BILL NUMBER: AB 1757	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Fletcher

                        FEBRUARY 17, 2012

   An act to amend Section 8811 of the Family Code, relating to
family law.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1757, as introduced, Fletcher. Family law: adoption.
   Existing law governs the adoption of unmarried minors. Under
existing law, the State Department of Social Services or a delegated
county adoption agency must fingerprint and perform a criminal
background investigation on a prospective adoptive parent. Existing
law also prohibits the State Department of Social Services and
delegated county adoption agencies from giving final approval to an
adoption if a prospective adoptive parent or an adult who lives in
the prospective adoptive home has specified criminal convictions.
   This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to these
provisions.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 8811 of the Family Code is amended to read:
   8811.  (a) The department or delegated county adoption agency
shall require each person filing an adoption petition to be
fingerprinted and shall secure from  an   the
 appropriate law enforcement agency any criminal record of that
person to determine whether the person has ever been convicted of a
crime other than a minor traffic violation. The department or
delegated county adoption agency may also secure the person's full
criminal record, if any. Any federal-level criminal offender record
requests to the Department of Justice shall be submitted with
fingerprint images and related information required by the Department
of Justice for the purposes of obtaining information as to the
existence and content of a record of an out-of-state or federal
conviction or arrest of a person or information regarding any
out-of-state or federal crimes or arrests for which the Department of
Justice establishes that the person is free on bail, or on his or
her own recognizance pending trial or appeal. The Department of
Justice shall forward to the Federal Bureau of Investigation any
requests for federal summary criminal history information received
pursuant to this section. The Department of Justice shall review the
information returned from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and
shall compile and disseminate a response to the department or
delegated county adoption agency.
   (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (c), the criminal record, if any,
shall be taken into consideration when evaluating the prospective
adoptive parent, and an assessment of the effects of any criminal
history on the ability of the prospective adoptive parent to provide
adequate and proper care and guidance to the child shall be included
in the report to the court.
   (c) (1) Under no circumstances shall the department or a delegated
county adoption agency give final approval for an adoptive placement
in any home where the prospective adoptive parent or any adult
living in the prospective adoptive home has either of the following:
   (A) A felony conviction for child abuse or neglect, spousal abuse,
crimes against a child, including child pornography, or for a crime
involving violence, including rape, sexual assault, or homicide, but
not including other physical assault and battery. For purposes of
this subdivision, crimes involving violence means  those
  the  violent crimes contained in clause (i) of
subparagraph (A), and subparagraph (B), of paragraph (1) of
subdivision (g) of Section 1522 of the Health and Safety Code.
   (B) A felony conviction that occurred within the last five years
for physical assault, battery, or a drug- or alcohol-related offense.

   (2) This subdivision shall become operative on October 1, 2008,
and shall remain operative only to the extent that compliance with
its provisions is required by federal law as a condition of receiving
funding under Title IV-E of the federal Social Security Act (42
U.S.C. 670 and following).
   (d) Any fee charged by a law enforcement agency for fingerprinting
or for checking or obtaining the criminal record of the petitioner
shall be paid by the petitioner. The department or delegated county
adoption agency may defer, waive, or reduce the fee when its payment
would cause economic hardship to the prospective adoptive parents
detrimental to the welfare of the adopted child, when the child has
been in the foster care of the prospective adoptive parents for at
least one year, or if necessary for the placement of a special-needs
child.