BILL ANALYSIS
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 1393
Author: Florez (D)
Amended: 8/22/06
Vote: 21
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE : 4-0, 4/25/06
AYES: Dunn, Ackerman, Escutia, Kuehl
NO VOTE RECORDED: Vacancy
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 13-0, 5/25/06
AYES: Murray, Aanestad, Alarcon, Alquist, Ashburn, Battin,
Dutton, Escutia, Florez, Ortiz, Poochigian, Romero,
Torlakson
SENATE FLOOR : 39-0, 5/30/06 (Consent)
AYES: Aanestad, Ackerman, Alarcon, Alquist, Ashburn,
Battin, Bowen, Cedillo, Chesbro, Cox, Denham, Ducheny,
Dunn, Dutton, Escutia, Figueroa, Florez, Hollingsworth,
Kehoe, Kuehl, Lowenthal, Machado, Maldonado, Margett,
McClintock, Migden, Morrow, Murray, Ortiz, Perata,
Poochigian, Romero, Runner, Scott, Simitian, Soto,
Speier, Torlakson, Vincent
NO VOTE RECORDED: Vacancy
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 79-0, 8/24/06 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Intercountry adoptions
SOURCE : Author
CONTINUED
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DIGEST : This bill creates a streamlined readoption
process for state residents who finalize an adoption in a
foreign country whose adoption standards meet or exceed
those of California.
Assembly Amendments (1) require the Department of Social
Services to certify adoption standards in specified
counties, and (2) require that a readoption include a home
study report.
ANALYSIS : Existing law requires any California resident
who adopts a child through intercountry adoption that is
finalized in a foreign country to readopt the child in
California if it is required by the Department of Homeland
Security. When readoption is not required by the
Department of Homeland Security, a California resident may
readopt the child at their discretion. [Section 8919 of
the Family Code]
Existing law requires readoption to include a postplacement
in-home visit, filing of a standard adoption petition, the
intercountry adoption report, accounting report, and final
adoption order. [Section 8919 of the Family Code]
Existing law prevents a court from granting a readoption
order unless the court receives a report from an adoption
agency authorized to provide intercountry adoption
services. [Section 8919 of the Family Code]
This bill creates a streamlined readoption process for
California residents who finalize an adoption in specified
foreign countries. Specifically, this bill:
1. Except as provided in #3 below, requires any California
resident who adopts a child in a foreign country to
readopt the child in California if it is required by the
Department of Homeland Security. Requires readoption to
include at least one post-placement, in-home visit and
the filing of the adoption petition, intercountry
adoption court report, accounting reports, homestudy
report and final adoption order. If a homestudy was
completed as part of the adoption in the foreign
country, that homestudy may be used. Prevents a court
from granting a readoption order unless the court
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receives the previously completed homestudy report.
Requires the court to consider the post-placement
visit(s) and the homestudy in deciding whether to grant
or deny the readoption petition.
2. When readoption is not required by the Department of
Homeland Security, allows a California resident to
readopt a child at his/her discretion.
3. Allows the Department of Social Services (DSS) to
certify countries whose adoption standards meet or
exceed California's, and requires DSS to determine if
the adoption standards of China, Guatemala, Kazakhstan,
Russia and South Korea meet or exceed California's
standards. Allows a court to grant readoption if the
following conditions are satisfied: (a) one
post-placement visit occurs, (b) the adoption was
finalized in accordance with the other country's laws,
and (c) the petitioner submits a decree evidencing the
finalization of the order in the foreign country and the
child's birth certificate and visa. Requires the court,
if it denies a petition for readoption, to summarize its
reasons on the record.
Existing law requires the State Registrar to create a new
birth certificate upon receipt of a report of adoption from
any court within this country.
This bill adds that the State Registrar must create a new
birth certificate upon receipt of readoption order issued
for an intercountry adoption.
Background
More and more individuals are adopting children from
outside of the United States. Individuals wishing to adopt
a child from a foreign adoption agency must first complete
an "Application for Advance Processing of an Orphan
Petition," to be filed with the United States Citizenship
and Immigration Services, under the Department of Homeland
Security. Once the petition is approved, the individual
must still receive approval for any foreign child that
becomes available for adoption. As with adoption within
this country, international adoption can be both costly and
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time consuming.
According to the National Adoption Information
Clearinghouse, 18,477 foreign born children were adopted in
the United States in 2000. Current federal laws and
international treaties govern much of this adoption. For
those adoptions which are finalized in other countries,
California provides a special procedure by which these
children can be "readopted" within the state. These
provisions include various safeguards to ensure the safety
of the adoptive home.
This bill streamlines readoption in cases where the
adoption was finalized in a foreign country whose adoption
standards meet or exceed those of California, as certified
by the DSS. The author's recent amendments attempt to
ensure that these streamlined procedures do not create a
loophole in adoption laws.
Comments
According to the author, this bill is intended to
"streamline the Readoption Law in California [for] children
adopted in a foreign country and make the policy less
cumbersome." The author stresses that the current adoption
process in California is "weighty and adversarial, at
times." This bill is described by the author as "modest
legislation that will successfully help connect families
and children in a simplified fashion."
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2006-07 2007-08
2008-09 Fund
Certification $200 $400 $400
General
In 2005, the State Department issued an estimated 22,000
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immigrant visas to orphans coming to the United States for
adoption from 21 different countries. It is not known how
many of these children were bound for families in
California.
DSS projects a need for five staff to conduct the necessary
research into international adoption laws, to translate and
interpret foreign law and compare other countries' legal
and regulatory requirements to California's in order to
make certification determinations.
Courts would see some measure of savings through reduced
paperwork and fewer appearances associated with the
adoption process.
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/25/06)
Readopt California.Org
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : No letter on file.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Aghazarian, Arambula, Baca, Bass, Benoit, Berg,
Bermudez, Blakeslee, Bogh, Calderon, Canciamilla, Chan,
Chavez, Chu, Cogdill, Cohn, Coto, Daucher, De La Torre,
DeVore, Dymally, Emmerson, Evans, Frommer, Garcia,
Goldberg, Hancock, Haynes, Jerome Horton, Shirley Horton,
Houston, Huff, Jones, Karnette, Keene, Klehs, Koretz, La
Malfa, La Suer, Laird, Leno, Leslie, Levine, Lieber,
Lieu, Liu, Matthews, Maze, McCarthy, Montanez, Mountjoy,
Mullin, Nakanishi, Nation, Nava, Negrete McLeod, Niello,
Oropeza, Parra, Pavley, Plescia, Richman, Ridley-Thomas,
Sharon Runner, Ruskin, Saldana, Salinas, Spitzer,
Strickland, Torrico, Tran, Umberg, Vargas, Villines,
Walters, Wolk, Wyland, Yee, Nunez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Vacancy
RJG:mel 8/25/06 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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