BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                            



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                                    THIRD READING


          Bill No:  AB 1701
          Author:   Patterson (R), et al.
          Amended:  8/5/14 in Senate
          Vote:     21

           
           SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE  :  7-0, 6/24/14
          AYES:  Jackson, Anderson, Corbett, Lara, Leno, Monning, Vidak

           SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE  :  Senate Rule 28.8

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  78-0, 5/15/14 (Consent) - See last page for  
            vote


           SUBJECT  :    Family law:  adoption

           SOURCE  :     Academy of California Adoption Lawyers


           DIGEST  :    This bill makes several changes to adoption processes  
          and adoptive placement considerations.

           ANALYSIS  :    

          1. Existing law authorizes, among others, a childs natural  
             parent to bring an action to declare the existence or  
             nonexistence of a presumed parent and child relationship.   
             Existing law requires the court to join to that action  
             specified parties, including prospective adoptive parents who  
             have physical custody of a child, who have not been joined as  
             parties without the necessity of a motion for joinder.

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             This bill authorizes a child's natural mother to bring that  
             action and also requires the court to join to that action  
             additional specified parties who have not been joined as  
             parties, including a licensed California adoption agency to  
             which the mother proposes to relinquish the child for  
             adoption.

          2. Existing law provides for the adoption of unmarried minors  
             and prohibits a married person, not lawfully separated from  
             the person's spouse, from adopting a child without the  
             consent of the spouse if the spouse is capable of giving that  
             consent.

             This bill additionally provides that the consent of the  
             spouse shall not establish any parental rights or  
             responsibilities on the part of the consenting spouse unless  
             he/she has consented to adopt the child in writing, filed  
             with the court and is named in the final decree as an  
             adoptive parent of the child.  This bill authorizes the court  
             to dispense with a spouse's consent in certain circumstances  
             and, if consent has been dispensed, prohibits the spouse from  
             being named as an adoptive parent in the final decree.

          3. Existing law generally provides that a child having a  
             presumed father shall not be adopted without the consent of  
             the child's birth parents, if living.  However, if one birth  
             parent has been awarded custody by judicial order, or has  
             custody by agreement of both parents, and the other birth  
             parent for a period of one year willfully fails to  
             communicate with, and to pay for, the care, support, and  
             education of the child when able to do so, then the birth  
             parent having sole custody may consent to the adoption, after  
             the birth parent who does not have custody has been served  
             with a specified citation.  Failure of a birth parent to pay  
             for the care, support, and education of the child for the  
             one-year period or the failure of a birth parent to  
             communicate with the child for the period of one year is  
             prima facie evidence that the failure was willful and without  
             lawful excuse.

             This bill authorizes the court to issue a temporary custody  
             order if the birth mother of a child for whom there is not a  
             presumed father leaves the child in certain circumstances,  
             including in the physical care of a licensed private adoption  

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             agency, and fails to sign a placement agreement, consent, or  
             relinquishment for adoption.  This bill authorizes the  
             temporary custody order to be voided upon the birth mother's  
             request to have the child returned to her care and custody.

          4. Existing law requires, if a mother relinquishes for or  
             consents to, or proposes to relinquish for or consent to, the  
             adoption of a child, or if a child otherwise becomes the  
             subject of an adoption proceeding, one of several specified  
             persons to file a petition to terminate the parental rights  
             of the alleged father, except as specified.  Existing law  
             permits an interested person to file a petition for an order  
             or judgment declaring a child free from the custody and  
             control of either or both parents.

             This bill permits a single petition to be filed to terminate  
             the parental rights of the alleged father or fathers of two  
             or more biological siblings or to terminate the parental  
             rights of two or more alleged fathers of the same child.   
             This bill also permits a single petition to be filed to free  
             a child, or more than one child if the children are  
             biological siblings, from the custody and control of both  
             parents.  This bill authorizes a court to grant one of these  
             joint petitions, in whole or in part, and specifies that the  
             court retains the discretion to bifurcate a case in which a  
             joint petition was filed.  This bill requires a court to  
             bifurcate a case in which a joint petition was filed whenever  
             it is necessary to protect the interests of a party or a  
             child who is the subject of the proceeding.

          5. Existing law authorizes the court to waive the personal  
             appearance of a prospective adoptive parent and permit  
             him/her to appear at an adoption proceeding through an  
             attorney if there is clear and convincing evidence that it is  
             impossible or impracticable for the prospective adoptive  
             parent to appear at the adoption proceeding.

             This bill authorizes the court to permit a prospective  
             adoptive parent to appear by telephone, videoconference, or  
             other remote electronic means that the court deems  
             reasonable, prudent, and reliable.

          6. Existing law governs independent adoptions, which are defined  
             to mean adoptions in which neither the Department of Social  

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             Services (DSS) nor an agency licensed by DSS is a party to or  
             joins in the adoption petition, and sets forth the procedures  
             for completing an independent adoption.  Existing law also  
             requires, as a part of the independent adoption procedures,  
             DSS or the delegated county adoption agency to investigate  
             the proposed independent adoption and submit a report to the  
             court of the facts disclosed by its inquiry with a  
             recommendation regarding the granting of the adoption  
             petition.

             This bill provides that when DSS or a delegated county  
             adoption agency is investigating a proposed adoption, it is  
             not required to reinvestigate matters addressed in a valid  
             preplacement evaluation or a valid private agency adoption  
             home study, if no new information has been discovered and no  
             new event has occurred subsequent to the approval of the  
             evaluation or home study that creates a reasonable belief  
             that further investigation is necessary, except that DSS must  
             complete all background clearances required by law.

          7. Existing law requires DSS or a delegated county adoption  
             agency to interview the petitioners within 45 working days  
             after the filing of the adoption petition and to interview  
             all persons from whom consent is required and whose addresses  
             are known, as soon as 50% of the fee has been paid.  Existing  
             law requires the agency, at the interview, to give the  
             placing parent an opportunity to sign either a statement  
             revoking consent, or a waiver of the right to revoke consent.  
              In order to facilitate the interview, existing law requires  
             the petitioner, at the time the petition is filed, to file,  
             among other things, a copy of the petition and 50% of the  
             fee, with DSS or with the delegated county adoption agency  
             responsible for the investigation of the adoption.

             This bill instead requires DSS or delegated county adoption  
             agency to interview the petitioners within 45 working days  
             after receiving 50% of the fee together with a stamped file  
             copy of the adoption petition, and to interview all persons  
             from whom consent is required and whose addresses are known.   
             This bill provides that DSS is not required to provide the  
             placing parent an opportunity to sign a statement revoking  
             consent, or a waiver of the right to revoke consent, if the  
             parent has already signed a waiver of the right to revoke  
             consent, or if the time period allowed to revoke consent has  

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             expired and requires the petitioner, within five days of  
             filing the petition, to provide the department or delegated  
             county adoption agency, among other things, a stamped file  
             copy of the petition together with 50% of the fee and a copy  
             of any valid preplacement evaluation or any valid private  
             agency adoption home study.

          8. Existing law requires the court, in an independent adoption,  
             if a birth parent who did not place a child for adoption has  
             refused to give the required consent, or a birth parent  
             revokes consent, or, before the time when a revocable consent  
             becomes permanent, a birth parent requests the return of the  
             child, to order the child restored to the care and custody of  
             the birth parent.

             This bill instead requires, in these circumstances, the child  
             to be restored to the care and custody of his/her birth  
             parent, unless the court orders otherwise.

          9. Existing law authorizes a parent who is a minor to relinquish  
             his/her child to DSS, county adoption agency, or licensed  
             adoption agency and sign a consent for the adoption.   
             Existing law provides that the relinquishment and consent are  
             not subject to revocation by reason of minority.

             This bill provides that the relinquishment and consent are  
             not subject to revocation because the parent or guardian of  
             the minor parent was not served with notice of the  
             relinquishment or consent, unless the minor parent previously  
             provided written authorization to serve his/her parent or  
             guardian with those notices.

          10.Existing law establishes the jurisdiction of the juvenile  
             court, which may adjudge certain children to be dependents of  
             the juvenile court under certain circumstances.  Existing law  
             authorizes, in all cases in which a minor is adjudged a  
             dependent child of the juvenile court under those  
             circumstances, the court to limit the control to be exercised  
             over the dependent child by any parent or guardian.  Existing  
             law provides that those provisions do not limit the ability  
             of a parent to voluntarily relinquish his/her child to DSS or  
             to a county adoption agency at any time while the child is a  
             dependent child of the juvenile court, if DSS or county  
             adoption agency is willing to accept the relinquishment.

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             This bill provides that those provisions do not limit the  
             ability of the parent of a dependent child to voluntarily  
             relinquish that child to a licensed private adoption agency.   
             This bill requires the juvenile court, when a child who is  
             the subject of a petition, to declare him/her a dependent  
             child of the juvenile court, or a child who has been adjudged  
             a dependent child of the juvenile court, has been  
             relinquished to a licensed private adoption agency, after  
             notice and a hearing, to determine whether the relinquishment  
             should be approved or denied.  This bill authorizes the court  
             to dispense with notice and a hearing and issue an ex parte  
             order approving the relinquishment if the relinquishment is  
             accompanied by the written agreement of all parties.  This  
             bill requires notification of a parent relinquishing a child  
             to a licensed private adoption agency that the relinquishment  
             is subject to court approval.  This bill also requires, when  
             a child who is the subject of a petition, to declare him/her  
             a dependent child of the juvenile court, or a child who has  
             been adjudged a dependent child of the juvenile court, has  
             been relinquished to DSS or a county adoption agency, DSS or  
             the county adoption agency to file notice of the  
             relinquishment with the court and all parties and their  
             counsel.

             This bill makes other clarifying and technical changes.

           Background
           
          Every year, the Academy of California Adoption Lawyers seeks to  
          clarify or modify provisions in the Family and related codes  
          which they have identified as having either technical errors or  
          as being the basis for conflicting court rulings that could  
          potentially prolong the adoption process.  

           Prior legislation  

          AB 848 (Patterson, Chapter 743, Statutes of 2013) made several  
          changes to adoption processes and adoptive placement  
          considerations including clarifying when a birth parent's waiver  
          of the right to revoke consent to an adoption is void or able to  
          be rescinded, and that an abbreviated home study assessment may  
          only be used for specified individuals.


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          AB 687 (Fletcher, Chapter 462, Statutes of 2011) streamlined the  
          process for determining parent-child relationships, and made  
          other technical and substantive changes to adoption laws.

          AB 2020 (Fletcher, Chapter 588, Statutes of 2010) among other  
          things, streamlined the process for determining parent-child  
          relationships and made other substantive and technical changes  
          to adoption laws.

          SB 1726 (Scott, Chapter 534, Statutes of 2008) made several  
          substantive and technical changes to adoption law, including  
          providing that consolidated guardianship and adoption cases  
          shall be heard and decided by the court in which the adoption is  
          pending.  

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  Yes    
          Local:  Yes

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  8/6/14)

          Academy of California Adoption Lawyers (source)
          Angels of Grace
          California Alliance of Child and Family Services
          Infant of Prague
          Valley Teen Ranch 

           OPPOSITION  :    (Verified  8/6/14)

          Concerned United Birth Parents

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  78-0, 5/15/14
          AYES:  Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Bigelow, Bloom,  
            Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown, Buchanan, Ian  
            Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chávez, Chesbro, Conway, Cooley,  
            Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Donnelly, Eggman, Fong, Fox,  
            Frazier, Beth Gaines, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon,  
            Gorell, Gray, Grove, Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Roger Hernández,  
            Holden, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Levine, Linder, Logue, Lowenthal,  
            Maienschein, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Muratsuchi, Nazarian,  
            Nestande, Olsen, Pan, Patterson, Perea, John A. Pérez, V.  
            Manuel Pérez, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas,  
            Rodriguez, Salas, Skinner, Stone, Ting, Wagner, Waldron,  
            Weber, Wieckowski, Wilk, Williams, Yamada, Atkins
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Mansoor, Vacancy

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          AL:d  8/6/14   Senate Floor Analyses 

                           SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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