BILL NUMBER: SB 104 CHAPTERED 10/10/01 CHAPTER 688 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE OCTOBER 10, 2001 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR OCTOBER 10, 2001 PASSED THE SENATE SEPTEMBER 4, 2001 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 30, 2001 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 27, 2001 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 27, 2001 AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 8, 2001 AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 16, 2001 INTRODUCED BY Senator Scott (Coauthors: Assembly Members Bates, Dutra, Jackson, Longville, Robert Pacheco, and Steinberg) JANUARY 22, 2001 An act to amend Sections 8801.3 and 8814.5 of the Family Code, relating to adoption. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 104, Scott. Adoption. Existing law provides that, after a consent to an adoption is signed by the birth parent or parents, the birth parent or parents have a 90-day period in which to either sign and deliver to the department or delegated county adoption agency a written statement revoking the consent and requesting the child to be returned to the birth parent or parents, or to sign a waiver of the right to revoke consent on a form prescribed by the department in the presence of a representative of the department or delegated county adoption agency. Existing law also provides that the consent may not be revoked after a waiver of the right to revoke consent has been signed or after the 90-day period, as specified. This bill would revise the above provisions by instead providing that the birth parent or parents have a 30-day period in which to sign and deliver to the department or delegated county adoption agency a written notarized statement revoking the consent and requesting the child to be returned to the birth parent or parents or to sign the waiver of the right to revoke consent on a form prescribed by the department in the presence of a representative of the department or delegated county adoption agency. The bill would provide that, after revoking consent, the birth parent or parents may reinstate the original consent by signing and delivering a written notarized statement to that effect to the department or delegated county adoption agency, in which case the revocation of consent would be void and a new 30-day period would commence. The bill would also make conforming changes. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 8801.3 of the Family Code is amended to read: 8801.3. A child shall not be considered to have been placed for adoption unless each of the following is true: (a) Each birth parent placing the child for adoption has been advised of his or her rights, and if desired, has been counseled pursuant to Section 8801.5. (b) The adoption service provider, each prospective adoptive parent, and each birth parent placing the child have signed an adoption placement agreement on a form prescribed by the department. The signing of the agreement shall satisfy all of the following requirements: (1) Each birth parent shall have been advised of his or her rights pursuant to Section 8801.5 at least 10 days before signing the agreement, unless the adoption service provider finds exigent circumstances that shall be set forth in the adoption placement agreement. (2) The agreement may not be signed by either the birth parents or the prospective adoptive parents until the time of discharge of the birth mother from the hospital. However, if the birth mother remains hospitalized for a period longer than the hospitalization of the child, the agreement may be signed by all parties at the time of or after the child's discharge from the hospital but prior to the birth mother's discharge from the hospital if her competency to sign is verified by her attending physician and surgeon before she signs the agreement. (3) The birth parents and prospective adoptive parents shall sign the agreement in the presence of an adoption service provider. (4) The adoption service provider who witnesses the signatures shall keep the original of the adoption placement agreement and immediately forward it and supporting documentation as required by the department to the department or delegated county adoption agency. (5) The child is not deemed to be placed for adoption with the prospective adoptive parents until the adoption placement agreement has been signed and witnessed. (6) If the birth parent is not located in this state or country, the adoption placement agreement shall be signed before an adoption service provider or, for purposes of identification of the birth parent only, before a notary or other person authorized to perform notarial acts in the state or country in which the birth parent is located. This paragraph is not applicable to intercountry adoptions, as defined in Section 8527, which shall be governed by Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 8900). (c) The adoption placement agreement form shall include all of the following: (1) A statement that the birth parent received the advisement of rights and the date upon which it was received. (2) A statement that the birth parent understands that the placement is for the purpose of adoption and that if the birth parent takes no further action, on the 31st day after signing the adoption placement agreement, the agreement shall become a permanent and irrevocable consent to the adoption. (3) A statement that the birth parent signs the agreement having personal knowledge of certain facts regarding the prospective adoptive parents as provided in Section 8801. (4) A statement that the adoptive parents have been informed of the basic health and social history of the birth parents. (5) A consent to the adoption that may be revoked as provided by Section 8814.5. (d) The adoption placement agreement shall also meet the requirements of the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children in Section 7901. (e) This section shall become operative on January 1, 1995. SEC. 2. Section 8814.5 of the Family Code is amended to read: 8814.5. (a) After a consent to the adoption is signed by the birth parent or parents pursuant to Section 8801.3 or 8814, the birth parent or parents signing the consent shall have 30 days to take one of the following actions: (1) Sign and deliver to the department or delegated county adoption agency a written statement revoking the consent and requesting the child to be returned to the birth parent or parents. After revoking consent, in cases where the birth parent or parents have not regained custody, or the birth parent or parents have failed to make efforts to exercise their rights under subdivision (b) of Section 8815, a written notarized statement reinstating the original consent may be signed and delivered to the department or delegated county adoption agency, in which case the revocation of consent shall be void and a new 30-day period shall commence. After revoking consent, in cases in which the birth parent or parents have regained custody, upon the delivery of a written notarized statement reinstating the original consent to the department or delegated county adoption agency, the revocation of consent shall be void and a new 30-day period shall commence. The birth mother shall be informed of the operational timelines associated with this section at the time of signing of the statement reinstating the original consent. (2) Sign a waiver of the right to revoke consent on a form prescribed by the department in the presence of a representative of the department or delegated county adoption agency. If neither a representative of the department nor a representative of a delegated county adoption agency is reasonably available, the waiver of the right to revoke consent may be signed in the presence of a judicial officer of a court of record if the birth parent is represented by independent legal counsel. "Reasonably available" means that a representative from either the department or the delegated county adoption agency is available to accept the signing of the waiver within 10 days and is within 100 miles of the location of the birth mother. An adoption service provider may assist the birth parent or parents in any activity where the primary purpose of that activity is to facilitate the signing of the waiver with the department, a delegated county agency, or a judicial officer. The adoption service provider or another person designated by the birth parent or parents may also be present at any interview conducted pursuant to this section to provide support to the birth parent or parents. The waiver of the right to revoke consent may not be signed until an interview has been completed by the department or delegated county adoption agency unless the waiver of the right to revoke consent is signed in the presence of a judicial officer of a court of record as specified in this section, in which case the interview and the witnessing of the signing of the waiver shall be conducted by the judicial officer. Within 10 working days of a request made after the department, the delegated county adoption agency, or the court has received a copy of the petition for the adoption and the names and addresses of the persons to be interviewed, the department, the delegated county adoption agency, or the court shall interview, at the department or agency office or the court, any birth parent requesting to be interviewed. However, the interview, and the witnessing of the signing of a waiver of the right to revoke consent of a birth parent residing outside of California or located outside of California for an extended period of time unrelated to the adoption may be conducted in the state where the birth parent is located, by any of the following: (A) A representative of a public adoption agency in that state. (B) A judicial officer in that state where the birth parent is represented by independent legal counsel. (C) An adoption service provider. (3) Allow the consent to become a permanent consent on the 31st day after signing. (b) The consent may not be revoked after a waiver of the right to revoke consent has been signed or after 30 days, beginning on the date the consent was signed or as provided in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a), whichever occurs first.