emotional
192	health or safety would be endangered in the country because of
193	specific circumstances relating to the child or because of human
194	rights violations committed against children;
195	4. Has laws or practices that would:
196	a. Enable the respondent, without due cause, to prevent
197	the petitioner from contacting the child;
198	b. Restrict the petitioner from freely traveling to or
199	exiting from the country because of the petitioner's gender,
200	nationality, marital status, or religion; or
201	c. Restrict the child's ability legally to leave the
202	country after the child reaches the age of majority because of a
203	child's gender, nationality, or religion;
204	5. Is included by the United States Department of State on
205	a current list of state sponsors of terrorism;
206	6. Does not have an official United States diplomatic
207	presence in the country; or
208	7. Is engaged in active military action or war, including
209	a civil war, to which the child may be exposed;
210	(i) The party is undergoing a change in immigration or
211	citizenship status that would adversely affect the respondent's
212	ability to remain in this country legally;
213	(j) The party has had an application for United States
214	citizenship denied;
215	(k) The party has forged or presented misleading or false
216	evidence on government forms or supporting documents to obtain
217	or attempt to obtain a passport, a visa, travel documents, a
218	social security card, a driver's license, or other government-
219	issued identification card or has made a misrepresentation to
220	the United States government;
221	(l) The party has used multiple names to attempt to
222	mislead or defraud;
223	(m) The party has been diagnosed with a mental health
224	disorder the court considers relevant to the risk of abduction;
225	or
226	(n) The party has engaged in any other conduct the court
227	considers relevant to the risk of abduction.
228	(5)(4) The court must consider the party's financial
229	resources prior to setting the bond amount under this section.
230	Under no circumstances may the court set a bond that is
231	unreasonable.
232	(6)(5) Any deficiency of bond or security shall not
233	absolve the violating party of responsibility to pay the full
234	amount of damages determined by the court.
235	(7)(6)(a) Upon a material violation of any parenting plan
236	by removing a child from this state or this country or by
237	concealing the whereabouts of a child, the court may order the
238	bond or other security forfeited in whole or in part.
239	(b) This section, including the requirement to post a bond
240	or other security, does not apply to a parent who, in a
241	proceeding to order or modify a parenting plan or time-sharing
242	schedule, is determined by the court to be a victim of an act of
243	domestic violence or provides the court with reasonable cause to
244	believe that he or she is about to become the victim of an act
245	of domestic violence, as defined in s. 741.28. An injunction for
246	protection against domestic violence issued pursuant to s.
247	741.30 for a parent as the petitioner which is in effect at the
248	time of the court proceeding shall be one means of demonstrating
249	sufficient evidence that the parent is a victim of domestic
250	violence or is about to become the victim of an act of domestic
251	violence, as defined in s. 741.28, and shall exempt the parent
252	from this section, including the requirement to post a bond or
253	other security. A parent who is determined by the court to be
254	exempt from the requirements of this section must meet the
255	requirements of s. 787.03(6) if an offense of interference with
256	the parenting plan or time-sharing schedule is committed.
257	(8)(7)(a) Upon an order of forfeiture, the proceeds of any
258	bond or other security posted pursuant to this subsection may
259	only be used to:
260	1. Reimburse the nonviolating party for actual costs or
261	damages incurred in upholding the court's parenting plan.
262	2. Locate and return the child to the residence as set
263	forth in the parenting plan.
264	3. Reimburse reasonable fees and costs as determined by
265	the court.
266	(b) Any remaining proceeds shall be held as further
267	security if deemed necessary by the court, and if further
268	security is not found to be necessary; applied to any child
269	support arrears owed by the parent against whom the bond was
270	required, and if no arrears exists; all remaining proceeds will
271	be allocated by the court in the best interest of the child.
272	(9)(8) At any time after the forfeiture of the bond or
273	other security, the party who posted the bond or other security,
274	or the court on its own motion may request that the party
275	provide documentation substantiating that the proceeds received
276	as a result of the forfeiture have been used solely in
277	accordance with this subsection. Any party using such proceeds
278	for purposes not in accordance with this section may be found in
279	contempt of court.
280	(10) A violation may subject the party committing the
281	violation to civil or criminal penalties or a federal or state
282	warrant under federal or state laws, including the International
283	Parental Kidnapping Crime Act, and may subject the violating
284	parent to apprehension by law enforcement.
285	Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.