Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB547 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R3180 LED-D
2	2	By: Deshotel H.B. No. 547
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to birth records of adopted persons; authorizing a fee.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Section 192.008, Health and Safety Code, is
10	10	amended by amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsections (g) and
11	11	(h) to read as follows:
12	12	(d) Except as provided by Subsections (e), [and] (f), and
13	13	(g), only the court that granted the adoption may order access to an
14	14	original birth certificate and the filed documents on which a
15	15	supplementary certificate is based.
16	16	(g) The state registrar shall on written request provide to
17	17	a person who was adopted or, if the adopted person is deceased, an
18	18	adult descendant, adult sibling, surviving spouse, or adoptive
19	19	parent of the adopted person, a noncertified copy of the person's
20	20	original birth certificate if:
21	21	(1) the adopted person was born in this state;
22	22	(2) the request is made on or after the adopted
23	23	person's 18th birthday;
24	24	(3) a supplementary birth certificate was issued for
25	25	the adopted person; and
26	26	(4) the person requesting the certificate furnishes,
27	27	in person or by mail, appropriate proof of the person's identity.
28	28	(h) For a noncertified birth certificate provided under
29	29	Subsection (g), the state registrar shall collect a fee in an amount
30	30	equal to the fee charged for issuance of any other noncertified
31	31	birth certificate and issue the certificate within the time
32	32	prescribed for issuance of other noncertified birth certificates.
33	33	SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 192, Health and Safety
34	34	Code, is amended by adding Section 192.0085 to read as follows:
35	35	Sec. 192.0085. CONTACT PREFERENCE FORM AND SUPPLEMENTAL
36	36	MEDICAL HISTORY FORM. (a) The state registrar shall develop a
37	37	contact preference form for a birth parent to provide the birth
38	38	parent's preference regarding contact by an adopted person who is
39	39	the biological offspring of the birth parent. Each birth parent
40	40	shall complete a contact preference form for each child born to the
41	41	parent and select on the form one of the following options:
42	42	(1) the birth parent wishes to be directly contacted
43	43	by the adopted person;
44	44	(2) the birth parent wishes to be contacted by the
45	45	adopted person only through an intermediary selected and identified
46	46	by the birth parent; or
47	47	(3) the birth parent does not wish to be contacted by
48	48	the adopted person.
49	49	(b) The state registrar shall:
50	50	(1) include on the contact preference form a space for
51	51	a birth parent who wishes to be contacted through an intermediary to
52	52	identify a person to serve as the intermediary and provide that
53	53	person's contact information; and
54	54	(2) ensure the intermediary information required
55	55	under Subdivision (1) is completed on the form if that option is
56	56	selected by the birth parent.
57	57	(c) The state registrar shall develop a supplemental
58	58	medical history form for a birth parent to provide medical
59	59	information in addition to the information included in the adopted
60	60	person's genetic history report provided under Section 162.005,
61	61	Family Code.
62	62	(d) The department shall make the contact preference form
63	63	and the supplemental medical history form available on the
64	64	department's Internet website and make copies of the forms
65	65	available in the state registrar's office.
66	66	(e) Instead of providing a contact preference form to a
67	67	person or other entity listed in Section 162.0061(a)(1)(B), Family
68	68	Code, a birth parent may directly file a contact preference form or
69	69	a supplemental medical history form with the state registrar.
70	70	(f) A birth parent who initially selects the option to be
71	71	directly contacted by the adopted person or contacted by the
72	72	adopted person through an intermediary by filing the contact
73	73	preference form with the state registrar may not change that
74	74	preference after the preference is on file with the state
75	75	registrar. A birth parent may modify the intermediary contact
76	76	information as necessary.
77	77	(g) A birth parent who initially selects the option not to
78	78	be contacted by the adopted person may subsequently authorize
79	79	direct contact by the adopted person or contact by the adopted
80	80	person through an intermediary by filing a supplemental contact
81	81	preference form with the state registrar authorizing the contact.
82	82	(h) The state registrar shall provide a copy of the birth
83	83	parent's contact preference form and any available supplemental
84	84	medical history form to an adopted person or other person
85	85	authorized to receive a noncertified copy of the adopted person's
86	86	original birth certificate under Section 192.008.
87	87	SECTION 3. Subchapter A, Chapter 162, Family Code, is
88	88	amended by adding Section 162.0061 to read as follows:
89	89	Sec. 162.0061. CONTACT PREFERENCE FORM: NOTICE AND FILING.
90	90	(a) The Department of Family and Protective Services or the
91	91	licensed child-placing agency, person, or other entity placing a
92	92	child for adoption shall:
93	93	(1) inform the child's birth parents that:
94	94	(A) Chapter 192, Health and Safety Code, governs
95	95	the birth parent contact preference form and the rights of an
96	96	adopted child to obtain a noncertified copy of the adopted person's
97	97	original birth certificate; and
98	98	(B) the birth parents are required to provide a
99	99	completed contact preference form to the Department of Family and
100	100	Protective Services, the licensed child-placing agency, person, or
101	101	other entity placing a child for adoption, or the state registrar;
102	102	(2) provide the child's birth parents with a contact
103	103	preference form; and
104	104	(3) forward each original completed contact
105	105	preference form to the state registrar.
106	106	(b) The notice to a child's birth parents required by this
107	107	section shall be provided at the time the birth parent's parental
108	108	rights to a child are terminated.
109	109	(c) Except as provided by Subsection (d), a petition for
110	110	adoption may not be granted until a copy of each birth parent's
111	111	contact preference form has been filed.
112	112	(d) A court having jurisdiction of a suit affecting the
113	113	parent-child relationship may by order waive the contact preference
114	114	form filing requirement of this section if the child's birth
115	115	parents cannot be located or are deceased or the court determines
116	116	that it is in the best interest of the child to waive the
117	117	requirement.
118	118	SECTION 4. (a) The state registrar shall develop the
119	119	contact preference form and the supplemental medical history form
120	120	as required by Section 192.0085, Health and Safety Code, as added by
121	121	this Act, not later than January 1, 2018.
122	122	(b) Notwithstanding Section 192.008(g), Health and Safety
123	123	Code, as added by this Act, the state registrar is not required to
124	124	comply with that provision until July 1, 2018.
125	125	(c) The birth parent of a person who was adopted before
126	126	January 1, 2018, may file a contact preference form and a
127	127	supplemental medical history form with the state registrar not
128	128	later than July 1, 2018, and after that date at the discretion of
129	129	the state registrar. Notwithstanding Section 192.0085(f), Health
130	130	and Safety Code, as added by this Act, a birth parent may file a
131	131	supplemental contact preference form modifying the birth parent's
132	132	contact preference at any time before July 1, 2018. The latest
133	133	contact preference form on file with the state registrar and filed
134	134	before that date controls.
135	135	SECTION 5. Section 162.0061, Family Code, as added by this
136	136	Act, applies only to a suit for adoption in which an order
137	137	terminating parental rights under Chapter 161, Family Code, is
138	138	rendered on or after January 1, 2018. A suit for adoption in which
139	139	an order terminating parental rights under Chapter 161, Family
140	140	Code, is rendered before January 1, 2018, is governed by the law in
141	141	effect immediately before the effective date of this Act, and the
142	142	former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
143	143	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.