Representative Edward H. Redd proposes the following substitute bill:


1     
ADOPTIVE STUDIES AND EVALUATIONS AMENDMENTS

2     
2017 GENERAL SESSION

3     
STATE OF UTAH

4     
Chief Sponsor: Edward H. Redd

5     
Senate Sponsor: Wayne A. Harper

6     

7     LONG TITLE
8     General Description:
9          This bill amends provisions related to adoptive evaluations.
10     Highlighted Provisions:
11          This bill:
12          ▸     addresses who may conduct a home study as part of a preplacement adoptive
13     evaluation;
14          ▸     requires a home study to contain certain information; and
15          ▸     makes technical and conforming changes.
16     Money Appropriated in this Bill:
17          None
18     Other Special Clauses:
19          None
20     Utah Code Sections Affected:
21     AMENDS:
22          78B-6-103, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2015, Chapters 137 and 194
23          78B-6-113, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2012, Chapter 340
24          78B-6-128, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2013, Chapter 458
25          78B-6-130, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2008, Chapter 3
26     

27     Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
28          Section 1. Section 78B-6-103 is amended to read:
29          78B-6-103. Definitions.
30          As used in this part:
31          (1) "Adoptee" means a person who:
32          (a) is the subject of an adoption proceeding; or
33          (b) has been legally adopted.
34          (2) "Adoption" means the judicial act that:
35          (a) creates the relationship of parent and child where it did not previously exist; and
36          (b) except as provided in Subsection 78B-6-138(2), terminates the parental rights of
37     any other person with respect to the child.
38          (3) "Adoption document" means an adoption-related document filed with the office, a
39     petition for adoption, a decree of adoption, an original birth certificate, or evidence submitted
40     in support of a supplementary birth certificate.
41          (4) "Adoption service provider" means [a]:
42          (a) a child-placing agency; [or]
43          (b) a licensed counselor who has at least one year of experience providing professional
44     social work services to:
45          (i) adoptive parents;
46          (ii) prospective adoptive parents; or
47          (iii) birth parents[.]; or
48          (c) the Office of Licensing within the Department of Human Services.
49          (5) "Adoptive parent" means a person who has legally adopted an adoptee.
50          (6) "Adult" means a person who is 18 years of age or older.
51          (7) "Adult adoptee" means an adoptee who is 18 years of age or older and was adopted
52     as a minor.
53          (8) "Adult sibling" means a brother or sister of the adoptee, who is 18 years of age or
54     older and whose birth mother or father is the same as that of the adoptee.
55          (9) "Birth mother" means the biological mother of a child.
56          (10) "Birth parent" means:
57          (a) a birth mother;
58          (b) a man whose paternity of a child is established;
59          (c) a man who:
60          (i) has been identified as the father of a child by the child's birth mother; and
61          (ii) has not denied paternity; or
62          (d) an unmarried biological father.
63          (11) "Child-placing agency" means an agency licensed to place children for adoption
64     under Title 62A, Chapter 4a, Part 6, Child Placing.
65          (12) "Cohabiting" means residing with another person and being involved in a sexual
66     relationship with that person.
67          (13) "Division" means the Division of Child and Family Services, within the
68     Department of Human Services, created in Section 62A-4a-103.
69          (14) "Extra-jurisdictional child-placing agency" means an agency licensed to place
70     children for adoption by a district, territory, or state of the United States, other than Utah.
71          (15) "Genetic and social history" means a comprehensive report, when obtainable, on
72     an adoptee's birth parents, aunts, uncles, and grandparents, which contains the following
73     information:
74          (a) medical history;
75          (b) health status;
76          (c) cause of and age at death;
77          (d) height, weight, and eye and hair color;
78          (e) ethnic origins;
79          (f) where appropriate, levels of education and professional achievement; and
80          (g) religion, if any.
81          (16) "Health history" means a comprehensive report of the adoptee's health status at the
82     time of placement for adoption, and medical history, including neonatal, psychological,
83     physiological, and medical care history.
84          (17) "Identifying information" means information in the possession of the office, which
85     contains the name and address of a pre-existing parent or adult adoptee, or other specific
86     information that by itself or in reasonable conjunction with other information may be used to
87     identify that person, including information on a birth certificate or in an adoption document.
88          (18) "Licensed counselor" means a person who is licensed by the state, or another state,
89     district, or territory of the United States as a:
90          (a) certified social worker;
91          (b) clinical social worker;
92          (c) psychologist;
93          (d) marriage and family therapist;
94          (e) professional counselor; or
95          (f) an equivalent licensed professional of another state, district, or territory of the
96     United States.
97          (19) "Man" means a male individual, regardless of age.
98          (20) "Mature adoptee" means an adoptee who is adopted when the adoptee is an adult.
99          (21) "Office" means the Office of Vital Records and Statistics within the Department
100     of Health operating under Title 26, Chapter 2, Utah Vital Statistics Act.
101          (22) "Parent," for purposes of Section 78B-6-119, means any person described in
102     Subsections 78B-6-120(1)(b) through (f) from whom consent for adoption or relinquishment
103     for adoption is required under Sections 78B-6-120 through 78B-6-122.
104          (23) "Potential birth father" means a man who:
105          (a) is identified by a birth mother as a potential biological father of the birth mother's
106     child, but whose genetic paternity has not been established; and
107          (b) was not married to the biological mother of the child described in Subsection
108     (23)(a) at the time of the child's conception or birth.
109          (24) "Pre-existing parent" means:
110          (a) a birth parent; or
111          (b) a person who, before an adoption decree is entered, is, due to an earlier adoption
112     decree, legally the parent of the child being adopted.
113          (25) "Prospective adoptive parent" means a person who seeks to adopt an adoptee.
114          (26) "Relative" means:
115          (a) an adult who is a grandparent, great grandparent, aunt, great aunt, uncle, great
116     uncle, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, stepparent, first cousin, stepsibling, sibling of a child, or
117     first cousin of the child's parent; and
118          (b) in the case of a child defined as an "Indian" under the Indian Child Welfare Act, 25
119     U.S.C. Sec. 1903, an "extended family member" as defined by that statute.
120          (27) "Unmarried biological father" means a person who:
121          (a) is the biological father of a child; and
122          (b) was not married to the biological mother of the child described in Subsection
123     (27)(a) at the time of the child's conception or birth.
124          Section 2. Section 78B-6-113 is amended to read:
125          78B-6-113. Prospective adoptive parent not a resident -- Preplacement
126     requirements.
127          (1) When an adoption petition is to be finalized in this state with regard to any
128     prospective adoptive parent who is not a resident of this state at the time a child is placed in
129     that person's home, the prospective adoptive parent shall[: (a)] comply with the provisions of
130     Sections 78B-6-128 and 78B-6-130[; and].
131          [(b) (i) if the child is in state custody:]
132          [(A) submit fingerprints for a Federal Bureau of Investigation national criminal history
133     record check through the Criminal and Technical Services Division of the Department of
134     Public Safety in accordance with the provisions of Section 62A-2-120; or]
135          [(B) submit to a fingerprint based Federal Bureau of Investigation national criminal
136     history record check through a law enforcement agency in another state, district, or territory of
137     the United States; or]
138          [(ii) subject to Subsection (2), if the child is not in state custody:]
139          [(A) submit fingerprints for a Federal Bureau of Investigation national criminal history
140     records check as a personal records check; or]
141          [(B) complete a criminal records check and child abuse database check for each state
142     and, if available, country, where the prospective adoptive parent resided during the five years
143     immediately preceding the day on which the adoption petition is to be finalized.]
144          [(2) For purposes of Subsection (1)(b)(ii):]
145          [(a) if the adoption is being handled by a human services program, as defined in
146     Section 62A-2-101:]
147          [(i) the criminal history check described in Subsection (1)(b)(ii)(A) shall be submitted
148     in accordance with procedures established by the Criminal Investigations and Technical
149     Services Division of the Department of Public Safety; and]
150          [(ii) subject to Subsection (3), the criminal history check described in Subsection
151     (1)(b)(ii)(B) shall be submitted in a manner acceptable to the court that will:]
152          [(A) preserve the chain of custody of the results; and]
153          [(B) not permit tampering with the results by a prospective adoptive parent or other
154     interested party; and]
155          [(b) if the adoption is being handled by a private attorney, and not a human services
156     program, the criminal history checks described in Subsection (1)(b)(ii), shall be:]
157          [(i) submitted in accordance with procedures established by the Criminal Investigations
158     and Technical Services Division of the Department of Public Safety; or]
159          [(ii) subject to Subsection (3), submitted in a manner acceptable to the court that will:]
160          [(A) preserve the chain of custody of the results; and]
161          [(B) not permit tampering with the results by a prospective adoptive parent or other
162     interested party.]
163          [(3) In order to comply with Subsection (2)(a)(ii) or (b)(ii), the manner in which the
164     criminal history check is submitted shall be approved by the court.]
165          [(4)] (2) Except as provided in Subsection 78B-6-131(2), in addition to the other
166     requirements of this section, before a child in state custody is placed with a prospective foster
167     parent or a prospective adoptive parent, the Department of Human Services shall comply with
168     Section 78B-6-131.
169          Section 3. Section 78B-6-128 is amended to read:
170          78B-6-128. Preplacement adoptive evaluations -- Exceptions.
171          (1) (a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, a child may not be placed in an
172     adoptive home until a preplacement adoptive evaluation, assessing the prospective adoptive
173     parent and the prospective adoptive home, has been conducted in accordance with the
174     requirements of this section.
175          (b) Except as provided in Section 78B-6-131, the court may, at any time, authorize
176     temporary placement of a child in a [potential] prospective adoptive home pending completion
177     of a preplacement adoptive evaluation described in this section.
178          (c) (i) Subsection (1)(a) does not apply if a pre-existing parent has legal custody of the
179     child to be adopted and the prospective adoptive parent is related to that child or the
180     pre-existing parent as a stepparent, sibling by half or whole blood or by adoption, grandparent,
181     aunt, uncle, or first cousin, unless the [evaluation is otherwise requested by the] court
182     otherwise requests the preplacement adoption.
183          (ii) The prospective adoptive parent described in this Subsection (1)(c) shall obtain the
184     information described in Subsections (2)(a) and (b), and file that documentation with the court
185     prior to finalization of the adoption.
186          (d) (i) The [required] preplacement adoptive evaluation [must] shall be completed or
187     updated within the 12-month period immediately preceding the placement of a child with the
188     prospective adoptive parent.
189          (ii) If the prospective adoptive parent has previously received custody of a child for the
190     purpose of adoption, the preplacement adoptive evaluation [must] shall be completed or
191     updated within the 12-month period immediately preceding the placement of a child with the
192     prospective adoptive parent and after the placement of the previous child with the prospective
193     adoptive parent.
194          (2) The preplacement adoptive evaluation shall include:
195          (a) a criminal history [record information] background check regarding each
196     prospective adoptive parent and any other adult living in the prospective home, prepared no
197     earlier than 18 months immediately preceding placement of the child in accordance with the
198     following:
199          (i) if the child is in state custody, each prospective adoptive parent and any other adult
200     living in the prospective home shall[:] submit fingerprints to the Department of Human
201     Services, which shall perform a criminal history background check in accordance with Section
202     62A-2-120; or
203          [(A) submit fingerprints for a Federal Bureau of Investigation national criminal history
204     record check through the Criminal and Technical Services Division of the Department of
205     Public Safety in accordance with the provisions of Section 62A-2-120; or]
206          [(B) submit to a fingerprint based Federal Bureau of Investigation national criminal
207     history record check through a law enforcement agency in another state, district, or territory of
208     the United States; or]
209          (ii) subject to Subsection (3), if the child is not in state custody, [each prospective
210     adoptive parent and any other adult living in the prospective home shall: (A) submit
211     fingerprints for a Federal Bureau of Investigation national criminal history records check as a
212     personal records check; or] an adoption service provider shall submit fingerprints from the
213     prospective adoptive parents and any other adult living in the prospective home to the Criminal
214     and Technical Services Division of Public Safety for a regional or a regional and nationwide
215     background check, based upon the requirements of the court.
216          [(B) complete a criminal records check, if available, for each state and country where
217     the prospective adoptive parent and any adult living in the prospective adoptive home resided
218     during the five years immediately preceding the day on which the adoption petition is to be
219     finalized;]
220          (b) a report containing all information regarding reports and investigations of child
221     abuse, neglect, and dependency, with respect to each prospective adoptive parent and any other
222     adult living in the prospective home, obtained no earlier than 18 months immediately preceding
223     the day on which the child is placed in the prospective home, pursuant to waivers executed by
224     each prospective adoptive parent and any other adult living in the prospective home, that:
225          (i) if the prospective adoptive parent or the adult living in the prospective adoptive
226     parent's home is a resident of Utah, is prepared by the Department of Human Services from the
227     records of the Department of Human Services; or
228          (ii) if the prospective adoptive parent or the adult living in the prospective adoptive
229     parent's home is not a resident of Utah, prepared by the Department of Human Services, or a
230     similar agency in another state, district, or territory of the United States, where each
231     prospective adoptive parent and any other adult living in the prospective home resided in the
232     five years immediately preceding the day on which the child is placed in the prospective
233     adoptive home;
234          (c) in accordance with Subsection (6), [an evaluation] a home study conducted by an
235     adoption service provider that is:
236          (i) an expert in family relations approved by the court;
237          (ii) a certified social worker;
238          (iii) a clinical social worker;
239          (iv) a marriage and family therapist;
240          (v) a psychologist;
241          (vi) a social service worker, if supervised by a certified or clinical social worker; [or]
242          (vii) a professional counselor; [and] or
243          (viii) an Office of Licensing employee within the Department of Human Services who
244     is trained to perform a home study; and
245          (d) in accordance with Subsection (7), if the child to be adopted is a child who is in the
246     custody of any public child welfare agency, and is a child who has a special need as defined in
247     Section 62A-4a-902, the preplacement adoptive evaluation shall be conducted by the
248     Department of Human Services or a child-placing agency that has entered into a contract with
249     the department to conduct the preplacement adoptive evaluations for children with special
250     needs.
251          (3) For purposes of Subsection (2)(a)(ii)[: (a) if the adoption is being handled by a
252     human services program, as defined in Section 62A-2-101: (i) the criminal history check
253     described in Subsection (2)(a)(ii)(A) shall be submitted through the Criminal Investigations
254     and Technical Services Division of the Department of Public Safety, in accordance with the
255     provisions of Section 62A-2-120; and (ii)], subject to Subsection (4), the criminal history
256     background check described in Subsection (2)(a)(ii)[(B)] shall be submitted in a manner
257     acceptable to the court that will:
258          [(A)] (a) preserve the chain of custody of the results; and
259          [(B)] (b) not permit tampering with the results by a prospective adoptive parent or
260     other interested party[; and].
261          [(b) if the adoption is being handled by a private attorney, and not a human services
262     program, the criminal history checks described in Subsection (2)(a)(ii) shall be:]
263          [(i) submitted in accordance with procedures established by the Criminal Investigations
264     and Technical Services Division of the Department of Public Safety; or]
265          [(ii) subject to Subsection (4), submitted in a manner acceptable to the court that will:]
266          [(A) preserve the chain of custody of the results; and]
267          [(B) not permit tampering with the results by a prospective adoptive parent or other
268     interested party.]
269          (4) In order to comply with Subsection (3)[(a)(ii) or (b)(ii)], the manner in which the
270     criminal history background check is submitted shall be approved by the court.
271          (5) Except as provided in Subsection 78B-6-131(2), in addition to the other
272     requirements of this section, before a child in state custody is placed with a prospective foster
273     parent or a prospective adoptive parent, the Department of Human Services shall comply with
274     Section 78B-6-131.
275          (6) (a) [A person] An individual described in [Subsection (2)(c)] Subsections (2)(c)(i)
276     through (vii) shall be licensed to practice under the laws of:
277          (i) this state; or
278          (ii) the state, district, or territory of the United States where the prospective adoptive
279     parent or other person living in the prospective adoptive home resides.
280          [(b) The evaluation described in Subsection (2)(c) shall be in a form approved by the
281     Department of Human Services.]
282          [(c)] (b) Neither the Department of Human Services nor any of [its] the department's
283     divisions may proscribe who qualifies as an expert in family relations or who may conduct
284     [evaluations] a home study under Subsection (2)(c).
285          (c) The home study described in Subsection (2)(c) shall be a written document that
286     contains the following:
287          (i) a recommendation to the court regarding the suitability of the prospective adoptive
288     parent for placement of a child;
289          (ii) a description of in-person interviews with the prospective adoptive parent, the
290     prospective adoptive parent's children, and other individuals living in the home;
291          (iii) a description of character and suitability references from at least two individuals
292     who are not related to the prospective adoptive parent and with at least one individual who is
293     related to the prospective adoptive parent;
294          (iv) a medical history and a doctor's report, based upon a doctor's physical examination
295     of the prospective adoptive parent, made within two years before the date of the application;
296     and
297          (v) a description of an inspection of the home to determine whether sufficient space
298     and facilities exist to meet the needs of the child and whether basic health and safety standards
299     are maintained.
300          (7) Any fee assessed by the evaluating agency described in Subsection (2)(d) is the
301     responsibility of the adopting parent [or parents].
302          (8) The person [or agency] conducting the preplacement adoptive evaluation shall, in
303     connection with the preplacement adoptive evaluation, provide the prospective adoptive parent
304     [or parents] with literature approved by the Division of Child and Family Services relating to
305     adoption, including information relating to:
306          (a) the adoption process;
307          (b) developmental issues that may require early intervention; and
308          (c) community resources that are available to the prospective adoptive parent [or
309     parents].
310          (9) A copy of the preplacement adoptive evaluation shall be filed with the court.
311          Section 4. Section 78B-6-130 is amended to read:
312          78B-6-130. Preplacement and postplacement adoptive evaluations -- Review by
313     court.
314          (1) (a) If the person [or agency] conducting the preplacement adoptive evaluation or
315     postplacement adoptive evaluation disapproves the adoptive placement, [either in the
316     preplacement or postplacement adoptive evaluation,] the court may dismiss the petition[.
317     However, upon] for adoption.
318          (b) Upon request [of] by a prospective adoptive parent, the court shall order that an
319     additional preplacement adoptive evaluation or postplacement adoptive evaluation be
320     conducted, and shall hold a hearing on the suitability of the adoption, including testimony of
321     interested parties.
322          (2) [Prior to] Before finalization of a petition for adoption the court shall review and
323     consider the information and recommendations contained in the preplacement adoptive
324     evaluation and postplacement adoptive [studies required by] evaluation described in Sections
325     78B-6-128 and 78B-6-129.
326          (3) With respect to the home study required as part of the preplacement adoptive
327     evaluation described in Subsection 78B-6-128(2)(c), a court may review and consider
328     information other than the information contained in the home study described in Subsection
329     78B-6-128(6)(c).