BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 848 Page 1 CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS AB 848 (Patterson) As Amended July 2, 2013 Majority vote ----------------------------------------------------------------- |ASSEMBLY: |75-0 |(April 8, 2013) |SENATE: |38-0 |(September 3, | | | | | | |2013) | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Original Committee Reference: JUD. SUMMARY : Makes changes to adoption processes. Specifically, this bill : 1)Clarifies that, in an agency adoption, if a birth parent waives the right to revoke the relinquishment for adoption before an authorized representative of the adoption agency, the relinquishment becomes final and irrevocable at the close of the next business day after the later of the date it was signed or the expiration of any holding period specified in writing. 2)Clarifies that a birth parent's waiver of the right to revoke the relinquishment for adoption is void if the relinquishment is determined to be invalid, the relinquishment is revoked during any holding period specified in writing, or the relinquishment is rescinded, as specified. Provides that this does not in any way limit the birth parent's right to rescind the relinquishment. 3)Clarifies that unless ordered otherwise by a court, the Department of Social Services (DSS) or the licensed adoption agency overseeing the adoption may, in its discretion, do an abbreviated home study for the following individuals only: a) A licensed foster parent with whom the child has lived for at least six months; b) An approved relative caregiver or non-related extended family member with whom the child has had an ongoing and significant relationship; c) A court-appointed relative guardian who has had physical custody of the child for at least one year and has been AB 848 Page 2 investigated and approved under the guardianship process; or d) A prospective adoptive parent who has completed an agency-supervised adoption within the last two years. 4)Provides that unless otherwise ordered by a court, at a minimum, the home study assessment must include a review by the department or adoption agency of all previous guardianship investigation reports, home study assessments and preplacement evaluations. Provides that, notwithstanding any other law regarding the confidential nature of these reports, the department or adoption agency may receive them if the request is accompanied by a signed release from the applicant. Provides that these provisions and the provisions in 3) above, do not apply to independent adoptions. The Senate amendments add specific requirements for abbreviated home study assessments for agency adoptions and make other technical changes. EXISTING LAW : 1)Specifies how a birth parent may relinquish a child for adoption. Allows that parent to revoke the relinquishment within 10 days of the relinquishment for agency adoptions and within 30 days for independent adoptions. 2)Allows birth parents either going through an independent adoption or utilizing an agency for the adoption to waive their right to revoke relinquishment of their child for adoption by signing the waiver in the presence of: a) a representative of the Department of Social Services (DSS) or the delegated county adoption agency; b) a judicial officer, adoption service provider or agency representative, if the birth parents are represented by independent legal counsel, as provided. 3)Specifies abbreviated home study requirements for prospective adoptive parents who are already foster parents or relative caregivers to the child. FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, minor, absorbable administrative costs to the DSS, as AB 848 Page 3 the provisions codify existing regulations with regard to home study processes. Potential minor net fee revenue loss of less than $50,000 (General Fund) per year due to authorizing a broader class of lower income prospective adoptive parents eligibility for a reduced fee home study. It is assumed the full cost fee would have otherwise been cost prohibitive to some lower income prospective parents. Removing this financial barrier could result in a greater number of adoptive parents, offsetting the impact of the reduced fee. COMMENTS : This non-controversial bill is the Academy of California Adoption Lawyers' annual adoption bill. According to the author, this bill is necessary to resolve two technical issues that emerged as the result of last year's AB 1757 (Fletcher), Chapter 638, Statutes of 2012. After a birth parent consents to have his or her child adopted, that parent is still given time to change his or her mind and revoke the consent - 10 days for parents going through an agency adoption and 30 days for parents going through an independent adoption. However, the birth parent may decide that she wants finality sooner and may waive that revocation right. The waiver also provides faster certainty to the prospective adoptive parents. In addition to the revocation rights, birth parents can rescind their relinquishment of the child under limited circumstances, which include 1) the mutual consent of the birth parents and the adoption agency, and 2) the child is not placed with the prospective adoptive parents named in the relinquishment signed by the birth parents. This bill does not change the revocation rights, the waiver of those rights or the rescission rights. It simply clarifies that, in an agency adoption, waiver of the right to revoke the consent to adoption is void if the relinquishment is found to be invalid, the relinquishment is revoked, as specified, or the relinquishment is rescinded. This clarification protects the birth parents' rights, even if they have signed a waiver of their right to revoke consent to the adoption. Home studies are conducted prior to the finalization of an adoption to ensure that the child is being placed in a safe and secure environment. Full home studies can take many months to complete and can cost nearly $5,000. By contrast abbreviated AB 848 Page 4 home studies can take just weeks to complete and cost less than half what a full study costs. However, an abbreviated study is not as thorough and, consequently, may not be as protective of the child. However, if families have been reviewed before, it may not be necessary to do a full home study again and an abbreviated study may be a reasonable choice. This bill clarifies when abbreviated home studies may be used in place of the full assessment. The sponsor writes that this is necessary because several prospective adoptive parents have used the existing law to attempt to avoid completing the full home study required prior to adoption. When DSS objected, these prospective adoptive parents applied to the court for declaratory relief. The sponsor writes that the ensuing court decisions - all unpublished - have been "inconsistent and sometimes diametrically opposed to one another." This bill seeks to remove any ambiguities in the current law and clarify which prospective adoptive parents qualify for an abbreviated home study assessment. As with current law, DSS or the licensed adoption agency has discretion to decide whether to use the abbreviated home study. By balancing the need for permanency with the need for safety, this bill helps ensure that an abbreviated home study will only be used when appropriate and help ensure that children are placed in safe homes with loving and supportive families. Analysis Prepared by : Leora Gershenzon / JUD. / (916) 319-2334 FN: 0001719