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1 | AN ACT concerning adoption.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 5. The Adoption Compensation Prohibition Act is | ||||||
5 | amended by changing Sections 3, 4, and 4.1 as follows:
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6 | (720 ILCS 525/3) (from Ch. 40, par. 1703)
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7 | Sec. 3. Definitions.
As used in this Act:
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8 | "Adoption services" has the meaning given that term in the | ||||||
9 | Child Care Act of 1969. | ||||||
10 | "Placing out" means to arrange for the
free care or | ||||||
11 | placement of a child in a family other than that of the child's | ||||||
12 | parent,
stepparent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle or | ||||||
13 | aunt or legal guardian,
for the purpose of adoption or for the | ||||||
14 | purpose of providing care. | ||||||
15 | "Prospective adoptive parent" means a person or persons who | ||||||
16 | have filed or intend to file a petition to adopt a child under | ||||||
17 | the Adoption Act. | ||||||
18 | "Adoption services" has the meaning given that term in the | ||||||
19 | Child Care Act of 1969.
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20 | (Source: P.A. 94-586, eff. 8-15-05.)
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21 | (720 ILCS 525/4) (from Ch. 40, par. 1704)
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22 | Sec. 4. The provisions of this Act shall not be construed |
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1 | to prevent the
payment of salaries or other compensation by a | ||||||
2 | licensed child welfare
agency providing adoption services, as | ||||||
3 | that term is defined by the Child Care Act of 1969, as now
or | ||||||
4 | hereafter amended, to the officers, employees, agents, | ||||||
5 | contractors, or any other persons acting on behalf of the child | ||||||
6 | welfare agency, provided that such salaries and compensation | ||||||
7 | are consistent with subsection (a) of Section 14.5 of the Child | ||||||
8 | Care Act of 1969. | ||||||
9 | The provisions of this Act shall not
be construed to | ||||||
10 | prevent the payment by a prospective adoptive parent person | ||||||
11 | with whom a
child has been placed for adoption of reasonable | ||||||
12 | and actual medical fees or hospital
charges for services | ||||||
13 | rendered in connection with the birth of such child,
if such | ||||||
14 | payment is made to the physician or hospital who or which | ||||||
15 | rendered
the services or to the biological mother of the child | ||||||
16 | or to prevent the
receipt of such payment by such physician, | ||||||
17 | hospital, or mother. | ||||||
18 | The provisions of this Act shall not be construed to | ||||||
19 | prevent a prospective adoptive parent from giving a gift or | ||||||
20 | gifts or other thing or things of value to a biological parent | ||||||
21 | provided that the total value of such gift or gifts or thing or | ||||||
22 | things of value does not exceed $200.
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23 | (Source: P.A. 94-586, eff. 8-15-05.)
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24 | (720 ILCS 525/4.1) (from Ch. 40, par. 1704.1)
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25 | Sec. 4.1. Payment of certain expenses.
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1 | (a) A prospective adoptive parent person or persons who | ||||||
2 | have filed or intend to file a petition to
adopt a child under | ||||||
3 | the Adoption Act shall be permitted to pay the
reasonable | ||||||
4 | living expenses of the biological parents of the child sought | ||||||
5 | to
be adopted, in addition to those expenses set forth in | ||||||
6 | Section 4, only in
accordance with the provisions of this | ||||||
7 | Section.
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8 | "Reasonable living expenses" means those expenses related | ||||||
9 | to activities of daily living and meeting basic needs, | ||||||
10 | including, but not limited to, lodging, food,
and clothing for | ||||||
11 | the biological parents during the biological
mother's | ||||||
12 | pregnancy and for no more than 120 days prior to the biological | ||||||
13 | mother's expected date of delivery and for no more than 60 days | ||||||
14 | after the birth of the
child. The term does not include | ||||||
15 | expenses for lost wages, gifts,
educational expenses, or other | ||||||
16 | similar expenses of the biological parents.
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17 | (b) (1) The prospective adoptive parents petitioners may | ||||||
18 | seek leave of the court to pay the reasonable
living expenses | ||||||
19 | of the biological parents. They shall be permitted to pay
the | ||||||
20 | reasonable living expenses of the biological parents only upon | ||||||
21 | prior
order of the circuit court where the petition for | ||||||
22 | adoption will be filed,
or if the petition for adoption has | ||||||
23 | been filed in the circuit court where
the petition is pending. | ||||||
24 | (2) Notwithstanding clause (b)(1) of this Section, a | ||||||
25 | prospective adoptive parent may advance a maximum of $1,000 for | ||||||
26 | reasonable birth parent living expenses without prior order of |
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1 | court. The prospective adoptive parents shall present a final | ||||||
2 | accounting of all expenses to the court prior to the entry of a | ||||||
3 | final judgment order for adoption. | ||||||
4 | (3) If the court finds an accounting by the prospective | ||||||
5 | adoptive parents to be incomplete or deceptive or to contain | ||||||
6 | amounts which are unauthorized or unreasonable, the court may | ||||||
7 | order a new accounting or the repayment of amounts found to be | ||||||
8 | excessive or unauthorized or make any other orders it deems | ||||||
9 | appropriate.
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10 | (c) Payments under this Section shall be permitted only in | ||||||
11 | those
circumstances where there is a demonstrated need for the | ||||||
12 | payment of such
expenses to protect the health of the | ||||||
13 | biological parents or the health of
the child sought to be | ||||||
14 | adopted.
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15 | (d) Payment of their reasonable living expenses, as | ||||||
16 | provided in this
Section, shall not obligate the biological | ||||||
17 | parents to place the child for
adoption. In the event the | ||||||
18 | biological parents choose not to place the
child for adoption, | ||||||
19 | the prospective adoptive parents petitioners shall have no | ||||||
20 | right to seek
reimbursement from the biological parents, or | ||||||
21 | from any relative or associate of the biological parents,
of | ||||||
22 | moneys paid to, or on behalf of, the biological parents | ||||||
23 | pursuant to a court
order under this Section. | ||||||
24 | (d-1) Notwithstanding subsection (d) of this Section, a | ||||||
25 | prospective adoptive parent may seek reimbursement of | ||||||
26 | reasonable living expenses from a person who receives such |
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1 | payments only if the person who accepts payment of reasonable | ||||||
2 | living expenses before the child's birth, as described in | ||||||
3 | subsection (d) of this Section, knows that the person on whose | ||||||
4 | behalf he or she is accepting payment is not pregnant at the | ||||||
5 | time of the receipt of such payments or the person receives | ||||||
6 | reimbursement for reasonable living expenses simultaneously | ||||||
7 | from more than one prospective adoptive parent without the | ||||||
8 | knowledge of the prospective adoptive parent.
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9 | (d-5) No person or entity shall offer, provide, or co-sign | ||||||
10 | a loan or any other credit accommodation, directly or | ||||||
11 | indirectly, with a biological parent or a relative or associate
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12 | of a biological parent based on the contingency of a surrender | ||||||
13 | or placement of a child for adoption.
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14 | (e) Within 14 days after the completion of all payments for | ||||||
15 | reasonable
living expenses of the biological parents under this | ||||||
16 | Section, the prospective adoptive parents petitioners
shall | ||||||
17 | present a final accounting of all those expenses to the court. | ||||||
18 | The
accounting shall include vouchers for all moneys expended, | ||||||
19 | copies of all checks
written, and receipts for all cash | ||||||
20 | payments. The accounting shall also include
the verified | ||||||
21 | statements of the prospective adoptive parents petitioners , | ||||||
22 | each attorney of record, and the
biological parents or parents | ||||||
23 | to whom or on whose behalf the payments were made
attesting to | ||||||
24 | the accuracy of the accounting.
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25 | (f) If the placement of a child for adoption is made in | ||||||
26 | accordance with the
Interstate Compact on the Placement of |
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1 | Children, and if the sending state
permits the payment of any | ||||||
2 | expenses of biological parents that are not
permitted under | ||||||
3 | this Act, then the payment of those expenses shall not be a
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4 | violation of this Act. In that event, the prospective adoptive | ||||||
5 | parents petitioners shall file an accounting
of all payments of | ||||||
6 | the expenses of the biological parent or
parents with the court | ||||||
7 | in which the petition for adoption is filed or is to be
filed. | ||||||
8 | The accounting shall include a copy of the statutory provisions | ||||||
9 | of the
sending state that permit payments in addition to those | ||||||
10 | permitted by this Act
and a copy of all orders entered in the | ||||||
11 | sending state that relate to expenses
of the biological parents | ||||||
12 | paid by the prospective adoptive parents petitioners in the | ||||||
13 | sending state.
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14 | (g) The prospective adoptive parents petitioners shall be | ||||||
15 | permitted to pay the reasonable attorney's fees
of a the | ||||||
16 | biological parent's parents' attorney in connection with | ||||||
17 | proceedings under this
Act or in connection with proceedings | ||||||
18 | for the adoption of the child if the amount of fees of the | ||||||
19 | attorney is $1,000 or less. If the amount of attorney's fees of | ||||||
20 | each biological parent exceeds $1,000, the . The attorney's | ||||||
21 | fees shall be paid only after a petition seeking leave to pay | ||||||
22 | those
fees is filed with the court in which the adoption | ||||||
23 | proceeding is filed or to be
filed. The court shall review the | ||||||
24 | petition for leave to pay attorney's fees,
and if the court | ||||||
25 | determines that the fees requested are reasonable, the court
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26 | shall permit
the petitioners to pay them. If the court |
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1 | determines that the fees requested
are not
reasonable, the | ||||||
2 | court shall determine and set the reasonable attorney's fees of
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3 | the biological parents' attorney which may be paid by the | ||||||
4 | petitioners. The prospective adoptive parents shall present a | ||||||
5 | final accounting of all those fees to the court prior to the | ||||||
6 | entry of a final judgment order for adoption.
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7 | (h) The court may appoint a guardian ad litem for an unborn | ||||||
8 | child to
represent the interests of the child in proceedings | ||||||
9 | under this Section.
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10 | (i) The provisions of this Section apply to a person who is | ||||||
11 | a prospective adoptive parent has filed or intends to file a | ||||||
12 | petition to adopt a child under the Adoption Act . This Section | ||||||
13 | does not apply to a licensed child welfare agency, as that term | ||||||
14 | is defined in the Child Care Act of 1969, whose payments are | ||||||
15 | governed by the Child Care Act of 1969 and the Department rules | ||||||
16 | adopted thereunder.
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17 | (Source: P.A. 93-1063, eff. 6-1-05; 94-586, eff. 8-15-05.)
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18 | Section 10. The Adoption Act is amended by changing Section | ||||||
19 | 18.3a as follows:
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20 | (750 ILCS 50/18.3a) (from Ch. 40, par. 1522.3a)
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21 | Sec. 18.3a. Confidential intermediary.
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22 | (a) General purposes.
Notwithstanding any other provision | ||||||
23 | of
this Act, any
adopted or surrendered person 21 years of age | ||||||
24 | or over, any adoptive parent or legal guardian
of
an adopted or |
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1 | surrendered person under the age of 21, or any birth parent of | ||||||
2 | an adopted
or surrendered person who is 21 years of age or over | ||||||
3 | may petition the court in any county in
the
State of Illinois | ||||||
4 | for appointment of a confidential intermediary as provided in
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5 | this Section for the purpose of exchanging medical information | ||||||
6 | with one or
more mutually consenting biological relatives, | ||||||
7 | obtaining identifying
information about one or more mutually | ||||||
8 | consenting biological relatives, or
arranging contact with one | ||||||
9 | or more mutually consenting biological relatives.
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10 | Additionally, in cases where an adopted or surrendered person | ||||||
11 | is deceased,
an adult child of the adopted
or surrendered | ||||||
12 | person or his or her adoptive parents or surviving spouse may | ||||||
13 | file a petition under this Section and in cases
where the birth | ||||||
14 | parent is deceased,
an adult birth sibling of the adopted or | ||||||
15 | surrendered person or of the deceased birth parent
may
file a | ||||||
16 | petition under this Section for the purpose of exchanging | ||||||
17 | medical
information with one or more mutually consenting | ||||||
18 | biological relatives of the adopted or surrendered person,
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19 | obtaining identifying information about one or more mutually | ||||||
20 | consenting
biological relatives of the adopted or surrendered | ||||||
21 | person, or arranging contact with one or more mutually
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22 | consenting biological relatives of the adopted or surrendered | ||||||
23 | person. Beginning January 1, 2006, any adopted or surrendered | ||||||
24 | person 21 years of age or over; any adoptive parent or legal | ||||||
25 | guardian of an adopted or surrendered person under the age of | ||||||
26 | 21; any birth parent, birth sibling, birth aunt, or birth uncle |
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1 | of an adopted or surrendered person over the age of 21; any | ||||||
2 | surviving child, adoptive parent, or surviving spouse of a | ||||||
3 | deceased adopted or surrendered person who wishes to petition | ||||||
4 | the court for the appointment of a confidential intermediary | ||||||
5 | shall be required to accompany their petition with proof of | ||||||
6 | registration with the Illinois Adoption Registry and Medical | ||||||
7 | Information Exchange.
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8 | (b) Petition. Upon petition by an adopted or surrendered
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9 | person 21 years of age or over, an
adoptive parent or legal | ||||||
10 | guardian of an adopted or surrendered person under the age of | ||||||
11 | 21,
or a birth parent of an adopted or surrendered person who | ||||||
12 | is 21 years of age or over, the
court
shall appoint a | ||||||
13 | confidential intermediary. Upon petition by
an adult child, | ||||||
14 | adoptive parent or surviving spouse of an adopted or | ||||||
15 | surrendered person who is deceased, by an adult birth sibling | ||||||
16 | of an adopted or surrendered person
whose common birth parent | ||||||
17 | is deceased
and whose adopted or surrendered birth sibling is | ||||||
18 | 21 years of age or over, or by an adult sibling of a birth | ||||||
19 | parent who is deceased,
and whose surrendered child is 21 years | ||||||
20 | of age or over, the court may appoint a confidential
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21 | intermediary if the court finds that the disclosure is of | ||||||
22 | greater benefit than
nondisclosure.
The petition shall state | ||||||
23 | which biological relative
or
relatives are being sought and | ||||||
24 | shall indicate if the petitioner wants to do any
one or more of | ||||||
25 | the following: exchange medical information with the
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26 | biological relative or relatives, obtain identifying |
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1 | information from the
biological relative or relatives, or to | ||||||
2 | arrange contact with the biological
relative.
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3 | (c) Order. The order appointing the confidential | ||||||
4 | intermediary shall allow
that
intermediary to conduct a search | ||||||
5 | for the sought-after relative by accessing
those records | ||||||
6 | described in subsection (g) of this Section.
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7 | (d) Fees and expenses. The court shall condition the | ||||||
8 | appointment of the
confidential intermediary on the | ||||||
9 | petitioner's payment of the intermediary's
fees and expenses in | ||||||
10 | advance of the commencement of the work of the
confidential | ||||||
11 | intermediary.
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12 | (e) Eligibility of intermediary. The court may appoint as | ||||||
13 | confidential
intermediary any
person certified by the | ||||||
14 | Department of Children and Family Services as qualified to | ||||||
15 | serve as a confidential
intermediary.
Certification shall be | ||||||
16 | dependent upon the
confidential intermediary completing a | ||||||
17 | course of training including, but not
limited to, applicable | ||||||
18 | federal and State privacy laws.
| ||||||
19 | (f) Confidential Intermediary Council. There shall be | ||||||
20 | established under the
Department of Children and Family
| ||||||
21 | Services a Confidential Intermediary Advisory Council. One | ||||||
22 | member shall be an
attorney representing the Attorney General's | ||||||
23 | Office appointed by the Attorney
General. One member shall be a | ||||||
24 | currently certified confidential intermediary
appointed by the | ||||||
25 | Director of the Department of Children and Family Services.
The | ||||||
26 | Director shall also appoint 5 additional members. When making |
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1 | those
appointments, the Director shall consider advocates for | ||||||
2 | adopted persons,
adoptive parents, birth parents, lawyers who | ||||||
3 | represent clients in private
adoptions, lawyers specializing | ||||||
4 | in privacy law, and representatives of agencies
involved in | ||||||
5 | adoptions. The Director shall appoint one of the 7 members as
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6 | the chairperson. An attorney from the Department of Children | ||||||
7 | and Family
Services
and the person directly responsible for | ||||||
8 | administering the confidential
intermediary program shall | ||||||
9 | serve as ex-officio, non-voting advisors to the
Council. | ||||||
10 | Council members shall serve at the discretion of the Director | ||||||
11 | and
shall receive no compensation other than reasonable | ||||||
12 | expenses approved by the
Director. The Council shall meet no | ||||||
13 | less than twice yearly, and shall make
recommendations to the | ||||||
14 | Director regarding the development of rules, procedures,
and | ||||||
15 | forms that will ensure efficient and effective operation of the
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16 | confidential intermediary process, including:
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17 | (1) Standards for certification for confidential | ||||||
18 | intermediaries.
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19 | (2) Oversight of methods used to verify that | ||||||
20 | intermediaries are complying
with the appropriate laws.
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21 | (3) Training for confidential intermediaries, | ||||||
22 | including training with
respect to federal and State | ||||||
23 | privacy laws.
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24 | (4) The relationship between confidential | ||||||
25 | intermediaries and the court
system, including the | ||||||
26 | development of sample orders defining the scope of the
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1 | intermediaries' access to information.
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2 | (5) Any recent violations of policy or procedures by | ||||||
3 | confidential
intermediaries and remedial steps, including | ||||||
4 | decertification, to prevent future
violations.
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5 | (g) Access. Subject to the limitations of subsection (i) | ||||||
6 | of this
Section, the
confidential
intermediary shall have | ||||||
7 | access to vital records maintained by the Department of
Public | ||||||
8 | Health and its local designees for the maintenance of vital | ||||||
9 | records or a comparable public entity that maintains vital | ||||||
10 | records in another state in accordance with that state's laws | ||||||
11 | and
all records of the court or any adoption agency,
public
or | ||||||
12 | private, as limited in this Section, which relate to the | ||||||
13 | adoption or the identity and location of an
adopted or | ||||||
14 | surrendered person, of an adult child or surviving spouse of a | ||||||
15 | deceased adopted or surrendered person, or of a birth
parent, | ||||||
16 | birth sibling, or the sibling of a deceased birth parent. The
| ||||||
17 | confidential intermediary shall not have access to any personal | ||||||
18 | health
information protected by the Standards for Privacy of | ||||||
19 | Individually
Identifiable Health Information adopted by the | ||||||
20 | U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services under the Health | ||||||
21 | Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of
1996 unless the | ||||||
22 | confidential intermediary has obtained written consent from | ||||||
23 | the
person whose information is being sought or, if that person | ||||||
24 | is a minor child,
that person's parent or guardian. | ||||||
25 | Confidential
intermediaries shall be authorized to inspect | ||||||
26 | confidential relinquishment and
adoption records. The |
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1 | confidential intermediary shall not be authorized to
access | ||||||
2 | medical
records, financial records, credit records, banking | ||||||
3 | records, home studies,
attorney file records, or other personal | ||||||
4 | records.
In cases where a birth parent is being sought, an | ||||||
5 | adoption agency shall inform
the confidential intermediary of | ||||||
6 | any statement filed pursuant to Section 18.3, hereinafter | ||||||
7 | referred to as "the 18.3 statement",
indicating a desire of the | ||||||
8 | surrendering birth parent to have identifying
information | ||||||
9 | shared or to not have identifying information shared. If there | ||||||
10 | was
a clear statement of intent by the sought-after birth | ||||||
11 | parent not to have
identifying information shared, the | ||||||
12 | confidential intermediary shall discontinue
the search and | ||||||
13 | inform the petitioning party of the sought-after relative's
| ||||||
14 | intent. Information
provided to the confidential intermediary | ||||||
15 | by an adoption agency shall be
restricted to the full name, | ||||||
16 | date of birth, place of birth, last known address,
last known | ||||||
17 | telephone number of the sought-after relative or, if | ||||||
18 | applicable,
of the children or siblings of the sought-after | ||||||
19 | relative, and the 18.3 statement.
| ||||||
20 | (h) Adoption agency disclosure of medical information. If | ||||||
21 | the petitioner is
an adult adopted or surrendered person or the | ||||||
22 | adoptive parent of a
minor and if the petitioner has signed a | ||||||
23 | written authorization to disclose
personal medical | ||||||
24 | information, an adoption agency disclosing information to a
| ||||||
25 | confidential intermediary shall disclose available medical | ||||||
26 | information about
the adopted or surrendered person from birth |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | through adoption.
| ||||||
2 | (i) Duties of confidential intermediary in conducting a | ||||||
3 | search. In
conducting
a search under this Section, the | ||||||
4 | confidential intermediary shall first confirm
that there is no | ||||||
5 | Denial of Information Exchange on file with the Illinois
| ||||||
6 | Adoption Registry. If the petitioner is an adult child of an | ||||||
7 | adopted or surrendered person
who is deceased, the
confidential | ||||||
8 | intermediary shall additionally confirm that the adopted or | ||||||
9 | surrendered person
did not file a Denial of Information | ||||||
10 | Exchange with the Illinois Adoption
Registry during his or her | ||||||
11 | life. If the petitioner is an adult birth sibling of
an
adopted
| ||||||
12 | or surrendered person or an adult sibling of a birth parent who | ||||||
13 | is deceased,
the confidential intermediary shall
additionally | ||||||
14 | confirm that the birth parent did not file a Denial of | ||||||
15 | Information
Exchange with the Registry during his or her life. | ||||||
16 | If the confidential
intermediary learns that a sought-after | ||||||
17 | birth parent signed a statement
indicating his or her intent | ||||||
18 | not to have identifying information shared, and
did not later | ||||||
19 | file an Information Exchange Authorization with the Adoption
| ||||||
20 | Registry, the confidential intermediary shall discontinue the | ||||||
21 | search and inform
the petitioning party of the birth parent's | ||||||
22 | intent.
| ||||||
23 | In conducting a search under this Section, the confidential | ||||||
24 | intermediary
shall attempt to locate the relative or relatives | ||||||
25 | from whom the petitioner has
requested information. If the | ||||||
26 | sought-after relative is deceased
or cannot be located after a |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | diligent search, the
confidential intermediary may contact | ||||||
2 | other adult relatives of the
sought-after relative.
| ||||||
3 | The confidential intermediary shall contact a sought-after | ||||||
4 | relative on
behalf of the petitioner in a manner that respects | ||||||
5 | the sought-after relative's
privacy and shall inform the | ||||||
6 | sought-after relative of the petitioner's request
for medical | ||||||
7 | information, identifying information or contact as stated in | ||||||
8 | the
petition. Based upon the terms of the petitioner's request, | ||||||
9 | the confidential
intermediary shall contact a sought-after | ||||||
10 | relative on behalf of the petitioner
and inform the | ||||||
11 | sought-after relative of the following options:
| ||||||
12 | (1) The sought-after relative may totally reject one or | ||||||
13 | all of the
requests for medical information, identifying | ||||||
14 | information or
contact. The sought-after relative shall be | ||||||
15 | informed that they can
provide a medical questionnaire to | ||||||
16 | be forwarded to the petitioner
without releasing any | ||||||
17 | identifying information. The confidential
intermediary | ||||||
18 | shall inform the petitioner of the sought-after
relative's | ||||||
19 | decision to reject the sharing of information or contact.
| ||||||
20 | (2) The sought-after relative may consent to | ||||||
21 | completing a medical
questionnaire only. In this case, the | ||||||
22 | confidential intermediary
shall provide the questionnaire | ||||||
23 | and ask the sought-after relative to
complete it. The | ||||||
24 | confidential intermediary shall forward the
completed | ||||||
25 | questionnaire to the petitioner and inform the petitioner
| ||||||
26 | of the sought-after relative's desire to not provide any |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | additional
information.
| ||||||
2 | (3) The sought-after relative may communicate with the | ||||||
3 | petitioner
without having his or her identity disclosed. In | ||||||
4 | this case, the
confidential intermediary shall arrange the | ||||||
5 | desired communication
in a manner that protects the | ||||||
6 | identity of the sought-after relative.
The confidential | ||||||
7 | intermediary shall inform the petitioner of the
| ||||||
8 | sought-after relative's decision to communicate but not | ||||||
9 | disclose
his or her identity.
| ||||||
10 | (4) The sought after relative may consent to initiate | ||||||
11 | contact with the
petitioner. If both the petitioner and the | ||||||
12 | sought-after relative or
relatives are eligible to | ||||||
13 | register with the Illinois Adoption Registry,
the | ||||||
14 | confidential intermediary shall provide the necessary
| ||||||
15 | application forms and request that the sought-after | ||||||
16 | relative
register with the Illinois Adoption Registry. If | ||||||
17 | either the petitioner
or the sought-after relative or | ||||||
18 | relatives are ineligible to register
with the Illinois | ||||||
19 | Adoption Registry, the confidential intermediary
shall | ||||||
20 | obtain written consents from both parties that they wish to
| ||||||
21 | disclose their identities to each other and to have contact | ||||||
22 | with
each other.
| ||||||
23 | (j) Oath. The confidential intermediary shall sign an oath | ||||||
24 | of
confidentiality substantially as follows: "I, .........., | ||||||
25 | being duly sworn, on
oath depose and say: As a condition of | ||||||
26 | appointment as a confidential
intermediary, I affirm that:
|
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | (1) I will not disclose to the petitioner,
directly or | ||||||
2 | indirectly, any confidential information
except in a | ||||||
3 | manner consistent with the
law.
| ||||||
4 | (2) I recognize that violation of this oath subjects me | ||||||
5 | to civil liability
and to a potential finding of contempt | ||||||
6 | of court.
................................
| ||||||
7 | SUBSCRIBED AND SWORN to before me, a Notary Public, on (insert
| ||||||
8 | date)
| ||||||
9 | ................................."
| ||||||
10 | (k) Sanctions.
| ||||||
11 | (1) Any confidential intermediary who improperly | ||||||
12 | discloses
confidential information identifying a | ||||||
13 | sought-after relative shall be liable to
the sought-after | ||||||
14 | relative for damages and may also be found in contempt of
| ||||||
15 | court.
| ||||||
16 | (2) Any person who learns a sought-after
relative's | ||||||
17 | identity, directly or indirectly, through the use of | ||||||
18 | procedures
provided in this Section and who improperly | ||||||
19 | discloses information identifying
the sought-after | ||||||
20 | relative shall be liable to the sought-after relative for
| ||||||
21 | actual damages plus minimum punitive damages of $10,000.
| ||||||
22 | (3) The Department shall fine any confidential | ||||||
23 | intermediary who improperly
discloses
confidential | ||||||
24 | information in violation of item (1) or (2) of this | ||||||
25 | subsection (k)
an amount up to $2,000 per improper | ||||||
26 | disclosure. This fine does not affect
civil liability under |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | item (2) of this subsection (k). The Department shall
| ||||||
2 | deposit all fines and penalties collected under this | ||||||
3 | Section into the Illinois
Adoption Registry and Medical | ||||||
4 | Information Fund.
| ||||||
5 | (l) Death of person being sought. Notwithstanding any other | ||||||
6 | provision
of this Act, if the confidential intermediary | ||||||
7 | discovers that the person
being sought has died, he or she | ||||||
8 | shall report this fact to the court,
along with a copy of the | ||||||
9 | death certificate.
| ||||||
10 | (m) Any confidential information obtained by the | ||||||
11 | confidential intermediary
during the course of his or her | ||||||
12 | search shall be kept strictly confidential
and shall be used | ||||||
13 | for the purpose of arranging contact between the
petitioner and | ||||||
14 | the sought-after birth relative. At the time the case is
| ||||||
15 | closed, all identifying information shall be returned to the | ||||||
16 | court for
inclusion in the impounded adoption file.
| ||||||
17 | (n) If the petitioner is an adopted or surrendered person | ||||||
18 | 21 years of age or over or the
adoptive parent or legal | ||||||
19 | guardian of an adopted or surrendered person under the age
of | ||||||
20 | 21, any
non-identifying information, as defined in Section | ||||||
21 | 18.4, that is
ascertained during the course of the search may | ||||||
22 | be given in writing to
the petitioner at any time during the | ||||||
23 | search before the case is closed.
| ||||||
24 | (o) Except as provided in subsection (k) of this Section, | ||||||
25 | no liability shall
accrue to
the State, any State agency, any | ||||||
26 | judge, any officer or employee of the
court, any certified |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | confidential intermediary, or any agency designated
to oversee | ||||||
2 | confidential intermediary services for acts, omissions, or
| ||||||
3 | efforts made in good faith within the scope of this Section.
| ||||||
4 | (p) An adoption agency that has received a request from a | ||||||
5 | confidential intermediary for the full name, date of birth, | ||||||
6 | last known address, or last known telephone number of a | ||||||
7 | sought-after relative pursuant to subsection (g) of Section | ||||||
8 | 18.3, or for medical information regarding a sought-after | ||||||
9 | relative pursuant to subsection (h) of Section 18.3, must | ||||||
10 | satisfactorily comply with this court order within a period of | ||||||
11 | 45 days. The court shall order the adoption agency to reimburse | ||||||
12 | the petitioner in an amount equal to all payments made by the | ||||||
13 | petitioner to the confidential intermediary, and the adoption | ||||||
14 | agency shall be subject to a civil monetary penalty of $1,000 | ||||||
15 | to be paid to the Department of Children and Family Services. | ||||||
16 | Following the issuance of a court order finding that the | ||||||
17 | adoption agency has not complied with Section 18.3, the | ||||||
18 | adoption agency shall be subject to a monetary penalty of $500 | ||||||
19 | per day for each subsequent day of non-compliance. Proceeds | ||||||
20 | from such fines shall be utilized by the Department of Children | ||||||
21 | and Family Services to subsidize the fees of petitioners as | ||||||
22 | referenced in subsection (d) of this Section. | ||||||
23 | (q) Provide information to eligible petitioner. The | ||||||
24 | confidential intermediary may provide to eligible petitioners | ||||||
25 | as described in subsections (a) and (b) of this Section, the | ||||||
26 | name of the child welfare agency which had legal custody of the |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | surrendered person or responsibility for placing the | ||||||
2 | surrendered person and any available contact information for | ||||||
3 | such agency. In addition, the confidential intermediary may | ||||||
4 | provide to such petitioners the name of the state in which the | ||||||
5 | surrender occurred or in which the adoption was finalized. | ||||||
6 | Any reimbursements and fines, notwithstanding any | ||||||
7 | reimbursement directly to the petitioner, paid under this | ||||||
8 | subsection are in addition to other remedies a court may | ||||||
9 | otherwise impose by law. | ||||||
10 | Proceeds from the penalties paid to the Department of | ||||||
11 | Children and Family Services shall be deposited into the DCFS | ||||||
12 | Children's Services Fund. The Department of Children and Family | ||||||
13 | Services shall submit reports to the Confidential Intermediary | ||||||
14 | Advisory Council by July 1 and January 1 of each year in order | ||||||
15 | to report the penalties assessed and collected under this | ||||||
16 | subsection, the amounts of related deposits into the DCFS | ||||||
17 | Children's Services Fund, and any expenditures from such | ||||||
18 | deposits.
| ||||||
19 | (Source: P.A. 93-189, eff. 1-1-04; 94-173, eff. 1-1-06; | ||||||
20 | 94-1010, eff. 10-1-06.)
| ||||||
21 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
22 | becoming law.
|