2012 -- H 7879

=======

LC01828

=======

STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2012

____________

A N A C T

RELATING TO DOMESTIC RELATIONS - ADOPTION OF CHILDREN

     Introduced By: Representative Donald J. Lally

     Date Introduced: March 01, 2012

     Referred To: House Judiciary

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

1-1

     SECTION 1. Section 15-7-6 and 15-7-7 of the General Laws in Chapter 15-7 entitled

1-2

"Adoption of Children" are hereby amended to read as follows:

1-3

     15-7-6. Waiver of parents' right to consent -- Guardianship of agency. -- Any duly

1-4

licensed child placement agency in this state, or governmental child placement agency, at the

1-5

request of the natural parent or parents of a child under eighteen (18) years of age, may, not

1-6

sooner than fifteen (15) days after the birth of the child, petition the family court for the

1-7

termination of the rights of the natural parents of the child to consent to its adoption. After any

1-8

notice to the natural parents that the court deems proper, a hearing shall be had prior to the

1-9

hearing on the petition for adoption in the family court, and if the family court finds after

1-10

examination of the parent or parents that the parent or parents freely join in the petition, and that

1-11

the granting of the petition is for the best interests of the child, it shall decree that in the hearing

1-12

on the adoption of the child the consent of the natural parents as provided above shall be

1-13

unnecessary and that the agency shall be the sole party to give or withhold consent. The granting

1-14

of the petition to give or withhold consent to the child placement agency shall also make the

1-15

agency the guardian of the child for all purposes.

1-16

     In the event that the birth mother’s rights or the birth father’s rights to consent to the

1-17

adoption of the minor child is terminated pursuant to this section and the other parent of the

1-18

minor child is unknown or, if known, has not joined in the petition, then the court shall proceed to

1-19

consider the termination of the other parent’s right to consent to the adoption of the minor child

1-20

pursuant to R.I.G.L. paragraph 15-7-7(4)(ii).

2-1

     15-7-7. Termination of parental rights. -- (a) The court shall, upon a petition duly filed

2-2

by a governmental child placement agency or licensed child placement agency after notice to the

2-3

parent and a hearing on the petition, terminate any and all legal rights of the parent to the child,

2-4

including the right to notice of any subsequent adoption proceedings involving the child, if the

2-5

court finds as a fact by clear and convincing evidence that:

2-6

      (1) The parent has willfully neglected to provide proper care and maintenance for the

2-7

child for a period of at least one year where financially able to do so. In determining whether the

2-8

parent has willfully neglected to provide proper care and maintenance for the child, the court may

2-9

disregard contributions to support which are of an infrequent and insubstantial nature; or

2-10

      (2) The parent is unfit by reason of conduct or conditions seriously detrimental to the

2-11

child; such as, but not limited to, the following:

2-12

      (i) Institutionalization of the parent, including imprisonment, for a duration as to render

2-13

it improbable for the parent to care for the child for an extended period of time;

2-14

      (ii) Conduct toward any child of a cruel or abusive nature;

2-15

      (iii) The child has been placed in the legal custody or care of the department for children,

2-16

youth, and families and the parent has a chronic substance abuse problem and the parent's

2-17

prognosis indicates that the child will not be able to return to the custody of the parent within a

2-18

reasonable period of time, considering the child's age and the need for a permanent home. The

2-19

fact that a parent has been unable to provide care for a child for a period of twelve (12) months

2-20

due to substance abuse shall constitute prima facie evidence of a chronic substance abuse

2-21

problem;

2-22

      (iv) The child has been placed with the department for children, youth, and families and

2-23

the court has previously involuntarily terminated parental rights to another child of the parent and

2-24

the parent continues to lack the ability or willingness to respond to services which would

2-25

rehabilitate the parent and provided further that the court finds it is improbable that an additional

2-26

period of services would result in reunification within a reasonable period of time considering the

2-27

child's age and the need for a permanent home;

2-28

      (v) The parent has subjected the child to aggravated circumstances, which circumstances

2-29

shall be abandonment, torture, chronic abuse and sexual abuse;

2-30

      (vi) The parent has committed murder or voluntary manslaughter on another of his or her

2-31

children or has committed a felony assault resulting in serious bodily injury on that child or

2-32

another of his or her children or has aided or abetted, attempted, conspired or solicited to commit

2-33

such a murder or voluntary manslaughter; or

3-34

      (vii) The parent has exhibited behavior or conduct that is seriously detrimental to the

3-35

child, for a duration as to render it improbable for the parent to care for the child for an extended

3-36

period of time;

3-37

      (3) The child has been placed in the legal custody or care of the department for children,

3-38

youth, and families for at least twelve (12) months, and the parents were offered or received

3-39

services to correct the situation which led to the child being placed; provided, that there is not a

3-40

substantial probability that the child will be able to return safely to the parents' care within a

3-41

reasonable period of time considering the child's age and the need for a permanent home; or

3-42

      (4) (i) The parent has abandoned or deserted the child. A lack of communication or

3-43

contact with the child for at least a six (6) month period shall constitute prima facie evidence of

3-44

abandonment or desertion. In the event that parents of an infant have had no contact or

3-45

communication with the infant for a period of six (6) months the department shall file a petition

3-46

pursuant to this section and the family court shall conduct expedited hearings on the petition.

3-47

     (ii) In the event that the birth mother’s or birth father’s right to consent to the adoption of

3-48

the minor child has been voluntarily terminated pursuant to R.I.G.L. section 15-7-6 (hereinafter

3-49

the consenting parent) and the other parent (hereinafter the non-consenting parent) has not joined

3-50

in the petition, the non-consenting parent has abandoned or deserted the child. A lack of

3-51

communication or contact with the child by a non-consenting parent for at least a two (2) month

3-52

period shall constitute prima facie evidence of abandonment or desertion by the non-consenting

3-53

parent. In the event that the non-consenting parent of an infant has had no contact or

3-54

communication with the infant for a period of two (2) months, the department or the licensed

3-55

child placement agency shall file a petition pursuant to this section and the family court shall

3-56

conduct expedited hearings on the petition.

3-57

      (b) (1) In the event that the petition is filed pursuant to subdivisions (a)(1), (a)(2)(i),

3-58

(a)(2)(iii), or (a)(2)(vii) of this section, the court shall find as a fact that, prior to the granting of

3-59

the petition, such parental conduct or conditions must have occurred or existed notwithstanding

3-60

the reasonable efforts which shall be made by the agency prior to the filing of the petition to

3-61

encourage and strengthen the parental relationship so that the child can safely return to the family.

3-62

In the event that a petition is filed pursuant to subdivisions (a)(2)(ii), (a)(2)(iv), (a)(2)(v),

3-63

(a)(2)(vi) or (a)(4) of this section, the department has no obligation to engage in reasonable

3-64

efforts to preserve and reunify a family.

3-65

      (2) Any duty or obligation on the part of a licensed or governmental child placing agency

3-66

to make reasonable efforts to strengthen the parental relationship shall cease upon the filing of a

3-67

petition under this section. This provision shall not be construed and is not intended to limit or

3-68

affect in any way the parents' right to see or visit with the child during the pendency of a petition

4-1

under this section.

4-2

      (3) Upon the filing of a termination of parental rights petition, the agency has an

4-3

affirmative duty to identify, recruit, process and approve a qualified family for adoption or other

4-4

permanent living arrangement for the child.

4-5

      (c) (1) In considering the termination of rights as pursuant to subsection (a), the court

4-6

shall give primary consideration to the physical, psychological, mental, and intellectual needs of

4-7

the child insofar as that consideration is not inconsistent with other provisions of this chapter.

4-8

      (2) The consideration shall include the following: If a child has been placed in foster

4-9

family care, voluntarily or involuntarily, the court shall determine whether the child has been

4-10

integrated into the foster family to the extent that the child's familial identity is with the foster

4-11

family and whether the foster family is able and willing to permanently integrate the child into the

4-12

foster family; provided, that in considering integrating into a foster family, the court should

4-13

consider:

4-14

      (i) The length of time child has lived in a stable, satisfactory environment and the

4-15

desirability of maintaining that environment and continuity for the child; and

4-16

      (ii) The reasonable preference of the child, if the court determines that the child has

4-17

sufficient capacity to express a reasonable preference.

4-18

      (d) If the court finds that the parental rights of the parent should be terminated as

4-19

specified in subsection (a), it shall by decree duly entered, appoint some suitable person to give or

4-20

withhold consent in any subsequent adoption proceedings. In the case of petitions filed by

4-21

licensed or governmental child placement agencies, the court shall appoint the agency to be the

4-22

sole party to give or withhold consent to the adoption of the child and further vest the agency with

4-23

all rights of guardianship over the child.

4-24

      (e) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the introduction of expert

4-25

testimony with respect to any illness, medical or psychological condition, trauma, incompetency,

4-26

addiction to drugs, or alcoholism of any parent who has exhibited behavior or conduct that is

4-27

seriously detrimental to a child, to assist the court in evaluating the reason for the conduct or its

4-28

probable duration.

4-29

      (f) The record of the testimony of the parties adduced in any proceeding terminating

4-30

parental rights to a child shall be entitled to the confidentiality provided for in section 8-10-21

4-31

and more specifically shall not be admissible in any civil, criminal, or other proceeding in any

4-32

court against a person named a defendant or respondent for any purpose, except in subsequent

4-33

proceedings involving the same child or proceedings involving the same respondent.

5-34

      (g) In the event any child, the parental rights to whom have been finally terminated, has

5-35

not been placed by the agency in the home of a person or persons with the intention of adopting

5-36

the child within thirty (30) days from the date of the final termination decree, the family court

5-37

shall review the status of the child and the agency shall file a report that documents the steps the

5-38

agency is taking to find an adoptive family or other permanent living arrangement for the child, to

5-39

place the child with an adoptive family, a fit and willing relative, a legal guardian, or in another

5-40

planned permanent living arrangement, and to finalize the adoption or legal guardianship. At a

5-41

minimum, this documentation shall include child specific recruitment efforts, such as the use of

5-42

state, regional and national adoption exchanges, including electronic exchange system.

5-43

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect on July 1, 2012 and shall apply to any child born

5-44

after July 1, 2012.

=======

LC01828

=======

EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N A C T

RELATING TO DOMESTIC RELATIONS - ADOPTION OF CHILDREN

***

6-1

     This act would provide that if a birth mother’s or father’s rights to consent to the adoption

6-2

of their child is terminated pursuant to this section and the other parent is unknown or has not

6-3

consented, then the court shall proceed to terminate the other parent’s right to consent, and a two

6-4

(2) month period of no contact shall constitute evidence of abandonment or desertion.

6-5

     This act would take effect on July 1, 2012 and shall apply to any child born after July 1,

6-6

2012.

=======

LC01828

=======