Amended in Assembly August 15, 2016

Amended in Assembly June 21, 2016

Amended in Assembly June 8, 2016

Amended in Senate April 26, 2016

Amended in Senate March 28, 2016

Senate Bill No. 1040

Introduced by Senator Hill

(Coauthor: Assembly Member Mullin)

February 12, 2016

An act to add Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 9221) to Part 2 of Division 13 of the Family Code, begin delete and to add Section 272.5 to the Penal Code, end delete relating to children.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 1040, as amended, Hill. begin delete Adoptions: end delete begin insert Postadoption instability: end insert unlawful transfer of custody.

begin delete (1) end delete begin delete   end delete Existing law regulates adoption services by the State Department of Social Services, county adoption agencies, licensed adoption agencies, and other adoption service providers and requires the department to adopt regulations pertaining to those services.

begin insert

Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for a parent of a minor to willfully omit, without lawful excuse, to furnish necessary clothing, food, shelter, or medical attendance, or other remedial care for his or her child. Existing law makes it a crime for a parent of a child under 14 years of age, and a person to whom the child has been confided for nurture or education, to desert the child in any place with intent to abandon the child, as specified. Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for a parent or organization, without holding a valid and unrevoked license to place children for adoption, to advertise in a public medium, as specified, that he, she, or it will place children for adoption, or accept, supply, provide, or obtain children for adoption, or to cause an advertisement to be published in or by a public medium soliciting, requesting, or asking for a child or children for adoption.

end insert

This bill would require the State Department of Social Services, in consultation with specified individuals and entities, to establish a working group to review the challenges facing families with adopted children, to identify resources within the community that will assist families with these challenges, and to make recommendations to the Legislature as to the services that may be helpful to these families. The bill would require the working group to meet no later than April 1, 2017, and would require the working group’s recommendations to be submitted in a report to the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature on or before April 1, 2018.

begin delete

(2) Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for a parent of a minor to willfully omit, without lawful excuse, to furnish necessary clothing, food, shelter, or medical attendance, or other remedial care for his or her child. Existing law makes it a crime for a parent of a child under 14 years of age, and a person to whom the child has been confided for nurture or education, to desert the child in any place with intent to abandon the child, as specified. Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for a parent or organization, without holding a valid and unrevoked license to place children for adoption, to advertise in a public medium, as specified, that he, she, or it will place children for adoption, or accept, supply, provide, or obtain children for adoption, or to cause an advertisement to be published in or by a public medium soliciting, requesting, or asking for a child or children for adoption.

end delete begin delete

This bill would make it a crime to solicit to take custody of a minor under 14 years of age and to subsequently take custody of the minor without initiating a lawful guardianship proceeding or adoption proceeding within 90 days of taking physical custody of the minor. By creating a new crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

end delete begin delete

(3) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

end delete begin delete

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

end delete

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program:  begin delete yes end delete begin insert no end insert .

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 9221) is
added to Part 2 of Division 13 of the Family Code, to read:

 

Chapter  9. begin insert Postadoption Instability and end insert Unlawful
Transfer of Custody

 

9221.  

(a) The Legislature acknowledges that adoptive families
often face special challenges. This is particularly true in the case
of international adoptions, adoptions of special needs children,
and adoptions of dependent children who have experienced abuse,
neglect, and, often, multiple placements. The Legislature finds and
declares that it is the public policy of the State of California to
assist adoptive families and adopted children, and intends this
section to ensure that these families receive the support needed to
maintain the family unit, and when necessary, find new, permanent
homes for youth.

(b) (1) In order to address and prevent the circumstances in
which an adoptive parent seeks to engage in the unlawful transfer
of the custody of a child, the State Department of Social Services
shall, in consultation with child advocacy organizations, attorneys
specializing in adoption and guardianships, counsel representing
minors in dependency proceedings, the Judicial Council, begin insert the office
of the Attorney General, local law enforcement agencies, end insert foster
caregiver organizations, county welfare officials, and individuals
with expertise in the area of positive youth development, establish
a working group to review the challenges facing families with
adopted children, to identify resources within the community that
will assist families with these challenges, and to make
recommendations to the Legislature as to the services that may be
helpful to these families.

(2) In developing the recommendations, the working group shall
consider all of the following:

(A) Education and resources that would benefit prospective
adoptive families prior to an adoption, and whether certain services
and education should be required before an adoption can be
completed.

(B) The specific challenges facing the following families:
families with special needs children, families with children adopted
through the foster care system, and families with internationally
adopted children.

(C) The distinct resources that are available to the different
types of families specified in subparagraph (B), and whether any
of the resources available to one type of family would also be
beneficial to another type.

(D) The training and education that begin delete is end delete begin insert are end insert necessary to equip
mental health professionals with the tools necessary to provide the
families specified in subparagraph (B) with services tailored to
their unique needs.

(E) How to effectively recruit more prospective adoptive
families that are able to provide new, permanent, and loving homes
to children coming out of disrupted adoptions.

(F) The feasibility of creating a clearinghouse of persons and
entities that are knowledgeable in addressing the needs of, and
finding subsequent placements for, children at risk of having their
custody unlawfully transferred, including adoption agencies, social
workers, attorneys, mental health professionals, and prospective
adoptive parents.

begin insert

(G) Data currently available at the state and local levels for
assessing the frequency of postadoption instability and the factors
and causes associated with postadoption instability. The working
group shall identify the gaps or limitations in data on postadoption
instability.

end insert begin insert

(H) Identified best practices for collecting and tracking, on an
ongoing basis, both quantitative and qualitative data to understand
the extent of postadoption instability and to tailor supports to meet
the needs of children and families experiencing postadoption
instability.

end insert begin insert

(I) An assessment of any gaps or limitations in existing law,
including provisions within the Penal Code, relating to the
solicitation to take custody of a minor and the subsequent taking
of custody of the minor without initiating a lawful guardianship
proceeding or adoption proceeding.

end insert

(c) (1) The working group shall meet no later than April 1,
2017. The recommendations developed pursuant to this section
shall be submitted in a report to the appropriate policy committees
of the Legislature on or before April 1, 2018.

(2) A report to be submitted pursuant to this subdivision shall
be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government
Code.

(3) The requirement for submitting a report pursuant to this
subdivision is inoperative on June 1, 2022, pursuant to Section
10231.5 of the Government Code.

begin insert

(d) For purposes of this section, “postadoption instability”
includes regulated circumstances, including, but not limited to,
adoption nullification or dissolution, and unregulated
circumstances, including, but not limited to, the unlawful transfer
of custody of an adopted child from the adoptive parent to another
person or entity.

end insert

begin delete

SEC. 2.  

Section 272.5 is added to the Penal Code, to read:

272.5.  

(a) It is unlawful for a person to solicit by any means,
including, but not limited to, electronic communication via the
Internet, to take custody of a minor under 14 years of age and to
subsequently take custody of the minor without initiating a lawful
guardianship proceeding or adoption proceeding within 90 days
of taking physical custody of the minor consistent with the
requirements of Division 4 (commencing with Section 1400) of
the Probate Code or Division 13 (commencing with Section 8500)
of the Family Code. A violation of this section is punishable by
imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170, in a
county jail not exceeding one year, by a fine not exceeding one
thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that fine and imprisonment.

(b) This section does not apply to either of the following:

(1) A minor placed with a relative, as defined by paragraph (2)
of subdivision (c) of Section 361.3 of the Welfare and Institutions
Code.

(2) Temporary placement of a minor by a parent, individual, or
entity for a designated short-term period with a specified intent
and time period for return of the minor, if the temporary placement
is due to a vacation or a school-sponsored function or activity or
the incarceration, military service, medical treatment, or incapacity
of a parent or guardian.

SEC. 3.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.

end delete