|
|
To amend sections 3107.02 and 5103.16 of the Revised | 1 |
Code to allow an adult to be adopted if the adult | 2 |
is the child of the spouse of the adoption | 3 |
petitioner, is totally or permanently disabled, | 4 |
had established a kinship caregiver relationship | 5 |
with the petitioner, or was in a planned permanent | 6 |
living arrangement with a public children services | 7 |
or private child placing agency, and the adult | 8 |
consents to the adoption and to extend to a | 9 |
grandparent's spouse the exemption from certain | 10 |
adoptive placement requirements. | 11 |
Section 1. That sections 3107.02 and 5103.16 of the Revised | 12 |
Code be amended to read as follows: | 13 |
Sec. 3107.02. (A) Any minor may be adopted. | 14 |
(B) An adult may be adopted under any of the following | 15 |
conditions: | 16 |
(1) If the adult is totally | 17 |
(2) If the adult is determined to be a mentally retarded | 18 |
person
| 19 |
(3) If the adult had established a child-foster caregiver, | 20 |
kinship caregiver, or child-stepparent relationship with the | 21 |
petitioners as a minor, and the adult consents to the adoption; | 22 |
(4) If the adult was, at the time of the adult's eighteenth | 23 |
birthday, in the permanent custody of or in a planned permanent | 24 |
living arrangement with a public children services agency or a | 25 |
private child placing agency, and the adult consents to the | 26 |
adoption; | 27 |
(5) If the adult is the child of the spouse of the | 28 |
petitioner, and the adult consents to the adoption. | 29 |
(C) When proceedings to adopt a minor are initiated by the | 30 |
filing of a petition, and the eighteenth birthday of the minor | 31 |
occurs prior to the decision of the court, the court shall require | 32 |
the person who is to be adopted to submit a written statement of | 33 |
consent or objection to the adoption. If an objection is | 34 |
submitted, the petition shall be dismissed, and if a consent is | 35 |
submitted, the court shall proceed with the case, and may issue an | 36 |
interlocutory order or final decree of adoption. | 37 |
(D) Any physical examination of the individual to be adopted | 38 |
as part of or in contemplation of a petition to adopt may be | 39 |
conducted by any health professional authorized by the Revised | 40 |
Code to perform physical examinations, including a physician | 41 |
assistant, a clinical nurse specialist, a certified nurse | 42 |
practitioner, or a certified nurse-midwife. Any written | 43 |
documentation of the physical examination shall be completed by | 44 |
the healthcare professional who conducted the examination. | 45 |
(E) An adult who consents to an adoption pursuant to division | 46 |
(B)(4) of this section shall provide the court with the name and | 47 |
contact information of the public children services agency or | 48 |
private child placing agency that had permanent custody of or a | 49 |
planned permanent living arrangement with that adult. The | 50 |
petitioner shall request verification from the agency as to | 51 |
whether the adult was or was not in the permanent custody of or in | 52 |
a planned permanent living arrangement with that agency at the | 53 |
time of the adult's eighteenth birthday and provide the | 54 |
verification to the court. | 55 |
(F) As used in this section: | 56 |
(1) "Kinship caregiver" has the same meaning as in section | 57 |
5101.85 of the Revised Code. | 58 |
(2) "Mentally retarded person" has the same meaning as in | 59 |
section 5123.01 of the Revised Code. | 60 |
(3) "Permanent custody" and "planned permanent living | 61 |
arrangement" have the same meanings as in section 2151.011 of the | 62 |
Revised Code. | 63 |
Sec. 5103.16. (A) Except as otherwise provided in this | 64 |
section, no child shall be placed or accepted for placement under | 65 |
any written or oral agreement or understanding that transfers or | 66 |
surrenders the legal rights, powers, or duties of the legal | 67 |
parent, parents, or guardian of the child into the temporary or | 68 |
permanent custody of any association or institution that is not | 69 |
certified by the department of job and family services under | 70 |
section 5103.03 of the Revised Code, without the written consent | 71 |
of the office in the department that oversees the interstate | 72 |
compact for placement of children established under section | 73 |
5103.20 of the Revised Code or the interstate compact on the | 74 |
placement of children established under section 5103.23 of the | 75 |
Revised Code, as applicable, or by a commitment of a juvenile | 76 |
court, or by a commitment of a probate court as provided in this | 77 |
section. A child may be placed temporarily without written consent | 78 |
or court commitment with persons related by blood or marriage or | 79 |
in a legally licensed boarding home. | 80 |
(B)(1) Associations and institutions certified under section | 81 |
5103.03 of the Revised Code for the purpose of placing children in | 82 |
free foster homes or for legal adoption shall keep a record of the | 83 |
temporary and permanent surrenders of children. This record shall | 84 |
be available for separate statistics, which shall include a copy | 85 |
of an official birth record and all information concerning the | 86 |
social, mental, and medical history of the children that will aid | 87 |
in an intelligent disposition of the children in case that becomes | 88 |
necessary because the parents or guardians fail or are unable to | 89 |
reassume custody. | 90 |
(2) No child placed on a temporary surrender with an | 91 |
association or institution shall be placed permanently in a foster | 92 |
home or for legal adoption. All surrendered children who are | 93 |
placed permanently in foster homes or for adoption shall have been | 94 |
permanently surrendered, and a copy of the permanent surrender | 95 |
shall be a part of the separate record kept by the association or | 96 |
institution. | 97 |
(C) Any agreement or understanding to transfer or surrender | 98 |
the legal rights, powers, or duties of the legal parent or parents | 99 |
and place a child with a person seeking to adopt the child under | 100 |
this section shall be construed to contain a promise by the person | 101 |
seeking to adopt the child to pay the expenses listed in divisions | 102 |
(C)(1), (2), and (4) of section 3107.055 of the Revised Code and, | 103 |
if the person seeking to adopt the child refuses to accept | 104 |
placement of the child, to pay the temporary costs of routine | 105 |
maintenance and medical care for the child in a hospital, foster | 106 |
home, or other appropriate place for up to thirty days or until | 107 |
other custody is established for the child, as provided by law, | 108 |
whichever is less. | 109 |
(D) No child shall be placed or received for adoption or with | 110 |
intent to adopt unless placement is made by a public children | 111 |
services agency, an institution or association that is certified | 112 |
by the department of job and family services under section 5103.03 | 113 |
of the Revised Code to place children for adoption, or custodians | 114 |
in another state or foreign country, or unless all of the | 115 |
following criteria are met: | 116 |
(1) Prior to the placement and receiving of the child, the | 117 |
parent or parents of the child personally have applied to, and | 118 |
appeared before, the probate court of the county in which the | 119 |
parent or parents reside, or in which the person seeking to adopt | 120 |
the child resides, for approval of the proposed placement | 121 |
specified in the application and have signed and filed with the | 122 |
court a written statement showing that the parent or parents are | 123 |
aware of their right to contest the decree of adoption subject to | 124 |
the limitations of section 3107.16 of the Revised Code; | 125 |
(2) The court ordered an independent home study of the | 126 |
proposed placement to be conducted as provided in section 3107.031 | 127 |
of the Revised Code, and after completion of the home study, the | 128 |
court determined that the proposed placement is in the best | 129 |
interest of the child; | 130 |
(3) The court has approved of record the proposed placement. | 131 |
In determining whether a custodian has authority to place | 132 |
children for adoption under the laws of a foreign country, the | 133 |
probate court shall determine whether the child has been released | 134 |
for adoption pursuant to the laws of the country in which the | 135 |
child resides, and if the release is in a form that satisfies the | 136 |
requirements of the immigration and naturalization service of the | 137 |
United States department of justice for purposes of immigration to | 138 |
this country pursuant to section 101(b)(1)(F) of the "Immigration | 139 |
and Nationality Act," 75 Stat. 650 (1961), 8 U.S.C. 1101 | 140 |
(b)(1)(F), as amended or reenacted. | 141 |
If the parent or parents of the child are deceased or have | 142 |
abandoned the child, as determined under division (A) of section | 143 |
3107.07 of the Revised Code, the application for approval of the | 144 |
proposed adoptive placement may be brought by the relative seeking | 145 |
to adopt the child, or by the department, board, or organization | 146 |
not otherwise having legal authority to place the orphaned or | 147 |
abandoned child for adoption, but having legal custody of the | 148 |
orphaned or abandoned child, in the probate court of the county in | 149 |
which the child is a resident, or in which the department, board, | 150 |
or organization is located, or where the person or persons with | 151 |
whom the child is to be placed reside. Unless the parent, parents, | 152 |
or guardian of the person of the child personally have appeared | 153 |
before the court and applied for approval of the placement, notice | 154 |
of the hearing on the application shall be served on the parent, | 155 |
parents, or guardian. | 156 |
The consent to placement, surrender, or adoption executed by | 157 |
a minor parent before a judge of the probate court or an | 158 |
authorized deputy or referee of the court, whether executed within | 159 |
or outside the confines of the court, is as valid as though | 160 |
executed by an adult. A consent given as above before an employee | 161 |
of a children services agency that is licensed as provided by law, | 162 |
is equally effective, if the consent also is accompanied by an | 163 |
affidavit executed by the witnessing employee or employees to the | 164 |
effect that the legal rights of the parents have been fully | 165 |
explained to the parents, prior to the execution of any consent, | 166 |
and that the action was done after the birth of the child. | 167 |
If the court approves a placement, the prospective adoptive | 168 |
parent with whom the child is placed has care, custody, and | 169 |
control of the child pending further order of the court. | 170 |
(E) This section does not apply to an adoption by a | 171 |
stepparent, a grandparent, a grandparent's husband or wife, or a | 172 |
guardian. | 173 |
Section 2. That existing sections 3107.02 and 5103.16 of the | 174 |
Revised Code are hereby repealed. | 175 |