IL
Illinois Senate Bill SB2977

Illinois 2023-2024 Regular Session

Illinois Senate Bill SB2977 Compare Versions

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11 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB2977 Introduced 1/31/2024, by Sen. Sara Feigenholtz SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: 750 ILCS 50/18.3a from Ch. 40, par. 1522.3a Amends the Adoption Act. Allows any person 21 years of age or over who was relinquished under the Abandoned Newborn Infant Protection Act or who had a birth certificate issued under specified provisions of the Vital Records Act to petition for the appointment of a confidential intermediary. Requires the confidential intermediary to provide such a petitioner with a DNA test kit upon request with no fee. Allows a petitioner to use the remedy in the Adoption Act for a missing or lost original birth certificate to be used for missing or lost birth certificate issued under specified provisions of the Vital Records Act. LRB103 38259 JRC 68394 b A BILL FOR 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB2977 Introduced 1/31/2024, by Sen. Sara Feigenholtz SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: 750 ILCS 50/18.3a from Ch. 40, par. 1522.3a 750 ILCS 50/18.3a from Ch. 40, par. 1522.3a Amends the Adoption Act. Allows any person 21 years of age or over who was relinquished under the Abandoned Newborn Infant Protection Act or who had a birth certificate issued under specified provisions of the Vital Records Act to petition for the appointment of a confidential intermediary. Requires the confidential intermediary to provide such a petitioner with a DNA test kit upon request with no fee. Allows a petitioner to use the remedy in the Adoption Act for a missing or lost original birth certificate to be used for missing or lost birth certificate issued under specified provisions of the Vital Records Act. LRB103 38259 JRC 68394 b LRB103 38259 JRC 68394 b A BILL FOR
22 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB2977 Introduced 1/31/2024, by Sen. Sara Feigenholtz SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
33 750 ILCS 50/18.3a from Ch. 40, par. 1522.3a 750 ILCS 50/18.3a from Ch. 40, par. 1522.3a
44 750 ILCS 50/18.3a from Ch. 40, par. 1522.3a
55 Amends the Adoption Act. Allows any person 21 years of age or over who was relinquished under the Abandoned Newborn Infant Protection Act or who had a birth certificate issued under specified provisions of the Vital Records Act to petition for the appointment of a confidential intermediary. Requires the confidential intermediary to provide such a petitioner with a DNA test kit upon request with no fee. Allows a petitioner to use the remedy in the Adoption Act for a missing or lost original birth certificate to be used for missing or lost birth certificate issued under specified provisions of the Vital Records Act.
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1111 1 AN ACT concerning civil law.
1212 2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
1313 3 represented in the General Assembly:
1414 4 Section 5. The Adoption Act is amended by changing Section
1515 5 18.3a as follows:
1616 6 (750 ILCS 50/18.3a) (from Ch. 40, par. 1522.3a)
1717 7 Sec. 18.3a. Confidential intermediary.
1818 8 (a) General purposes. Notwithstanding any other provision
1919 9 of this Act,
2020 10 (1) any adopted or surrendered person 21 years of age
2121 11 or over; or
2222 12 (2) any adoptive parent or legal guardian of an
2323 13 adopted or surrendered person under the age of 21; or
2424 14 (3) any birth parent of an adopted or surrendered
2525 15 person who is 21 years of age or over; or
2626 16 (4) any adult child or adult grandchild of a deceased
2727 17 adopted or surrendered person; or
2828 18 (5) any adoptive parent or surviving spouse of a
2929 19 deceased adopted or surrendered person; or
3030 20 (6) any adult birth sibling of the adult adopted or
3131 21 surrendered person unless the birth parent has checked
3232 22 Option E on the Birth Parent Preference Form or has filed a
3333 23 Denial of Information Exchange with the Registry and is
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3737 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB2977 Introduced 1/31/2024, by Sen. Sara Feigenholtz SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
3838 750 ILCS 50/18.3a from Ch. 40, par. 1522.3a 750 ILCS 50/18.3a from Ch. 40, par. 1522.3a
3939 750 ILCS 50/18.3a from Ch. 40, par. 1522.3a
4040 Amends the Adoption Act. Allows any person 21 years of age or over who was relinquished under the Abandoned Newborn Infant Protection Act or who had a birth certificate issued under specified provisions of the Vital Records Act to petition for the appointment of a confidential intermediary. Requires the confidential intermediary to provide such a petitioner with a DNA test kit upon request with no fee. Allows a petitioner to use the remedy in the Adoption Act for a missing or lost original birth certificate to be used for missing or lost birth certificate issued under specified provisions of the Vital Records Act.
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6868 1 not deceased; or
6969 2 (7) any adult adopted birth sibling of an adult
7070 3 adopted or surrendered person; or
7171 4 (8) any adult birth sibling of the birth parent if the
7272 5 birth parent is deceased; or
7373 6 (9) any birth grandparent; or
7474 7 (10) any person 21 years of age or over who was
7575 8 relinquished pursuant to the Abandoned Newborn Infant
7676 9 Protection Act or who had a birth certificate issued
7777 10 pursuant to Section 13 of the Vital Records Act.
7878 11 may petition the court in any county in the State of Illinois
7979 12 for appointment of a confidential intermediary as provided in
8080 13 this Section for the purpose of exchanging medical information
8181 14 with one or more mutually consenting biological relatives,
8282 15 obtaining identifying information about one or more mutually
8383 16 consenting biological relatives, or arranging contact with one
8484 17 or more mutually consenting biological relatives. The
8585 18 petitioner shall be required to accompany his or her petition
8686 19 with proof of registration with the Illinois Adoption Registry
8787 20 and Medical Information Exchange.
8888 21 (a-5) In addition, any former youth in care as defined in
8989 22 Section 4d of the Children and Family Services Act who was
9090 23 adopted or surrendered may petition the court in any county in
9191 24 the State for appointment of a confidential intermediary as
9292 25 provided in this Section for the purposes of obtaining
9393 26 identifying information or arranging contact with (i) siblings
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104104 1 or birth relatives if the former youth in care is between the
105105 2 ages of 18 and 21 or (ii) former foster parents or foster
106106 3 siblings if the former youth in care is over the age of 18. A
107107 4 petitioner under this subsection is not required to register
108108 5 with the Illinois Adoption Registry and Medical Information
109109 6 Exchange.
110110 7 (b) Petition. Upon petition, the court shall appoint a
111111 8 confidential intermediary. The petition shall indicate if the
112112 9 petitioner wants to do any one or more of the following as to
113113 10 the sought-after relative or relatives: exchange medical
114114 11 information with the biological relative or relatives, obtain
115115 12 identifying information from the biological relative or
116116 13 relatives, or to arrange contact with the biological relative.
117117 14 (c) Order. The order appointing the confidential
118118 15 intermediary shall allow that intermediary to conduct a search
119119 16 for the sought-after relative by accessing those records
120120 17 described in subsection (g) of this Section.
121121 18 (d) Fees and expenses. The court shall not condition the
122122 19 appointment of the confidential intermediary on the payment of
123123 20 the intermediary's fees and expenses in advance of the
124124 21 commencement of the work of the confidential intermediary. No
125125 22 fee shall be charged to any petitioner.
126126 23 (d-5) The confidential intermediary shall provide any
127127 24 petitioner under paragraph (a)(10) with a DNA test kit upon
128128 25 request with no fee.
129129 26 (e) Eligibility of intermediary. The court may appoint as
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140140 1 confidential intermediary any person certified by the
141141 2 Department of Children and Family Services as qualified to
142142 3 serve as a confidential intermediary. Certification shall be
143143 4 dependent upon the confidential intermediary completing a
144144 5 course of training including, but not limited to, applicable
145145 6 federal and State privacy laws.
146146 7 (f) (Blank).
147147 8 (g) Confidential intermediary access to information.
148148 9 Subject to the limitations of subsection (i) of this Section,
149149 10 the confidential intermediary shall have access to vital
150150 11 records maintained by the Department of Public Health and its
151151 12 local designees for the maintenance of vital records, or a
152152 13 comparable public entity that maintains vital records in
153153 14 another state in accordance with that state's laws, and all
154154 15 records of the court or any adoption agency, public or
155155 16 private, as limited in this Section, which relate to the
156156 17 adoption or the identity and location of an adopted or
157157 18 surrendered person, of an adult child or surviving spouse of a
158158 19 deceased adopted or surrendered person, or of a birth parent,
159159 20 birth sibling, or the sibling of a deceased birth parent. The
160160 21 confidential intermediary shall not have access to any
161161 22 personal health information protected by the Standards for
162162 23 Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information
163163 24 adopted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
164164 25 under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
165165 26 of 1996 unless the confidential intermediary has obtained
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176176 1 written consent from the person whose information is being
177177 2 sought by an adult adopted or surrendered person or, if that
178178 3 person is a minor child, that person's parent or guardian.
179179 4 Confidential intermediaries shall be authorized to inspect
180180 5 confidential relinquishment and adoption records. The
181181 6 confidential intermediary shall not be authorized to access
182182 7 medical records, financial records, credit records, banking
183183 8 records, home studies, attorney file records, or other
184184 9 personal records. In cases where a birth parent is being
185185 10 sought, an adoption agency shall inform the confidential
186186 11 intermediary of any statement filed pursuant to Section 18.3,
187187 12 hereinafter referred to as "the 18.3 statement", indicating a
188188 13 desire of the surrendering birth parent to have identifying
189189 14 information shared or to not have identifying information
190190 15 shared. Information provided to the confidential intermediary
191191 16 by an adoption agency shall be restricted to the full name,
192192 17 date of birth, place of birth, last known address, last known
193193 18 telephone number of the sought-after relative or, if
194194 19 applicable, of the children or siblings of the sought-after
195195 20 relative, and the 18.3 statement. If the petitioner is an
196196 21 adult adopted or surrendered person or the adoptive parent of
197197 22 a minor and if the petitioner has signed a written
198198 23 authorization to disclose personal medical information, an
199199 24 adoption agency disclosing information to a confidential
200200 25 intermediary shall disclose available medical information
201201 26 about the adopted or surrendered person from birth through
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212212 1 adoption.
213213 2 (h) Missing or lost original birth certificate or birth
214214 3 certificate issued under Section 13 of the Vital Records Act;
215215 4 remedy. Disclosure of information by the confidential
216216 5 intermediary shall be consistent with the public policy and
217217 6 intent of laws granting original birth certificate access as
218218 7 expressed in Section 18.04 of this Act. The confidential
219219 8 intermediary shall comply with the following procedures in
220220 9 disclosing information to the petitioners:
221221 10 (1) If the petitioner is an adult adopted or
222222 11 surrendered person, or the adult child, adult grandchild,
223223 12 or surviving spouse of a deceased adopted or surrendered
224224 13 person, the confidential intermediary shall disclose:
225225 14 (A) identifying information about the birth parent
226226 15 of the adopted person which, in the ordinary course of
227227 16 business, would have been reflected on the original
228228 17 filed certificate of birth, as of the date of birth,
229229 18 only if:
230230 19 (i) the adopted person was born before January
231231 20 1, 1946 and the petitioner has requested a
232232 21 non-certified copy of the adopted person's
233233 22 original birth certificate under Section 18.1 of
234234 23 this Act, and the Illinois Department of Public
235235 24 Health has issued a certification that the
236236 25 original birth certificate was not found, or the
237237 26 petitioner has presented the confidential
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248248 1 intermediary with the non-certified copy of the
249249 2 original birth certificate which omits the name of
250250 3 the birth parent;
251251 4 (ii) the adopted person was born after January
252252 5 1, 1946, and the petitioner has requested a
253253 6 non-certified copy of the adopted person's
254254 7 original birth certificate under Section 18.1 of
255255 8 this Act and the Illinois Department of Public
256256 9 Health has issued a certification that the
257257 10 original birth certificate was not found.
258258 11 In providing information pursuant to this
259259 12 subdivision (h)(1)(A), the confidential intermediary
260260 13 shall expressly inform the petitioner in writing that
261261 14 since the identifying information is not from an
262262 15 official original certificate of birth filed pursuant
263263 16 to the Vital Records Act, the confidential
264264 17 intermediary cannot attest to the complete accuracy of
265265 18 the information and the confidential intermediary
266266 19 shall not be liable if the information disclosed is
267267 20 not accurate. Only information from the court files
268268 21 shall be provided to the petitioner in this Section.
269269 22 If the identifying information concerning a birth
270270 23 father is sought by the petitioner, the confidential
271271 24 intermediary shall disclose only the identifying
272272 25 information of the birth father as defined in Section
273273 26 18.06 of this Act;
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284284 1 (B) the name of the child welfare agency which had
285285 2 legal custody of the surrendered person or
286286 3 responsibility for placing the surrendered person and
287287 4 any available contact information for such agency;
288288 5 (C) the name of the state in which the surrender
289289 6 occurred or in which the adoption was finalized; and
290290 7 (D) any information for which the sought-after
291291 8 relative has provided his or her consent to disclose
292292 9 under paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (i) of
293293 10 this Section.
294294 11 (2) If the petitioner is an adult adopted or
295295 12 surrendered person, or the adoptive parent of an adult
296296 13 adopted or surrendered person under the age of 21, or the
297297 14 adoptive parent of a deceased adopted or surrendered
298298 15 person, the confidential intermediary shall provide, in
299299 16 addition to the information listed in paragraph (1) of
300300 17 this subsection (h):
301301 18 (A) any information which the adoption agency
302302 19 provides pursuant to subsection (i) of this Section
303303 20 pertaining to medical information about the adopted or
304304 21 surrendered person; and
305305 22 (B) any non-identifying information, as defined in
306306 23 Section 18.4 of this Act, that is obtained during the
307307 24 search.
308308 25 (3) If the petitioner is not defined in paragraph (1)
309309 26 or (2) of this subsection, the confidential intermediary
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320320 1 shall provide to the petitioner:
321321 2 (A) any information for which the sought-after
322322 3 relative has provided his or her consent under
323323 4 paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (i) of this
324324 5 Section;
325325 6 (B) the name of the child welfare agency which had
326326 7 legal custody of the surrendered person or
327327 8 responsibility for placing the surrendered person and
328328 9 any available contact information for such agency; and
329329 10 (C) the name of the state in which the surrender
330330 11 occurred or in which the adoption was finalized.
331331 12 (h-5) Disclosure of information shall be made by the
332332 13 confidential intermediary at any time from the appointment of
333333 14 the confidential intermediary and the court's issuance of an
334334 15 order of dismissal.
335335 16 (i) Duties of confidential intermediary in conducting a
336336 17 search. In conducting a search under this Section, the
337337 18 confidential intermediary shall first determine whether there
338338 19 is a Denial of Information Exchange or a Birth Parent
339339 20 Preference Form with Option E selected or an 18.3 statement
340340 21 referenced in subsection (g) of this Section on file with the
341341 22 Illinois Adoption Registry. If there is a denial, the Birth
342342 23 Parent Preference Form on file with the Registry and the birth
343343 24 parent who completed the form selected Option E, or if there is
344344 25 an 18.3 statement indicating the birth parent's intent not to
345345 26 have identifying information shared and the birth parent did
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356356 1 not later file an Information Exchange Authorization with the
357357 2 Registry, the confidential intermediary must discontinue the
358358 3 search unless 5 years or more have elapsed since the execution
359359 4 of the Denial of Information Exchange, Birth Parent Preference
360360 5 Form, or the 18.3 statement. If a birth parent was previously
361361 6 the subject of a search through the State confidential
362362 7 intermediary program, the confidential intermediary shall
363363 8 inform the petitioner of the need to discontinue the search
364364 9 until 10 years or more have elapsed since the initial search
365365 10 was closed. In cases where a birth parent has been the object
366366 11 of 2 searches through the State confidential intermediary
367367 12 program, no subsequent search for the birth parent shall be
368368 13 authorized absent a court order to the contrary.
369369 14 In conducting a search under this Section, the
370370 15 confidential intermediary shall attempt to locate the relative
371371 16 or relatives from whom the petitioner has requested
372372 17 information. If the sought-after relative is deceased or
373373 18 cannot be located after a diligent search, the confidential
374374 19 intermediary may contact other adult relatives of the
375375 20 sought-after relative.
376376 21 The confidential intermediary shall contact a sought-after
377377 22 relative on behalf of the petitioner in a manner that respects
378378 23 the sought-after relative's privacy and shall inform the
379379 24 sought-after relative of the petitioner's request for medical
380380 25 information, identifying information or contact as stated in
381381 26 the petition. Based upon the terms of the petitioner's
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392392 1 request, the confidential intermediary shall contact a
393393 2 sought-after relative on behalf of the petitioner and inform
394394 3 the sought-after relative of the following options:
395395 4 (1) The sought-after relative may totally reject one
396396 5 or all of the requests for medical information,
397397 6 identifying information or contact. The sought-after
398398 7 relative shall be informed that they can provide a medical
399399 8 questionnaire to be forwarded to the petitioner without
400400 9 releasing any identifying information. The confidential
401401 10 intermediary shall inform the petitioner of the
402402 11 sought-after relative's decision to reject the sharing of
403403 12 information or contact.
404404 13 (2) The sought-after relative may consent to
405405 14 completing a medical questionnaire only. In this case, the
406406 15 confidential intermediary shall provide the questionnaire
407407 16 and ask the sought-after relative to complete it. The
408408 17 confidential intermediary shall forward the completed
409409 18 questionnaire to the petitioner and inform the petitioner
410410 19 of the sought-after relative's desire to not provide any
411411 20 additional information.
412412 21 (3) The sought-after relative may communicate with the
413413 22 petitioner without having his or her identity disclosed.
414414 23 In this case, the confidential intermediary shall arrange
415415 24 the desired communication in a manner that protects the
416416 25 identity of the sought-after relative. The confidential
417417 26 intermediary shall inform the petitioner of the
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428428 1 sought-after relative's decision to communicate but not
429429 2 disclose his or her identity.
430430 3 (4) The sought-after relative may consent to initiate
431431 4 contact with the petitioner. The confidential intermediary
432432 5 shall obtain written consents from both parties that they
433433 6 wish to disclose their identities to each other and to
434434 7 have contact with each other.
435435 8 (j) Oath. The confidential intermediary shall sign an oath
436436 9 of confidentiality substantially as follows: "I, ..........,
437437 10 being duly sworn, on oath depose and say: As a condition of
438438 11 appointment as a confidential intermediary, I affirm that:
439439 12 (1) I will not disclose to the petitioner, directly or
440440 13 indirectly, any confidential information except in a
441441 14 manner consistent with the law.
442442 15 (2) I recognize that violation of this oath subjects
443443 16 me to civil liability and to a potential finding of
444444 17 contempt of court. ................................
445445 18 SUBSCRIBED AND SWORN to before me, a Notary Public, on (insert
446446 19 date)
447447 20 ................................."
448448 21 (k) Sanctions.
449449 22 (1) Any confidential intermediary who improperly
450450 23 discloses confidential information identifying a
451451 24 sought-after relative shall be liable to the sought-after
452452 25 relative for damages and may also be found in contempt of
453453 26 court.
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464464 1 (2) Any person who learns a sought-after relative's
465465 2 identity, directly or indirectly, through the use of
466466 3 procedures provided in this Section and who improperly
467467 4 discloses information identifying the sought-after
468468 5 relative shall be liable to the sought-after relative for
469469 6 actual damages plus minimum punitive damages of $10,000.
470470 7 (3) The Department shall fine any confidential
471471 8 intermediary who improperly discloses confidential
472472 9 information in violation of item (1) or (2) of this
473473 10 subsection (k) an amount up to $2,000 per improper
474474 11 disclosure. This fine does not affect civil liability
475475 12 under item (2) of this subsection (k). The Department
476476 13 shall deposit all fines and penalties collected under this
477477 14 Section into the Illinois Adoption Registry and Medical
478478 15 Information Fund.
479479 16 (l) Death of person being sought. Notwithstanding any
480480 17 other provision of this Act, if the confidential intermediary
481481 18 discovers that the person being sought has died, he or she
482482 19 shall report this fact to the court, along with a copy of the
483483 20 death certificate. If the sought-after relative is a birth
484484 21 parent, the confidential intermediary shall also forward a
485485 22 copy of the birth parent's death certificate, if available, to
486486 23 the Registry for inclusion in the Registry file.
487487 24 (m) Any confidential information obtained by the
488488 25 confidential intermediary during the course of his or her
489489 26 search shall be kept strictly confidential and shall be used
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500500 1 for the purpose of arranging contact between the petitioner
501501 2 and the sought-after birth relative. At the time the case is
502502 3 closed, all identifying information shall be returned to the
503503 4 court for inclusion in the impounded adoption file.
504504 5 (n) (Blank).
505505 6 (o) Except as provided in subsection (k) of this Section,
506506 7 no liability shall accrue to the State, any State agency, any
507507 8 judge, any officer or employee of the court, any certified
508508 9 confidential intermediary, or any agency designated to oversee
509509 10 confidential intermediary services for acts, omissions, or
510510 11 efforts made in good faith within the scope of this Section.
511511 12 (p) An adoption agency that has received a request from a
512512 13 confidential intermediary for the full name, date of birth,
513513 14 last known address, or last known telephone number of a
514514 15 sought-after relative pursuant to subsection (g) of Section
515515 16 18.3a, or for medical information regarding a sought-after
516516 17 relative pursuant to subsection (h) of Section 18.3a, must
517517 18 satisfactorily comply with this court order within a period of
518518 19 45 days. The court shall order the adoption agency to
519519 20 reimburse the petitioner in an amount equal to all payments
520520 21 made by the petitioner to the confidential intermediary, and
521521 22 the adoption agency shall be subject to a civil monetary
522522 23 penalty of $1,000 to be paid to the Department of Children and
523523 24 Family Services. Following the issuance of a court order
524524 25 finding that the adoption agency has not complied with Section
525525 26 18.3, the adoption agency shall be subject to a monetary
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532532
533533
534534 SB2977- 15 -LRB103 38259 JRC 68394 b SB2977 - 15 - LRB103 38259 JRC 68394 b
535535 SB2977 - 15 - LRB103 38259 JRC 68394 b
536536
537537
538538
539539
540540
541541 SB2977 - 15 - LRB103 38259 JRC 68394 b