Full Text of HB4571 95th General Assembly
HB4571eng 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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LRB095 14727 RLC 40652 b |
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| AN ACT concerning adoption.
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| Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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| represented in the General Assembly:
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| Section 5. The Adoption Compensation Prohibition Act is | 5 |
| amended by changing Sections 3, 4, and 4.1 as follows:
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| (720 ILCS 525/3) (from Ch. 40, par. 1703)
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| Sec. 3. Definitions.
As used in this Act:
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| "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 |
| Notwithstanding any other rulemaking authority that may | 19 |
| exist, neither the Governor nor any agency or agency head under | 20 |
| the jurisdiction of the Governor has any authority to make or | 21 |
| promulgate rules to implement or enforce the provisions of this | 22 |
| amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly. If, however, the | 23 |
| Governor believes that rules are necessary to implement or |
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| enforce the provisions of this amendatory Act of the 95th | 2 |
| General Assembly, the Governor may suggest rules to the General | 3 |
| Assembly by filing them with the Clerk of the House and the | 4 |
| Secretary of the Senate and by requesting that the General | 5 |
| Assembly authorize such rulemaking by law, enact those | 6 |
| suggested rules into law, or take any other appropriate action | 7 |
| in the General Assembly's discretion. Nothing contained in this | 8 |
| amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly shall be | 9 |
| interpreted to grant rulemaking authority under any other | 10 |
| Illinois statute where such authority is not otherwise | 11 |
| explicitly given. For the purposes of this Section, "rules" is | 12 |
| given the meaning contained in Section 1-70 of the Illinois | 13 |
| Administrative Procedure Act, and "agency" and "agency head" | 14 |
| are given the meanings contained in Sections 1-20 and 1-25 of | 15 |
| the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act to the extent that | 16 |
| such definitions apply to agencies or agency heads under the | 17 |
| jurisdiction of the Governor. | 18 |
| "Adoption services" has the meaning given that term in the | 19 |
| Child Care Act of 1969.
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| (Source: P.A. 94-586, eff. 8-15-05.)
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| (720 ILCS 525/4) (from Ch. 40, par. 1704)
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| Sec. 4. The provisions of this Act shall not be construed | 23 |
| to prevent the
payment of salaries or other compensation by a | 24 |
| licensed child welfare
agency providing adoption services, as | 25 |
| that term is defined by the Child Care Act of 1969, as now
or |
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| hereafter amended, to the officers, employees, agents, | 2 |
| contractors, or any other persons acting on behalf of the child | 3 |
| welfare agency, provided that such salaries and compensation | 4 |
| are consistent with subsection (a) of Section 14.5 of the Child | 5 |
| Care Act of 1969. | 6 |
| The provisions of this Act shall not
be construed to | 7 |
| prevent the payment by a prospective adoptive parent person | 8 |
| with whom a
child has been placed for adoption of reasonable | 9 |
| and actual medical fees or hospital
charges for services | 10 |
| rendered in connection with the birth of such child,
if such | 11 |
| payment is made to the physician or hospital who or which | 12 |
| rendered
the services or to the biological mother of the child | 13 |
| or to prevent the
receipt of such payment by such physician, | 14 |
| hospital, or mother. | 15 |
| The provisions of this Act shall not be construed to | 16 |
| prevent a prospective adoptive parent from giving a gift or | 17 |
| gifts or other thing or things of value to a biological parent | 18 |
| provided that the total value of such gift or gifts or thing or | 19 |
| things of value does not exceed $200.
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| Notwithstanding any other rulemaking authority that may | 21 |
| exist, neither the Governor nor any agency or agency head under | 22 |
| the jurisdiction of the Governor has any authority to make or | 23 |
| promulgate rules to implement or enforce the provisions of this | 24 |
| amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly. If, however, the | 25 |
| Governor believes that rules are necessary to implement or | 26 |
| enforce the provisions of this amendatory Act of the 95th |
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| General Assembly, the Governor may suggest rules to the General | 2 |
| Assembly by filing them with the Clerk of the House and the | 3 |
| Secretary of the Senate and by requesting that the General | 4 |
| Assembly authorize such rulemaking by law, enact those | 5 |
| suggested rules into law, or take any other appropriate action | 6 |
| in the General Assembly's discretion. Nothing contained in this | 7 |
| amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly shall be | 8 |
| interpreted to grant rulemaking authority under any other | 9 |
| Illinois statute where such authority is not otherwise | 10 |
| explicitly given. For the purposes of this Section, "rules" is | 11 |
| given the meaning contained in Section 1-70 of the Illinois | 12 |
| Administrative Procedure Act, and "agency" and "agency head" | 13 |
| are given the meanings contained in Sections 1-20 and 1-25 of | 14 |
| the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act to the extent that | 15 |
| such definitions apply to agencies or agency heads under the | 16 |
| jurisdiction of the Governor. | 17 |
| (Source: P.A. 94-586, eff. 8-15-05.)
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| (720 ILCS 525/4.1) (from Ch. 40, par. 1704.1)
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| Sec. 4.1. Payment of certain expenses.
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| (a) A prospective adoptive parent person or persons who | 21 |
| have filed or intend to file a petition to
adopt a child under | 22 |
| the Adoption Act shall be permitted to pay the
reasonable | 23 |
| living expenses of the biological parents of the child sought | 24 |
| to
be adopted, in addition to those expenses set forth in | 25 |
| Section 4, only in
accordance with the provisions of this |
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| Section.
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| "Reasonable living expenses" means those expenses related | 3 |
| to activities of daily living and meeting basic needs, | 4 |
| including, but not limited to, lodging, food,
and clothing for | 5 |
| the biological parents during the biological
mother's | 6 |
| pregnancy and for no more than 120 days prior to the biological | 7 |
| mother's expected date of delivery and for no more than 60 days | 8 |
| after the birth of the
child. The term does not include | 9 |
| expenses for lost wages, gifts,
educational expenses, or other | 10 |
| similar expenses of the biological parents.
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| (b) (1) The prospective adoptive parents petitioners may | 12 |
| seek leave of the court to pay the reasonable
living expenses | 13 |
| of the biological parents. They shall be permitted to pay
the | 14 |
| reasonable living expenses of the biological parents only upon | 15 |
| prior
order of the circuit court where the petition for | 16 |
| adoption will be filed,
or if the petition for adoption has | 17 |
| been filed in the circuit court where
the petition is pending. | 18 |
| (2) Notwithstanding clause (b)(1) of this Section, a | 19 |
| prospective adoptive parent may advance a maximum of $1,000 for | 20 |
| reasonable birth parent living expenses without prior order of | 21 |
| court. The prospective adoptive parents shall present a final | 22 |
| accounting of all expenses to the court prior to the entry of a | 23 |
| final judgment order for adoption. | 24 |
| (3) If the court finds an accounting by the prospective | 25 |
| adoptive parents to be incomplete or deceptive or to contain | 26 |
| amounts which are unauthorized or unreasonable, the court may |
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| order a new accounting or the repayment of amounts found to be | 2 |
| excessive or unauthorized or make any other orders it deems | 3 |
| appropriate.
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| (c) Payments under this Section shall be permitted only in | 5 |
| those
circumstances where there is a demonstrated need for the | 6 |
| payment of such
expenses to protect the health of the | 7 |
| biological parents or the health of
the child sought to be | 8 |
| adopted.
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| (d) Payment of their reasonable living expenses, as | 10 |
| provided in this
Section, shall not obligate the biological | 11 |
| parents to place the child for
adoption. In the event the | 12 |
| biological parents choose not to place the
child for adoption, | 13 |
| the prospective adoptive parents petitioners shall have no | 14 |
| right to seek
reimbursement from the biological parents, or | 15 |
| from any relative or associate of the biological parents,
of | 16 |
| moneys paid to, or on behalf of, the biological parents | 17 |
| pursuant to a court
order under this Section. | 18 |
| (d-1) Notwithstanding subsection (d) of this Section, a | 19 |
| prospective adoptive parent may seek reimbursement of | 20 |
| reasonable living expenses from a person who receives such | 21 |
| payments only if the person who accepts payment of reasonable | 22 |
| living expenses before the child's birth, as described in | 23 |
| subsection (d) of this Section, knows that the person on whose | 24 |
| behalf he or she is accepting payment is not pregnant at the | 25 |
| time of the receipt of such payments or the person receives | 26 |
| reimbursement for reasonable living expenses simultaneously |
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| from more than one prospective adoptive parent without the | 2 |
| knowledge of the prospective adoptive parent.
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| (d-5) No person or entity shall offer, provide, or co-sign | 4 |
| a loan or any other credit accommodation, directly or | 5 |
| indirectly, with a biological parent or a relative or associate
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| of a biological parent based on the contingency of a surrender | 7 |
| or placement of a child for adoption.
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| (e) Within 14 days after the completion of all payments for | 9 |
| reasonable
living expenses of the biological parents under this | 10 |
| Section, the prospective adoptive parents petitioners
shall | 11 |
| present a final accounting of all those expenses to the court. | 12 |
| The
accounting shall include vouchers for all moneys expended, | 13 |
| copies of all checks
written, and receipts for all cash | 14 |
| payments. The accounting shall also include
the verified | 15 |
| statements of the prospective adoptive parents petitioners , | 16 |
| each attorney of record, and the
biological parents or parents | 17 |
| to whom or on whose behalf the payments were made
attesting to | 18 |
| the accuracy of the accounting.
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| (f) If the placement of a child for adoption is made in | 20 |
| accordance with the
Interstate Compact on the Placement of | 21 |
| Children, and if the sending state
permits the payment of any | 22 |
| expenses of biological parents that are not
permitted under | 23 |
| this Act, then the payment of those expenses shall not be a
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| violation of this Act. In that event, the prospective adoptive | 25 |
| parents petitioners shall file an accounting
of all payments of | 26 |
| the expenses of the biological parent or
parents with the court |
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| in which the petition for adoption is filed or is to be
filed. | 2 |
| The accounting shall include a copy of the statutory provisions | 3 |
| of the
sending state that permit payments in addition to those | 4 |
| permitted by this Act
and a copy of all orders entered in the | 5 |
| sending state that relate to expenses
of the biological parents | 6 |
| paid by the prospective adoptive parents petitioners in the | 7 |
| sending state.
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| (g) The prospective adoptive parents petitioners shall be | 9 |
| permitted to pay the reasonable attorney's fees
of a the | 10 |
| biological parent's parents' attorney in connection with | 11 |
| proceedings under this
Act or in connection with proceedings | 12 |
| for the adoption of the child if the amount of fees of the | 13 |
| attorney is $1,000 or less. If the amount of attorney's fees of | 14 |
| each biological parent exceeds $1,000, the . The attorney's | 15 |
| fees shall be paid only after a petition seeking leave to pay | 16 |
| those
fees is filed with the court in which the adoption | 17 |
| proceeding is filed or to be
filed. The court shall review the | 18 |
| petition for leave to pay attorney's fees,
and if the court | 19 |
| determines that the fees requested are reasonable, the court
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| shall permit
the petitioners to pay them. If the court | 21 |
| determines that the fees requested
are not
reasonable, the | 22 |
| court shall determine and set the reasonable attorney's fees of
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| the biological parents' attorney which may be paid by the | 24 |
| petitioners. The prospective adoptive parents shall present a | 25 |
| final accounting of all those fees to the court prior to the | 26 |
| entry of a final judgment order for adoption.
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| (h) The court may appoint a guardian ad litem for an unborn | 2 |
| child to
represent the interests of the child in proceedings | 3 |
| under this Section.
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| (i) The provisions of this Section apply to a person who is | 5 |
| a prospective adoptive parent has filed or intends to file a | 6 |
| petition to adopt a child under the Adoption Act . This Section | 7 |
| does not apply to a licensed child welfare agency, as that term | 8 |
| is defined in the Child Care Act of 1969, whose payments are | 9 |
| governed by the Child Care Act of 1969 and the Department rules | 10 |
| adopted thereunder.
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| (j) Notwithstanding any other rulemaking authority that | 12 |
| may exist, neither the Governor nor any agency or agency head | 13 |
| under the jurisdiction of the Governor has any authority to | 14 |
| make or promulgate rules to implement or enforce the provisions | 15 |
| of this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly. If, | 16 |
| however, the Governor believes that rules are necessary to | 17 |
| implement or enforce the provisions of this amendatory Act of | 18 |
| the 95th General Assembly, the Governor may suggest rules to | 19 |
| the General Assembly by filing them with the Clerk of the House | 20 |
| and the Secretary of the Senate and by requesting that the | 21 |
| General Assembly authorize such rulemaking by law, enact those | 22 |
| suggested rules into law, or take any other appropriate action | 23 |
| in the General Assembly's discretion. Nothing contained in this | 24 |
| amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly shall be | 25 |
| interpreted to grant rulemaking authority under any other | 26 |
| Illinois statute where such authority is not otherwise |
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HB4571 Engrossed |
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LRB095 14727 RLC 40652 b |
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| explicitly given. For the purposes of this Section, "rules" is | 2 |
| given the meaning contained in Section 1-70 of the Illinois | 3 |
| Administrative Procedure Act, and "agency" and "agency head" | 4 |
| are given the meanings contained in Sections 1-20 and 1-25 of | 5 |
| the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act to the extent that | 6 |
| such definitions apply to agencies or agency heads under the | 7 |
| jurisdiction of the Governor. | 8 |
| (Source: P.A. 93-1063, eff. 6-1-05; 94-586, eff. 8-15-05.)
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| Section 10. The Adoption Act is amended by changing Section | 10 |
| 18.3a as follows:
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| (750 ILCS 50/18.3a) (from Ch. 40, par. 1522.3a)
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| Sec. 18.3a. Confidential intermediary.
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| (a) General purposes.
Notwithstanding any other provision | 14 |
| of
this Act, any
adopted or surrendered person 21 years of age | 15 |
| or over, any adoptive parent or legal guardian
of
an adopted or | 16 |
| surrendered person under the age of 21, or any birth parent of | 17 |
| an adopted
or surrendered person who is 21 years of age or over | 18 |
| may petition the court in any county in
the
State of Illinois | 19 |
| for appointment of a confidential intermediary as provided in
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| this Section for the purpose of exchanging medical information | 21 |
| with one or
more mutually consenting biological relatives, | 22 |
| obtaining identifying
information about one or more mutually | 23 |
| consenting biological relatives, or
arranging contact with one | 24 |
| or more mutually consenting biological relatives.
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| Additionally, in cases where an adopted or surrendered person | 2 |
| is deceased,
an adult child of the adopted
or surrendered | 3 |
| person or his or her adoptive parents or surviving spouse may | 4 |
| file a petition under this Section and in cases
where the birth | 5 |
| parent is deceased,
an adult birth sibling of the adopted or | 6 |
| surrendered person or of the deceased birth parent
may
file a | 7 |
| petition under this Section for the purpose of exchanging | 8 |
| medical
information with one or more mutually consenting | 9 |
| biological relatives of the adopted or surrendered person,
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| obtaining identifying information about one or more mutually | 11 |
| consenting
biological relatives of the adopted or surrendered | 12 |
| person, or arranging contact with one or more mutually
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| consenting biological relatives of the adopted or surrendered | 14 |
| person. Beginning January 1, 2006, any adopted or surrendered | 15 |
| person 21 years of age or over; any adoptive parent or legal | 16 |
| guardian of an adopted or surrendered person under the age of | 17 |
| 21; any birth parent, birth sibling, birth aunt, or birth uncle | 18 |
| of an adopted or surrendered person over the age of 21; any | 19 |
| surviving child, adoptive parent, or surviving spouse of a | 20 |
| deceased adopted or surrendered person who wishes to petition | 21 |
| the court for the appointment of a confidential intermediary | 22 |
| shall be required to accompany their petition with proof of | 23 |
| registration with the Illinois Adoption Registry and Medical | 24 |
| Information Exchange.
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| (b) Petition. Upon petition by an adopted or surrendered
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| person 21 years of age or over, an
adoptive parent or legal |
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| guardian of an adopted or surrendered person under the age of | 2 |
| 21,
or a birth parent of an adopted or surrendered person who | 3 |
| is 21 years of age or over, the
court
shall appoint a | 4 |
| confidential intermediary. Upon petition by
an adult child, | 5 |
| adoptive parent or surviving spouse of an adopted or | 6 |
| surrendered person who is deceased, by an adult birth sibling | 7 |
| of an adopted or surrendered person
whose common birth parent | 8 |
| is deceased
and whose adopted or surrendered birth sibling is | 9 |
| 21 years of age or over, or by an adult sibling of a birth | 10 |
| parent who is deceased,
and whose surrendered child is 21 years | 11 |
| of age or over, the court may appoint a confidential
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| intermediary if the court finds that the disclosure is of | 13 |
| greater benefit than
nondisclosure.
The petition shall state | 14 |
| which biological relative
or
relatives are being sought and | 15 |
| shall indicate if the petitioner wants to do any
one or more of | 16 |
| the following: exchange medical information with the
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| biological relative or relatives, obtain identifying | 18 |
| information from the
biological relative or relatives, or to | 19 |
| arrange contact with the biological
relative.
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| (c) Order. The order appointing the confidential | 21 |
| intermediary shall allow
that
intermediary to conduct a search | 22 |
| for the sought-after relative by accessing
those records | 23 |
| described in subsection (g) of this Section.
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| (d) Fees and expenses. The court shall condition the | 25 |
| appointment of the
confidential intermediary on the | 26 |
| petitioner's payment of the intermediary's
fees and expenses in |
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LRB095 14727 RLC 40652 b |
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| advance of the commencement of the work of the
confidential | 2 |
| intermediary.
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| (e) Eligibility of intermediary. The court may appoint as | 4 |
| confidential
intermediary any
person certified by the | 5 |
| Department of Children and Family Services as qualified to | 6 |
| serve as a confidential
intermediary.
Certification shall be | 7 |
| dependent upon the
confidential intermediary completing a | 8 |
| course of training including, but not
limited to, applicable | 9 |
| federal and State privacy laws.
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| (f) Confidential Intermediary Council. There shall be | 11 |
| established under the
Department of Children and Family
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| Services a Confidential Intermediary Advisory Council. One | 13 |
| member shall be an
attorney representing the Attorney General's | 14 |
| Office appointed by the Attorney
General. One member shall be a | 15 |
| currently certified confidential intermediary
appointed by the | 16 |
| Director of the Department of Children and Family Services.
The | 17 |
| Director shall also appoint 5 additional members. When making | 18 |
| those
appointments, the Director shall consider advocates for | 19 |
| adopted persons,
adoptive parents, birth parents, lawyers who | 20 |
| represent clients in private
adoptions, lawyers specializing | 21 |
| in privacy law, and representatives of agencies
involved in | 22 |
| adoptions. The Director shall appoint one of the 7 members as
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| the chairperson. An attorney from the Department of Children | 24 |
| and Family
Services
and the person directly responsible for | 25 |
| administering the confidential
intermediary program shall | 26 |
| serve as ex-officio, non-voting advisors to the
Council. |
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| Council members shall serve at the discretion of the Director | 2 |
| and
shall receive no compensation other than reasonable | 3 |
| expenses approved by the
Director. The Council shall meet no | 4 |
| less than twice yearly, and shall make
recommendations to the | 5 |
| Director regarding the development of rules, procedures,
and | 6 |
| forms that will ensure efficient and effective operation of the
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| confidential intermediary process, including:
| 8 |
| (1) Standards for certification for confidential | 9 |
| intermediaries.
| 10 |
| (2) Oversight of methods used to verify that | 11 |
| intermediaries are complying
with the appropriate laws.
| 12 |
| (3) Training for confidential intermediaries, | 13 |
| including training with
respect to federal and State | 14 |
| privacy laws.
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| (4) The relationship between confidential | 16 |
| intermediaries and the court
system, including the | 17 |
| development of sample orders defining the scope of the
| 18 |
| intermediaries' access to information.
| 19 |
| (5) Any recent violations of policy or procedures by | 20 |
| confidential
intermediaries and remedial steps, including | 21 |
| decertification, to prevent future
violations.
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| (g) Access. Subject to the limitations of subsection (i) | 23 |
| of this
Section, the
confidential
intermediary shall have | 24 |
| access to vital records maintained by the Department of
Public | 25 |
| Health and its local designees for the maintenance of vital | 26 |
| records or a comparable public entity that maintains vital |
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| records in another state in accordance with that state's laws | 2 |
| and
all records of the court or any adoption agency,
public
or | 3 |
| private, as limited in this Section, which relate to the | 4 |
| adoption or the identity and location of an
adopted or | 5 |
| surrendered person, of an adult child or surviving spouse of a | 6 |
| deceased adopted or surrendered person, or of a birth
parent, | 7 |
| birth sibling, or the sibling of a deceased birth parent. The
| 8 |
| confidential intermediary shall not have access to any personal | 9 |
| health
information protected by the Standards for Privacy of | 10 |
| Individually
Identifiable Health Information adopted by the | 11 |
| U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services under the Health | 12 |
| Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of
1996 unless the | 13 |
| confidential intermediary has obtained written consent from | 14 |
| the
person whose information is being sought or, if that person | 15 |
| is a minor child,
that person's parent or guardian. | 16 |
| Confidential
intermediaries shall be authorized to inspect | 17 |
| confidential relinquishment and
adoption records. The | 18 |
| confidential intermediary shall not be authorized to
access | 19 |
| medical
records, financial records, credit records, banking | 20 |
| records, home studies,
attorney file records, or other personal | 21 |
| records.
In cases where a birth parent is being sought, an | 22 |
| adoption agency shall inform
the confidential intermediary of | 23 |
| any statement filed pursuant to Section 18.3, hereinafter | 24 |
| referred to as "the 18.3 statement",
indicating a desire of the | 25 |
| surrendering birth parent to have identifying
information | 26 |
| shared or to not have identifying information shared. If there |
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| was
a clear statement of intent by the sought-after birth | 2 |
| parent not to have
identifying information shared, the | 3 |
| confidential intermediary shall discontinue
the search and | 4 |
| inform the petitioning party of the sought-after relative's
| 5 |
| intent. Information
provided to the confidential intermediary | 6 |
| by an adoption agency shall be
restricted to the full name, | 7 |
| date of birth, place of birth, last known address,
last known | 8 |
| telephone number of the sought-after relative or, if | 9 |
| applicable,
of the children or siblings of the sought-after | 10 |
| relative, and the 18.3 statement.
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| (h) Adoption agency disclosure of medical information. If | 12 |
| the petitioner is
an adult adopted or surrendered person or the | 13 |
| adoptive parent of a
minor and if the petitioner has signed a | 14 |
| written authorization to disclose
personal medical | 15 |
| information, an adoption agency disclosing information to a
| 16 |
| confidential intermediary shall disclose available medical | 17 |
| information about
the adopted or surrendered person from birth | 18 |
| through adoption.
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| (i) Duties of confidential intermediary in conducting a | 20 |
| search. In
conducting
a search under this Section, the | 21 |
| confidential intermediary shall first confirm
that there is no | 22 |
| Denial of Information Exchange on file with the Illinois
| 23 |
| Adoption Registry. If the petitioner is an adult child of an | 24 |
| adopted or surrendered person
who is deceased, the
confidential | 25 |
| intermediary shall additionally confirm that the adopted or | 26 |
| surrendered person
did not file a Denial of Information |
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LRB095 14727 RLC 40652 b |
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| Exchange with the Illinois Adoption
Registry during his or her | 2 |
| life. If the petitioner is an adult birth sibling of
an
adopted
| 3 |
| or surrendered person or an adult sibling of a birth parent who | 4 |
| is deceased,
the confidential intermediary shall
additionally | 5 |
| confirm that the birth parent did not file a Denial of | 6 |
| Information
Exchange with the Registry during his or her life. | 7 |
| If the confidential
intermediary learns that a sought-after | 8 |
| birth parent signed a statement
indicating his or her intent | 9 |
| not to have identifying information shared, and
did not later | 10 |
| file an Information Exchange Authorization with the Adoption
| 11 |
| Registry, the confidential intermediary shall discontinue the | 12 |
| search and inform
the petitioning party of the birth parent's | 13 |
| intent.
| 14 |
| In conducting a search under this Section, the confidential | 15 |
| intermediary
shall attempt to locate the relative or relatives | 16 |
| from whom the petitioner has
requested information. If the | 17 |
| sought-after relative is deceased
or cannot be located after a | 18 |
| diligent search, the
confidential intermediary may contact | 19 |
| other adult relatives of the
sought-after relative.
| 20 |
| The confidential intermediary shall contact a sought-after | 21 |
| relative on
behalf of the petitioner in a manner that respects | 22 |
| the sought-after relative's
privacy and shall inform the | 23 |
| sought-after relative of the petitioner's request
for medical | 24 |
| information, identifying information or contact as stated in | 25 |
| the
petition. Based upon the terms of the petitioner's request, | 26 |
| the confidential
intermediary shall contact a sought-after |
|
|
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LRB095 14727 RLC 40652 b |
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| relative on behalf of the petitioner
and inform the | 2 |
| sought-after relative of the following options:
| 3 |
| (1) The sought-after relative may totally reject one or | 4 |
| all of the
requests for medical information, identifying | 5 |
| information or
contact. The sought-after relative shall be | 6 |
| informed that they can
provide a medical questionnaire to | 7 |
| be forwarded to the petitioner
without releasing any | 8 |
| identifying information. The confidential
intermediary | 9 |
| shall inform the petitioner of the sought-after
relative's | 10 |
| decision to reject the sharing of information or contact.
| 11 |
| (2) The sought-after relative may consent to | 12 |
| completing a medical
questionnaire only. In this case, the | 13 |
| confidential intermediary
shall provide the questionnaire | 14 |
| and ask the sought-after relative to
complete it. The | 15 |
| confidential intermediary shall forward the
completed | 16 |
| questionnaire to the petitioner and inform the petitioner
| 17 |
| of the sought-after relative's desire to not provide any | 18 |
| additional
information.
| 19 |
| (3) The sought-after relative may communicate with the | 20 |
| petitioner
without having his or her identity disclosed. In | 21 |
| this case, the
confidential intermediary shall arrange the | 22 |
| desired communication
in a manner that protects the | 23 |
| identity of the sought-after relative.
The confidential | 24 |
| intermediary shall inform the petitioner of the
| 25 |
| sought-after relative's decision to communicate but not | 26 |
| disclose
his or her identity.
|
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| (4) The sought after relative may consent to initiate | 2 |
| contact with the
petitioner. If both the petitioner and the | 3 |
| sought-after relative or
relatives are eligible to | 4 |
| register with the Illinois Adoption Registry,
the | 5 |
| confidential intermediary shall provide the necessary
| 6 |
| application forms and request that the sought-after | 7 |
| relative
register with the Illinois Adoption Registry. If | 8 |
| either the petitioner
or the sought-after relative or | 9 |
| relatives are ineligible to register
with the Illinois | 10 |
| Adoption Registry, the confidential intermediary
shall | 11 |
| obtain written consents from both parties that they wish to
| 12 |
| disclose their identities to each other and to have contact | 13 |
| with
each other.
| 14 |
| (j) Oath. The confidential intermediary shall sign an oath | 15 |
| of
confidentiality substantially as follows: "I, .........., | 16 |
| being duly sworn, on
oath depose and say: As a condition of | 17 |
| appointment as a confidential
intermediary, I affirm that:
| 18 |
| (1) I will not disclose to the petitioner,
directly or | 19 |
| indirectly, any confidential information
except in a | 20 |
| manner consistent with the
law.
| 21 |
| (2) I recognize that violation of this oath subjects me | 22 |
| to civil liability
and to a potential finding of contempt | 23 |
| of court.
................................
| 24 |
| SUBSCRIBED AND SWORN to before me, a Notary Public, on (insert
| 25 |
| date)
| 26 |
| ................................."
|
|
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| (k) Sanctions.
| 2 |
| (1) Any confidential intermediary who improperly | 3 |
| discloses
confidential information identifying a | 4 |
| sought-after relative shall be liable to
the sought-after | 5 |
| relative for damages and may also be found in contempt of
| 6 |
| court.
| 7 |
| (2) Any person who learns a sought-after
relative's | 8 |
| identity, directly or indirectly, through the use of | 9 |
| procedures
provided in this Section and who improperly | 10 |
| discloses information identifying
the sought-after | 11 |
| relative shall be liable to the sought-after relative for
| 12 |
| actual damages plus minimum punitive damages of $10,000.
| 13 |
| (3) The Department shall fine any confidential | 14 |
| intermediary who improperly
discloses
confidential | 15 |
| information in violation of item (1) or (2) of this | 16 |
| subsection (k)
an amount up to $2,000 per improper | 17 |
| disclosure. This fine does not affect
civil liability under | 18 |
| item (2) of this subsection (k). The Department shall
| 19 |
| deposit all fines and penalties collected under this | 20 |
| Section into the Illinois
Adoption Registry and Medical | 21 |
| Information Fund.
| 22 |
| (l) Death of person being sought. Notwithstanding any other | 23 |
| provision
of this Act, if the confidential intermediary | 24 |
| discovers that the person
being sought has died, he or she | 25 |
| shall report this fact to the court,
along with a copy of the | 26 |
| death certificate.
|
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| 1 |
| (m) Any confidential information obtained by the | 2 |
| confidential intermediary
during the course of his or her | 3 |
| search shall be kept strictly confidential
and shall be used | 4 |
| for the purpose of arranging contact between the
petitioner and | 5 |
| the sought-after birth relative. At the time the case is
| 6 |
| closed, all identifying information shall be returned to the | 7 |
| court for
inclusion in the impounded adoption file.
| 8 |
| (n) If the petitioner is an adopted or surrendered person | 9 |
| 21 years of age or over or the
adoptive parent or legal | 10 |
| guardian of an adopted or surrendered person under the age
of | 11 |
| 21, any
non-identifying information, as defined in Section | 12 |
| 18.4, that is
ascertained during the course of the search may | 13 |
| be given in writing to
the petitioner at any time during the | 14 |
| search before the case is closed.
| 15 |
| (o) Except as provided in subsection (k) of this Section, | 16 |
| no liability shall
accrue to
the State, any State agency, any | 17 |
| judge, any officer or employee of the
court, any certified | 18 |
| confidential intermediary, or any agency designated
to oversee | 19 |
| confidential intermediary services for acts, omissions, or
| 20 |
| efforts made in good faith within the scope of this Section.
| 21 |
| (p) An adoption agency that has received a request from a | 22 |
| confidential intermediary for the full name, date of birth, | 23 |
| last known address, or last known telephone number of a | 24 |
| sought-after relative pursuant to subsection (g) of Section | 25 |
| 18.3, or for medical information regarding a sought-after | 26 |
| relative pursuant to subsection (h) of Section 18.3, must |
|
|
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| 1 |
| satisfactorily comply with this court order within a period of | 2 |
| 45 days. The court shall order the adoption agency to reimburse | 3 |
| the petitioner in an amount equal to all payments made by the | 4 |
| petitioner to the confidential intermediary, and the adoption | 5 |
| agency shall be subject to a civil monetary penalty of $1,000 | 6 |
| to be paid to the Department of Children and Family Services. | 7 |
| Following the issuance of a court order finding that the | 8 |
| adoption agency has not complied with Section 18.3, the | 9 |
| adoption agency shall be subject to a monetary penalty of $500 | 10 |
| per day for each subsequent day of non-compliance. Proceeds | 11 |
| from such fines shall be utilized by the Department of Children | 12 |
| and Family Services to subsidize the fees of petitioners as | 13 |
| referenced in subsection (d) of this Section. | 14 |
| (q) Provide information to eligible petitioner. The | 15 |
| confidential intermediary may provide to eligible petitioners | 16 |
| as described in subsections (a) and (b) of this Section, the | 17 |
| name of the child welfare agency which had legal custody of the | 18 |
| surrendered person or responsibility for placing the | 19 |
| surrendered person and any available contact information for | 20 |
| such agency. In addition, the confidential intermediary may | 21 |
| provide to such petitioners the name of the state in which the | 22 |
| surrender occurred or in which the adoption was finalized. | 23 |
| Any reimbursements and fines, notwithstanding any | 24 |
| reimbursement directly to the petitioner, paid under this | 25 |
| subsection are in addition to other remedies a court may | 26 |
| otherwise impose by law. |
|
|
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LRB095 14727 RLC 40652 b |
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| 1 |
| Proceeds from the penalties paid to the Department of | 2 |
| Children and Family Services shall be deposited into the DCFS | 3 |
| Children's Services Fund. The Department of Children and Family | 4 |
| Services shall submit reports to the Confidential Intermediary | 5 |
| Advisory Council by July 1 and January 1 of each year in order | 6 |
| to report the penalties assessed and collected under this | 7 |
| subsection, the amounts of related deposits into the DCFS | 8 |
| Children's Services Fund, and any expenditures from such | 9 |
| deposits.
| 10 |
| (r) Notwithstanding any other rulemaking authority that | 11 |
| may exist, neither the Governor nor any agency or agency head | 12 |
| under the jurisdiction of the Governor has any authority to | 13 |
| make or promulgate rules to implement or enforce the provisions | 14 |
| of this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly. If, | 15 |
| however, the Governor believes that rules are necessary to | 16 |
| implement or enforce the provisions of this amendatory Act of | 17 |
| the 95th General Assembly, the Governor may suggest rules to | 18 |
| the General Assembly by filing them with the Clerk of the House | 19 |
| and the Secretary of the Senate and by requesting that the | 20 |
| General Assembly authorize such rulemaking by law, enact those | 21 |
| suggested rules into law, or take any other appropriate action | 22 |
| in the General Assembly's discretion. Nothing contained in this | 23 |
| amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly shall be | 24 |
| interpreted to grant rulemaking authority under any other | 25 |
| Illinois statute where such authority is not otherwise | 26 |
| explicitly given. For the purposes of this Section, "rules" is |
|
|
|
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LRB095 14727 RLC 40652 b |
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| 1 |
| given the meaning contained in Section 1-70 of the Illinois | 2 |
| Administrative Procedure Act, and "agency" and "agency head" | 3 |
| are given the meanings contained in Sections 1-20 and 1-25 of | 4 |
| the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act to the extent that | 5 |
| such definitions apply to agencies or agency heads under the | 6 |
| jurisdiction of the Governor. | 7 |
| (Source: P.A. 93-189, eff. 1-1-04; 94-173, eff. 1-1-06; | 8 |
| 94-1010, eff. 10-1-06.)
| 9 |
| Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 10 |
| becoming law.
|
|