II

Calendar No. 523

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 682

[Report No. 106–276]

To implement the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MARCH 23, 1999

Mr. HELMS (for himself, Ms. LANDRIEU, and Mr. JOHNSON) introduced the

following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on

Foreign Relations

APRIL 27, 2000

Reported by Mr. HELMS, with an amendment

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]

A BILL

To implement the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2

•S 682 RS

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

3 ‘‘Intercountry Adoption Convention Implementation Act

4 of 1999’’.

5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of

6 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

Sec. 2. Findings.

Sec. 3. Definitions.

TITLE I—UNITED STATES CENTRAL AUTHORITY

Sec. 101. Performance of central authority functions.

Sec. 102. Authority of the Department of State.

Sec. 103. Responsibilities of the Secretary of State.

Sec. 104. Responsibilities of the Attorney General.

Sec. 105. Annual report on intercountry adoptions.

TITLE II—ACCREDITATION OF PERSONS PROVIDING

INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION SERVICES

Sec. 201. Eligibility to provide intercountry adoption services.

Sec. 202. Accrediting entities.

Sec. 203. Eligibility for accreditation.

Sec. 204. Oversight of accreditation.

TITLE III—RECOGNITION OF CONVENTION ADOPTIONS IN THE

UNITED STATES

Sec. 301. Adoptions of children immigrating to the United States.

Sec. 302. Amendments of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Sec. 303. Adoptions of children emigrating from the United States.

Sec. 304. Special rules for certain cases.

Sec. 305. Voiding of adoptions for cause.

Sec. 306. Recognition of Convention adoptions before entry into force of Convention for the United States.

TITLE IV—ADMINISTRATION AND ENFORCEMENT

Sec. 401. Records; privacy provisions.

Sec. 402. Documents of other Convention countries.

Sec. 403. Authorization of appropriations; collection of fees.

Sec. 404. Enforcement.

TITLE V—GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 501. Relation to other laws.

Sec. 502. No private right of action.

Sec. 503. Effective date; transition provisions.
3

•S 682 RS

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

2 Congress recognizes—

3 (1) the international character of the Conven4 tion, and

5 (2) the need for uniform interpretation and im6 plementation of the Convention in the United States

7 and abroad,

8 and therefore finds that enactment of a Federal law gov9 erning intercountry adoptions subject to the Convention

10 is necessary.

11 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

12 In this Act:

13 (1) ACCREDITED PERSON.—The term ‘‘accred14 ited person’’ means a person (including an agency),

15 not organized for profit, that has been accredited in

16 accordance with title II to provide adoption services

17 and to perform other functions under the Conven18 tion.

19 (2) ACCREDITING ENTITY.—The term ‘‘accred20 iting entity’’ means an entity designated under sec21 tion 202(a).

22 (3) ADOPTION SERVICES.—The term ‘‘adoption

23 services’’ means—

24 (A) identifying children for adoption and

25 arranging adoptions;
4

•S 682 RS

1 (B) securing necessary documentation of

2 consent to termination of parental rights and to

3 adoption;

4 (C) performing background studies on chil5 dren, home studies on prospective adoptive par6 ents, and reports of such studies;

7 (D) making determinations of the best in8 terests of the child and the appropriateness of

9 adoptive placement;

10 (E) counseling children and birth and

11 adoptive parents with respect to adoption;

12 (F) engaging in post-placement monitoring

13 of cases until final adoption; and

14 (G) if necessary because of disruption in

15 the adoption process, assuming custody of a

16 child, and providing child care or other social

17 services, pending an alternative placement of

18 the child.

19 (4) AGENCY.—The term ‘‘agency’’ means any

20 public entity or private corporation, partnership, or21 ganization, or other association.

22 (5) ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The term ‘‘Attorney

23 General’’ means the Attorney General, acting

24 through the Commissioner of Immigration and Nat25 uralization.
5

•S 682 RS

1 (6) BIRTH PARENT.—The term ‘‘birth parent’’

2 means the biological mother and, where applicable

3 under the law of the place of birth of the child, the

4 biological father of the child who is the subject of an

5 adoption.

6 (7) CENTRAL AUTHORITY.—The term ‘‘central

7 authority’’ means the entity designated by any Con8 vention country under Article 6(1) of the Convention

9 as having primary responsibility for the discharge of

10 the obligations of that country under the Conven11 tion.

12 (8) CENTRAL AUTHORITY FUNCTION.—The

13 term ‘‘central authority function’’ means any duty

14 required to be carried out by a central authority

15 under chapter III or IV of the Convention.

16 (9) CONVENTION.—The term ‘‘Convention’’

17 means the Convention on Protection of Children and

18 Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption,

19 done at The Hague on May 29, 1993.

20 (10) CONVENTION ADOPTION.—The term ‘‘Con21 vention adoption’’ means, upon entry into force of

22 the Convention in the United States—

23 (A) an adoption (or prospective adoption)

24 of a child habitually resident in a foreign coun-
6

•S 682 RS

1 try party to the Convention by a United States

2 citizen; or

3 (B) an adoption (or prospective adoption)

4 of a child habitually resident in the United

5 States by a person or persons residing in an6 other Convention country.

7 (11) CONVENTION ADOPTION RECORD.—The

8 term ‘‘Convention adoption record’’ means any item,

9 collection, or grouping of information, including any

10 index, contained in an electronic or physical docu11 ment, an electronic collection of data, a photograph,

12 an audio or video tape, or any other information

13 storage medium of any type whatever that contains

14 information about a specific past, current, or pro15 spective Convention adoption (regardless of whether

16 a final adoption resulted) and that has been identi17 fied and retained in accordance with section 401(a)

18 by the Secretary of State or the Attorney General.

19 (12) CONVENTION COUNTRY.—The term ‘‘Con20 vention country’’ means a country party to the Con21 vention.

22 (13) OTHER CONVENTION COUNTRY.—The

23 term ‘‘other Convention country’’ means a Conven24 tion country other than the United States.
7

•S 682 RS

1 (14) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ has the

2 meaning given the term in section 1 of title 1,

3 United States Code.

4 (15) PERSON WITH AN OWNERSHIP OR CON5 TROL INTEREST.—The term ‘‘person with an owner6 ship or control interest’’ has the meaning given such

7 term in section 1124(a)(3) of the Social Security Act

8 (42 U.S.C. 1320a–3).

9 (16) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the 50

10 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth

11 of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern

12 Mariana Islands, Guam, and the Virgin Islands.

13 TITLE I—UNITED STATES

14 CENTRAL AUTHORITY

15 SEC. 101. PERFORMANCE OF CENTRAL AUTHORITY FUNC16 TIONS.

17 All central authority functions of the United States

18 shall be carried out by the Department of State and other

19 officials of the United States specified in this Act.

20 SEC. 102. AUTHORITY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE.

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided in

22 this Act, for purposes of the Convention—

23 (1) the Department of State shall serve as the

24 central authority of the United States; and
8

•S 682 RS

1 (2) the Secretary of State shall serve as the

2 head of the central authority of the United States.

3 (b) STATE DEPARTMENT PERSONNEL PERFORMING

4 CENTRAL AUTHORITY FUNCTIONS.—All personnel of the

5 Department of State performing central authority func6 tions in a professional capacity shall have 3 to 5 years

7 of personal or professional experience in international

8 adoptions.

9 (c) AUTHORITY TO ISSUE REGULATIONS.—Except as

10 otherwise provided in this Act, the Secretary of State may

11 prescribe such regulations as may be necessary to carry

12 out central authority functions on behalf of the United

13 States.

14 SEC. 103. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE SECRETARY OF

15 STATE.

16 (a) LIAISON RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Secretary of

17 State shall have primary responsibility for—

18 (1) liaison with the central authorities of other

19 Convention countries; and

20 (2) the coordination of activities under the Con21 vention by persons subject to the jurisdiction of the

22 United States.

23 (b) INFORMATION EXCHANGE.—The Secretary of

24 State shall be responsible for—
9

•S 682 RS

1 (1) providing the central authorities of other

2 Convention countries with information concerning—

3 (A) persons accredited under title II, per4 sons whose accreditation is suspended or can5 celed, and persons temporarily or permanently

6 debarred from accreditation;

7 (B) Federal and State laws relevant to im8 plementing the Convention; and

9 (C) any other matters necessary and ap10 propriate for implementation of the Convention;

11 (2) providing Federal agencies, State courts,

12 and accredited persons with an identification of Con13 vention countries and persons authorized to perform

14 functions under the Convention in each such coun15 try;

16 (3) facilitating the transmittal of other appro17 priate information to, and among, central authori18 ties, Federal and State agencies (including State

19 courts), and accredited persons; and

20 (4) taking other appropriate actions necessary

21 to implement the Convention.

22 (c) ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Secretary

23 of State—

24 (1) shall monitor individual Convention adop25 tion cases involving United States citizens;
10

•S 682 RS

1 (2) may facilitate interactions between such

2 citizens and officials of other Convention countries

3 on matters relating to the Convention in any case in

4 which an accredited person is unwilling or unable to

5 provide such facilitation; and

6 (3) may provide any other appropriate assist7 ance in other cases.

8 (d) ESTABLISHMENT OF REGISTRY.—The Secretary

9 of State and the Attorney General shall jointly establish

10 a case registry on—

11 (1) all adoptions involving immigration into the

12 United States, regardless of whether the adoption

13 occurs under the Convention; and

14 (2) all adoptions involving emigration of the

15 child from the United States to any other Conven16 tion country.

17 Such registry shall permit tracking of pending cases and

18 retrieval of information on both pending and closed cases.

19 SEC. 104. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL.

20 In addition to such other responsibilities as are spe21 cifically conferred upon the Attorney General by this Act,

22 the central authority functions specified in Article 14 of

23 the Convention (relating to the filing of applications by

24 prospective adoptive parents to the central authority of
11

•S 682 RS

1 their country of residence) shall be performed by the At2 torney General.

3 SEC. 105. ANNUAL REPORT ON INTERCOUNTRY ADOP4 TIONS.

5 (a) REPORTS REQUIRED.—Beginning one year after

6 the date of enactment of this Act, and every year there7 after, the Secretary of State shall submit a report to Con8 gress describing the activities of the central authority of

9 the United States under this Act during the preceding

10 year.

11 (b) REPORT ELEMENTS.—Each report under sub12 section (a) shall set forth with respect to the year con13 cerned, the following:

14 (1) The number of adoptions involving immi15 gration to the United States, regardless of whether

16 the adoption occurred under the Convention, includ17 ing the country from which each child emigrated and

18 the State to which each child immigrated.

19 (2) The number of adoptions under the Conven20 tion, including the country from which each child

21 emigrated and the State to which each child immi22 grated.

23 (3) The number of intercountry adoptions that

24 were disrupted, including the country from which

25 the child emigrated, the age of the child, the date of
12

•S 682 RS

1 the adoption of the child, the reason for the disrup2 tion, and the resolution of the disruption.

3 (4) The names of the persons who possessed ac4 creditation to perform intercountry adoptions.

5 (5) The names of the persons who were

6 debarred from performing intercountry adoptions,

7 and the reasons for the debarrment.

8 (6) The average time required for completion of

9 an intercountry adoption.

10 (7) The number of intercountry adoptions that

11 were completed in the United States, and the num12 ber of adoptions that were completed in each foreign

13 country from which children subject to such adop14 tions emigrated.

15 (8) The number of intercountry adoptions to

16 the United States that were found to be fraudulent.

17 (9) The average adoption fee for intercountry

18 adoptions to the United States set forth by country.

19 (10) The average adoption fee for intercountry

20 adoptions from the United States set forth by coun21 try.

22 (11) The average fee for accreditation of per23 sons engaging in the provision of intercountry adop24 tion services.
13

•S 682 RS

1 TITLE II—ACCREDITATION OF

2 PERSONS PROVIDING INTER3 COUNTRY ADOPTION SERV4 ICES

5 SEC. 201. ELIGIBILITY TO PROVIDE INTERCOUNTRY ADOP6 TION SERVICES.

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided in

8 this title, no person may offer or provide adoption services

9 in connection with a Convention adoption unless that

10 person—

11 (1) is accredited by an accrediting entity in ac12 cordance with this title; or

13 (2) is providing such services through or under

14 the supervision and responsibility of an accredited

15 person.

16 (b) EXCEPTIONS.—Subsection (a) shall not apply to

17 any of the following persons:

18 (1) CERTAIN SOCIAL WORK PROFESSIONALS

19 AND ORGANIZATIONS.—A social work professional or

20 organization conducting (and reporting on) home

21 studies on prospective adoptive parents or back22 ground studies on children in connection with adop23 tions, but not arranging or otherwise facilitating

24 adoptions subject to the Convention.
14

•S 682 RS

1 (2) ENTITIES PROVIDING CHILD WELFARE

2 SERVICES.—A public or private entity intervening in

3 a Convention adoption to provide child welfare serv4 ices, but not itself arranging or facilitating the adop5 tion.

6 (3) ATTORNEYS PROVIDING LEGAL SERVICES.—

7 An attorney providing legal services in connection

8 with a Convention adoption, but not arranging, ei9 ther directly or through agents, the adoption or oth10 erwise providing adoption services in connection with

11 the adoption.

12 (4) PROSPECTIVE ADOPTIVE PARENTS ACTING

13 ON OWN BEHALF.—Prospective adoptive parents

14 when acting on their own behalf, if they are per15 mitted to do so under the law of the State in which

16 they reside.

17 SEC. 202. ACCREDITING ENTITIES.

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—

19 (1) DESIGNATIONS OF ENTITIES.—The Sec20 retary of State shall designate as accrediting enti21 ties, and enter into agreements with, no more than

22 five nonprofit private entities that—

23 (A) have experience and expertise in devel24 oping and administering international adoption
15

•S 682 RS

1 services and standards for entities providing

2 child welfare services; and

3 (B) meet such other criteria as the Sec4 retary may by regulation establish.

5 (2) LIMITATION.—An accrediting entity shall

6 undertake an accreditation strictly for intercountry

7 adoption, unless a person seeks additional program

8 accreditation.

9 (b) RESPONSIBILITIES OF ACCREDITING ENTI10 TIES.—The responsibilities of accrediting entities shall in11 clude the following:

12 (1) ACCREDITATION.—Accreditation of persons

13 to perform functions under the Convention, subject

14 to section 203.

15 (2) OVERSIGHT.—Ongoing monitoring of the

16 compliance by accredited persons with applicable re17 quirements, including review of complaints against

18 such persons in accordance with procedures estab19 lished by this Act and by such accrediting entity and

20 approved by the Secretary of State.

21 (3) ENFORCEMENT.—Imposition of administra22 tive remedies, including requirements for corrective

23 action, and sanctions for noncompliance, including

24 refusal to renew, or the suspension or cancellation

25 of, accreditation.
16

•S 682 RS

1 (4) DATA, RECORDS, AND REPORTS.—Collecting

2 data, maintaining records, and making reports to

3 the Secretary of State, State courts, and other enti4 ties (including reports on persons granted or denied

5 accreditation).

6 (c) REMEDIES FOR ACCREDITING ENTITY’S AD7 VERSE ACTION.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—In any case where an ac9 crediting entity denies, suspends, or cancels the ac10 creditation of a person under this title, mandates

11 corrective action, or takes other adverse action, the

12 accrediting entity shall specify the deficiencies on

13 which the adverse action was based, and paragraphs

14 (2), (3), and (4) shall apply with respect to rem15 edies.

16 (2) CORRECTION OF DEFICIENCY AND RE17 APPLICATION.—The person that is the subject of the

18 adverse action shall be permitted to reapply for ac19 creditation (or to petition for termination of any

20 other sanction applied) upon demonstrating to the

21 satisfaction of the accrediting entity that the defi22 ciencies have been corrected.

23 (3) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—The person that is the

24 subject of the adverse action may petition the

25 United States district court in the judicial district in
17

•S 682 RS

1 which such person resides to set aside the action,

2 but only upon clear and convincing proof that the

3 action was not supported by substantial evidence or

4 that the accrediting entity abused its discretion.

5 (4) NO FEDERAL ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW.—

6 An adverse action by the accrediting entity shall not

7 be reviewable by the Secretary of State or any other

8 Federal agency or administrative entity.

9 (d) FEES.—

10 (1) AUTHORITY TO ASSESS.—Accrediting enti11 ties are authorized to assess fees in amounts ap12 proved by the Secretary of State against persons

13 seeking or maintaining accreditation for the pur14 poses of intercountry adoptions.

15 (2) FEE AMOUNTS.—The Secretary of State

16 may approve fees to be assessed under paragraph

17 (1) that do not exceed the amount estimated to be

18 necessary to cover all direct or indirect costs of ac19 creditation and ongoing oversight by the accrediting

20 entity with regard to Convention cases. Fees estab21 lished under this section shall reflect, to the max22 imum extent practicable, the extent to which overall

23 costs of accrediting persons varies in relation to the

24 volume of Convention adoption cases a person han25 dles.
18

•S 682 RS

1 (3) LIMITATION.—An accrediting entity shall

2 not provide discounted fees for certain persons for

3 accreditation for purposes of intercountry adoption.

4 SEC. 203. ELIGIBILITY FOR ACCREDITATION.

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF STANDARDS.—

6 (1) ISSUANCE OF REGULATIONS.—The Sec7 retary of State shall establish by regulation stand8 ards and procedures to be used by accrediting enti9 ties for the accreditation of persons for the purpose

10 of arranging Convention adoptions.

11 (2) STANDARD-SETTING PROCESS.—In estab12 lishing standards and procedures under this section,

13 the Secretary of State—

14 (A) shall consider the views of individuals

15 and entities with interest and expertise in inter16 national adoptions and family social services,

17 including public and private entities with expe18 rience in licensing and accrediting adoption

19 agencies; and

20 (B) may adopt, after opportunity for pub21 lic comment, all or part of any standards or

22 procedures developed or proposed by such indi23 viduals or entities.

24 (b) REQUIREMENTS FOR ACCREDITATION.—
19

•S 682 RS

1 (1) CONDITIONS FOR ACCREDITATION.—Except

2 as the Secretary of State may by regulation other3 wise provide, each person seeking accreditation

4 under this title with respect to intercountry adoption

5 services shall satisfy the following requirements:

6 (A) SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS.—To agree

7 as follows:

8 (i) To provide persons who would be

9 the adoptive parents of a child in a pro10 spective Convention adoption a copy in

11 English of the medical records of the child

12 not later than the earlier of 2 weeks before

13 the adoption or the date on which the per14 sons travel to a foreign country to finalize

15 the adoption.

16 (ii) To provide the persons a training

17 program that includes at least 6 weeks of

18 counseling and guidance before the parents

19 travel to a foreign country to finalize the

20 adoption.

21 (iii) To employ personnel providing

22 intercountry adoption services on a fee-for23 service basis rather than on a contingent24 arrangement basis.
20

•S 682 RS

1 (iv) To have in force adequate liability

2 insurance for professional negligence and

3 any other insurance that the Secretary

4 considers appropriate.

5 (v) To permit open examination of the

6 person’s practices, including the disruption

7 rates of intercountry adoptions facilitated

8 by the person and the fees charged by the

9 person for intercountry adoptions.

10 (B) CAPACITY TO PERFORM ALL ASSIGNED

11 FUNCTIONS.—To have, either directly or

12 through arrangements with other qualified per13 sons, qualified personnel, financial resources, an

14 organizational structure, and appropriate proce15 dures sufficient to enable it to perform, in a

16 manner consistent with applicable standards, all

17 functions under the Convention which it is seek18 ing authority to perform in accordance with this

19 Act (including the counseling of individuals in20 volved in intercountry adoptions and the as21 sumption of custodial and financial responsi22 bility for children in cases where a placement

23 disrupts before final adoption).

24 (C) UTILIZATION OF SOCIAL SERVICE PRO25 FESSIONALS.—To have procedures designed to
21

•S 682 RS

1 ensure that social service functions requiring

2 the application of clinical skills and judgment

3 are performed only by professionals with appro4 priate qualifications and credentials.

5 (D) RECORDS, REPORTS, AND INFORMA6 TION MATTERS.—To provide for the mainte7 nance of such records and to make such reports

8 as may be required by the Secretary of State

9 and the designated accrediting entity; to cooper10 ate with reviews, inspections, and audits; to

11 safeguard sensitive individual information; and

12 to comply with other requirements concerning

13 information management necessary to ensure

14 compliance with the Convention, this Act, and

15 any other applicable laws.

16 (E) COMPLIANCE WITH CONVENTION.—To

17 establish adequate measures to comply (and to

18 ensure compliance of their agents and clients)

19 with the Convention, this Act, and all other ap20 plicable laws, particularly with provisions con21 cerning fraud, improper inducement, and simi22 larly egregious acts.

23 (2) ADDITIONAL CONDITIONS FOR ACCREDITA24 TION.—No person shall be accredited under this title

25 unless such person is a private organization, not or-
22

•S 682 RS

1 ganized for profit, and licensed to provide adoption

2 services in at least one State.

3 SEC. 204. OVERSIGHT OF ACCREDITATION.

4 (a) OVERSIGHT OF ACCREDITING ENTITIES.—The

5 Secretary of State shall—

6 (1) monitor each accrediting entity’s perform7 ance of its functions under section 202 and its com8 pliance with the requirements of the Convention, this

9 Act, other applicable laws, and implementing regula10 tions; and

11 (2) suspend or cancel the designation of an en12 tity found to be substantially out of compliance with

13 the Convention, this Act, other applicable laws, or

14 implementing regulations.

15 (b) DEBARMENT.—

16 (1) SECRETARY’S AUTHORITY.—The Secretary

17 of State may, on the Secretary’s own initiative or

18 upon request by an accrediting entity, order the tem19 porary or permanent debarment of a person from ac20 creditation for purposes of intercountry adoptions if

21 there is no possibility for timely mediation and—

22 (A) there is substantial evidence that the

23 person is out of compliance with applicable re24 quirements;
23

•S 682 RS

1 (B) there has been a pattern of serious,

2 willful, or grossly negligent failures to comply

3 or other aggravating circumstances indicating

4 that renewal of accreditation would not be in

5 the best interests of the children and families

6 concerned; or

7 (C) actions by a person impact adversely

8 important national interests of the United

9 States.

10 (2) PERIOD OF DEBARMENT.—The debarment

11 order of the Secretary of State shall state whether

12 the debarment is temporary or permanent. If the de13 barment is temporary, the Secretary shall specify a

14 date, not earlier than 3 years after the date of the

15 order, on which date the person may apply to the

16 Secretary who ordered the debarment for withdrawal

17 of the debarment.

18 (3) EFFECT OF DEBARMENT.—In the case of a

19 person that has been debarred pursuant to this sub20 section, the accrediting entity may take the cir21 cumstances of such debarment into account in con22 sidering any subsequent application for accreditation

23 of the person or of any other person in which the

24 person has an ownership or control interest, notwith25 standing that the period of debarment has elapsed.
24

•S 682 RS

1 (c) JUDICIAL REVIEW OF SECRETARY’S DECI2 SIONS.—

3 (1) REVIEW BY FEDERAL DISTRICT COURT.—A

4 person (other than a prospective adoptive parent,

5 person, or accrediting entity adversely affected by a

6 final determination of the Secretary of State under

7 this title with respect to the designation of an ac8 crediting entity, or the accreditation of a person)

9 may obtain review of such determination by the

10 United States District Court for the District of Co11 lumbia, or in the United States district court in the

12 judicial district in which such person or accrediting

13 entity resides.

14 (2) STANDARD OF REVIEW.—A determination

15 by the Secretary of State under paragraph (1) may

16 be set aside only if the person adversely affected by

17 the Secretary’s final determination presents clear

18 and convincing proof of abuse of discretion by the

19 Secretary.

20 (3) PRECLUSION OF JUDICIAL REVIEW OF SEC21 RETARY OF STATE DETERMINATIONS.—A determina22 tion by the Secretary of State on foreign policy

23 grounds is not subject to judicial review.
25

•S 682 RS

1 TITLE III—RECOGNITION OF

2 CONVENTION ADOPTIONS IN

3 THE UNITED STATES

4 SEC. 301. ADOPTIONS OF CHILDREN IMMIGRATING TO THE

5 UNITED STATES.

6 (a) LEGAL EFFECT OF ADOPTIONS FINALIZED IN

7 THE UNITED STATES.—

8 (1) ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATES BY THE SEC9 RETARY OF STATE.—Pursuant to Article 23 of the

10 Convention, the Secretary of State shall, with re11 spect to each Convention adoption, issue a certificate

12 to the adoptive citizen parent domiciled in the

13 United States that the adoption has been granted

14 or, in the case of a prospective adoptive citizen par15 ent, that legal custody of the child has been granted

16 to the citizen parent for purposes of emigration and

17 adoption, pursuant to the Convention and this Act,

18 if the Secretary—

19 (A) receives appropriate notification from

20 the central authority of such child’s country of

21 origin; and

22 (B) has verified that the requirements of

23 this Act have been met.

24 (2) LEGAL EFFECT OF CERTIFICATES.—If ap25 pended to an original adoption decree, the certificate
26

•S 682 RS

1 described in paragraph (1) shall be treated by Fed2 eral and State agencies, courts, and other public and

3 private persons and entities as conclusive evidence of

4 the facts certified therein, except as provided in sec5 tion 305, and shall constitute the certification re6 quired by section 204(d)(2) of the Immigration and

7 Nationality Act, as amended by this Act.

8 (b) LEGAL EFFECT OF ADOPTIONS FINALIZED IN

9 OTHER CONVENTION COUNTRIES.—The final adoption in

10 any other Convention country, certified by the Secretary

11 of State pursuant to subsection (a) or section 303(d) of

12 this Act, shall be recognized as a final, valid adoption for

13 the purposes of all Federal, State, and local laws of the

14 United States, and shall be accorded the same legal effect

15 as the final adoption of a child in the State where such

16 United States citizens reside or are domiciled.

17 (c) CONDITION ON FINALIZATION OF CONVENTION

18 ADOPTIONS BY STATE COURTS.—In the case of a child

19 who has been admitted to the United States from any

20 other Convention country for the purpose of adoption, a

21 State court shall not have authority to issue an order de22 claring the adoption final unless the Secretary of State

23 has issued the certificate described in subsection (b).
27

•S 682 RS

1 SEC. 302. AMENDMENTS OF THE IMMIGRATION AND NA2 TIONALITY ACT.

3 (a) DEFINITION OF ‘‘CHILD’’.—Section 101(b)(1) of

4 the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.

5 1101(b)(1)) is amended—

6 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph

7 (E);

8 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub9 paragraph (F) and inserting ‘‘; or’’;

10 (3) in subparagraphs (E) and (F), by inserting

11 ‘‘except as provided in subparagraph (G),’’ before ‘‘a

12 child’’ each place it appears; and

13 (4) by adding after subparagraph (F) the fol14 lowing new subparagraph:

15 ‘‘(G) a child, under the age of sixteen at

16 the time a petition is filed on the child’s behalf

17 to accord a classification as an immediate rel18 ative under section 201(b), who has been adopt19 ed in a foreign country that is a party to the

20 Convention on Protection of Children and Co21 operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption,

22 or who is emigrating from such a foreign coun23 try to be adopted in the United States by at

24 least one United States citizen and the citizen’s

25 spouse jointly, or by an unmarried United

26 States citizen at least 25 years of age, if—
28

•S 682 RS

1 ‘‘(i) the Attorney General is satisfied

2 that proper care will be furnished the child

3 if admitted to the United States,

4 ‘‘(ii) in a case in which required by

5 the country of the child’s habitual resi6 dence, the child’s birth parents, or other

7 persons or institutions that retain legal

8 custody of the child, have freely given their

9 written irrevocable consent to the termi10 nation of their relationship with the child,

11 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a child who has

12 not been adopted, the competent authority

13 of the foreign State has approved the

14 child’s emigration to the United States for

15 the purpose of adoption by the prospective

16 adoptive parents,

17 ‘‘(iv) the child is not the grandchild,

18 niece, nephew, brother, sister, aunt, uncle,

19 or first cousin of any of the adopting par20 ents, unless—

21 ‘‘(I) the child has no living moth22 er because of the death or disappear23 ance of, abandonment or desertion by,

24 or separation from or loss of the

25 child’s mother; or
29

•S 682 RS

1 ‘‘(II) the father is unknown, or

2 was not married to the child’s mother

3 on the date of the child’s birth, or is

4 incapable of providing the proper care

5 for the child and has in writing irrev6 ocably released the child for emigra7 tion and adoption, and

8 ‘‘(v) the prospective adoptive parent

9 or married husband and wife have com10 plied with any adoption requirements of

11 the child’s proposed State of residence,

12 except, that no birth parent or former adoptive par13 ent of any such adopted child shall thereafter, by

14 virtue of such parentage, be accorded any right,

15 privilege, or status under this Act.’’.

16 (b) APPROVAL OF PETITIONS.—Section 204(d) of the

17 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(d)) is

18 amended—

19 (1) by striking ‘‘(d)’’ and inserting ‘‘(d)(1)’’;

20 and

21 (2) by adding at the end the following new

22 paragraph:

23 ‘‘(2) No petition may be approved under subsection

24 (a) on behalf of an alien child who seeks to be accorded

25 immediate relative status as a child defined under section
30

•S 682 RS

1 101(b)(1)(G), unless the Secretary of State has certified

2 to the Attorney General that the central authority of the

3 child’s country of origin has notified the United States

4 Central Authority under the Convention on Protection of

5 Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry

6 Adoption done at The Hague on May 29, 1993, that a

7 United States citizen domiciled in the United States has

8 effected final adoption of the child, or has been granted

9 custody of the child for the purpose of emigration and

10 adoption, in accordance with the Convention and the

11 Intercountry Adoption Act.’’.

12 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 101(b)(2)

13 of that Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(b)(2)) is amended by inserting

14 ‘‘and paragraph (1)(G) (other than for purposes of the

15 exception therein)’’ after ‘‘second proviso therein)’’.

16 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by

17 this section shall apply with respect to petitions for classi18 fication under section 204 of the Immigration and Nation19 ality Act filed on or after the date of enactment of this

20 Act.

21 SEC. 303. ADOPTIONS OF CHILDREN EMIGRATING FROM

22 THE UNITED STATES.

23 (a) COVERED CASES.—This section shall apply in any

24 case in which a child residing in the United States is

25 sought for adoption in any other Convention country.
31

•S 682 RS

1 (b) RESPONSIBILITIES OF ACCREDITED PERSONS.—

2 In any case described in subsection (a), the accredited per3 son that is providing adoption services in such a case, or

4 the prospective adoptive parents acting on their own be5 half, if permitted by the laws of the Convention country

6 in which they reside and the laws of the State in which

7 the child resides, shall have the following responsibilities:

8 (1) Provide a written documentation of the fol9 lowing:

10 (A) A background study on the child that

11 meets the standards of the State court with ju12 risdiction over the child has been completed.

13 (B) The child will be adopted by a married

14 man and woman.

15 (C) Twelve months have elapsed since the

16 person made efforts to place the child in the

17 United States.

18 (D) A determination has been made, in ac19 cordance with section 107 of Public Law 105–

20 89 that the child cannot be placed in the

21 United States.

22 (E) A determination has been made that

23 placement with the prospective parents is in the

24 best interests of the child.
32

•S 682 RS

1 (2) Furnish to State courts with the jurisdic2 tion over adoption cases described in subsection (a)

3 the following information and documents:

4 (A) Documentation of the matters de5 scribed in paragraph (1).

6 (B) The background report (home study)

7 on the prospective adoptive parent or parents

8 prepared in accordance with the laws of the re9 ceiving country.

10 (C) A background report compatible with

11 the laws of the State with jurisdiction.

12 (D) A declaration by the central authority

13 (or other competent authority) of the receiving

14 country—

15 (i) that the child will be permitted to

16 enter and reside permanently, or on the

17 same basis as the adopting parent, in the

18 receiving country; and

19 (ii) that the central authority or other

20 competent authority of the receiving coun21 try consents to the adoption, if such con22 sent is necessary under its laws.

23 (3) Furnish to the Secretary of State—
33

•S 682 RS

1 (A) official copies of State court orders

2 certifying the final adoption or grant of custody

3 for the purpose of adoption;

4 (B) the information and documents de5 scribed in paragraph (2); and

6 (C) any other information concerning the

7 case required by the Secretary of State to per8 form the functions specified in subsection (d) or

9 otherwise to carry out its responsibilities under

10 the Convention.

11 (c) CONDITIONS ON STATE COURT ORDERS.—An

12 order by a State court certifying an adoption as final or

13 granting custody for the purpose of adoption in a case de14 scribed in subsection (a) shall not be recognized by the

15 Secretary of State or the Attorney General for purposes

16 of intercountry adoption unless the court—

17 (1) has received and verified to the extent it

18 may find necessary—

19 (A) the information and documentation

20 specified in section (b)(2); and

21 (B) satisfactory evidence that the require22 ments of Article 4 and Articles 15 through 21

23 of the Convention have been satisfied; and

24 (2) has determined that the adoptive placement

25 is in the child’s best interests.
34

•S 682 RS

1 (d) RESPONSIBILITY OF THE SECRETARY OF

2 STATE.—In each case described in subsection (a), the Sec3 retary of State, upon receipt and verification as necessary

4 of the information and documents described in subsection

5 (b)(3), shall issue, as applicable, an official certification

6 that the child has been adopted or a declaration that cus7 tody for purposes of adoption has been granted, in accord8 ance with the Convention and this Act.

9 (e) REQUIREMENTS UNDER STATE LAW.—In cases

10 described in subsection (a), States may impose additional

11 responsibilities and requirements, not inconsistent with

12 the provisions of this section, upon accredited persons and

13 prospective adoptive parents acting on their own behalf.

14 SEC. 304. SPECIAL RULES FOR CERTAIN CASES.

15 To the extent consistent with the Convention, the

16 Secretary of State shall establish by regulation—

17 (1) alternative procedures for the adoption of

18 children by individuals related to them by blood or

19 marriage; and

20 (2) procedures permitting exceptions to applica21 ble requirements, and waiving penalties for non22 compliance, in the case of unintentional or harmless

23 failures to comply with the requirements of the Con24 vention, this Act, or implementing regulations issued

25 under this Act.
35

•S 682 RS

1 SEC. 305. VOIDING OF ADOPTIONS FOR CAUSE.

2 (a) VOIDING ADOPTIONS BY STATE COURTS.—In ad3 dition to any remedies available under State law, a final

4 decree entered with respect to a Convention adoption may

5 be vacated by a State court if—

6 (1) the decree was granted by a State court;

7 (2) the court finds clear and convincing evi8 dence that—

9 (A) the consent of a birth parent or, in the

10 absence thereof, the consent of a biological rel11 ative if required by State law, to termination of

12 parental rights or to the adoption was not ob13 tained, or was obtained as a result of fraud, du14 ress, or improper inducement; or

15 (B) consent of an adoptive parent to the

16 adoption was obtained by fraud which such par17 ent did not and could not reasonably have been

18 expected to discover;

19 (3) voiding the adoption is in the best interests

20 of the child, taking into consideration the wishes of

21 the child as appropriate given his or her age;

22 (4) less than two years have passed since the

23 adoptive parents obtained custody of the child; and

24 (5) the adoptive parents are afforded an oppor25 tunity to be heard in the proceeding.
36

•S 682 RS

1 (b) RECOGNITION OF ANY OTHER CONVENTION

2 COUNTRY’S PROCEEDING VACATING ADOPTIONS COV3 ERED BY THE CONVENTION.—Whenever the competent

4 authorities of any other Convention country notify the

5 Secretary of State that—

6 (1) the authorities have vacated an adoption de7 cree originally made in that country pursuant to the

8 Convention; and

9 (2) the decree has been vacated in accordance

10 with the standards established in paragraphs (2)

11 through (5) of subsection (a),

12 the decision to void such a decree shall be recognized as

13 valid and given full effect in the United States.

14 (c) VOIDING OF ADOPTION NOT VOIDING CHILD’s

15 NATURALIZATION.—If a court of competent jurisdiction

16 voids an adoption decree in accordance with subsection (a)

17 or (b), such action does not void or prohibit the naturaliza18 tion of the child as a citizen of the United States. Nothing

19 in this subsection limits the Attorney General’s authority

20 under title III of the Immigration and Nationality Act to

21 revoke the naturalization of such a child or to limit the

22 Attorney General’s discretion to consider a finding of fact

23 by a State court that is relevant to such a determination.
37

•S 682 RS

1 SEC. 306. RECOGNITION OF CONVENTION ADOPTIONS BE2 FORE ENTRY INTO FORCE OF CONVENTION

3 FOR THE UNITED STATES.

4 Subject to Article 24 of the Convention, any adoption

5 concluded between two Convention countries that satisfies

6 the requirements of Article 23 of the Convention and that

7 became final before the date of entry into force of the Con8 vention for the United States shall be recognized there9 after in the United States and given full effect. Such rec10 ognition shall include the specific effects described in Arti11 cle 26 of the Convention.

12 TITLE IV—ADMINISTRATION

13 AND ENFORCEMENT

14 SEC. 401. RECORDS; PRIVACY PROVISIONS.

15 (a) MAINTENANCE OF CONVENTION ADOPTION

16 RECORDS.—The Secretary of State and the Attorney Gen17 eral shall establish procedures consistent with the require18 ments of Articles 30 and 31 of the Convention for the

19 retention and identification of Convention adoption

20 records.

21 (b) DISCLOSURE OF AND ACCESS TO IDENTIFYING

22 INFORMATION.—

23 (1) CONSENT REQUIRED.—Except as provided

24 in subsection (d), identifying information contained

25 in Convention adoption records shall not be dis26 closed.
38

•S 682 RS

1 (2) APPLICATION OF PRIVACY ACT.—

2 (A) An individual, or an individual’s parent

3 or guardian, who would otherwise have a right

4 to access any Convention adoption record pur5 suant to section 552a of title 5, United States

6 Code, shall have such right with respect to iden7 tifying information in such a record only to the

8 extent that such right is not restricted by this

9 section.

10 (B) Disclosure of identifying information

11 in any Convention adoption record shall be sub12 ject to any restrictions that may be imposed by

13 section 552a of title 5, United States Code, and

14 shall also be subject to any restrictions imposed

15 by this section.

16 (3) NO DISCLOSURE TO CHILD UNDER 18.—A

17 child who is the subject of a Convention adoption

18 record shall not be afforded access to identifying in19 formation in such record, and such information shall

20 not be disclosed to such child, unless the child has

21 reached the age of 18 years.

22 (c) FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT EXEMPTION.—

23 Information contained in records of the Department of

24 State and the Immigration and Naturalization Service re25 lating to adoption cases subject to the Convention shall
39

•S 682 RS

1 not be disclosed to any person pursuant to section 552

2 of title 5, United States Code.

3 (d) DISCLOSURE FOR PURPOSES OF ADMINISTRA4 TION OF THE CONVENTION.—Information in Convention

5 adoption records may be disclosed by the Department of

6 State, any official of the United States exercising central

7 authority functions, any accredited person if necessary to

8 administer the Convention or this Act.

9 (e) IDENTIFYING INFORMATION DEFINED.—In this

10 section, the term ‘‘identifying information’’ means any in11 formation contained in an adoption record other than in12 formation relating to the health, social, or genetic back13 ground of the child, and which does not specifically iden14 tify the child, as prescribed by regulation by the Secretary

15 of Health and Human Services, in consultation with the

16 Secretary of State and the Attorney General.

17 SEC. 402. DOCUMENTS OF OTHER CONVENTION COUN18 TRIES.

19 Documents originating in any other Convention coun20 try and related to a Convention adoption case shall require

21 no authentication or legalization in order to be admissible

22 in any Federal, State, or local court in the United States,

23 unless a specific and supported claim is made that the doc24 uments are false, have been altered, or are otherwise unre25 liable.
40

•S 682 RS

1 SEC. 403. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; COLLEC2 TION OF FEES.

3 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be

5 appropriated such sums as may be necessary to

6 agencies of the Federal Government implementing

7 the Convention and the provisions of this Act.

8 (2) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts appro9 priated pursuant to paragraph (1) are authorized to

10 remain available until expended.

11 (b) ASSESSMENT OF FEES.—

12 (1) The Secretary of State may charge a fee

13 prescribed by regulation to cover the costs of new or

14 enhanced services that will be undertaken by the De15 partment of State to meet the requirements of this

16 Act.

17 (2) Fees collected under paragraph (1) shall be

18 deposited as an offsetting collection to any Depart19 ment of State appropriation to recover the costs of

20 providing such services.

21 (3) The provisions of the Act of August 18,

22 1856 (Revised Statutes §§ 1726–28; 22 U.S.C.

23 §§ 4212–14), concerning accounting for consular

24 fees, shall not apply to fees collected under this sub25 section.
41

•S 682 RS

1 (4) Fees authorized under this section shall be

2 collected and available for obligation only to the ex3 tent and in the amount provided in advance in ap4 propriations Acts.

5 (c) RESTRICTION.—No funds may be made available

6 to an accrediting entity to carry out the purposes of this

7 Act.

8 SEC. 404. ENFORCEMENT.

9 (a) CIVIL PENALTIES.—Any person that—

10 (1) provides adoption services in the United

11 States to facilitate a Convention adoption without

12 appropriate accreditation in accordance with title II,

13 (2) makes a false or fraudulent statement or

14 misrepresentation of material fact, or offers, gives,

15 solicits or accepts improper inducement intended to

16 influence or affect—

17 (A) decisions concerning the accreditation

18 of persons to perform adoption services and

19 central authority functions under this Act,

20 (B) the relinquishment of parental rights

21 or parental consent relating to the adoption of

22 a child within the scope of this Act, or

23 (C) the decisions or actions of persons and

24 entities performing central authority functions

25 pursuant to the Convention and this Act,
42

•S 682 RS

1 (3) makes a disclosure of information not au2 thorized by section 401(d) or to a person not author3 ized to receive the information under that section, or

4 (4) engages in coercive action to gain consent

5 to termination of parental rights or to adoption,

6 shall be subject, in addition to any other penalties that

7 may be prescribed by law, to a civil money penalty of not

8 more than $5,000 for a first violation, and not more than

9 $10,000 for each succeeding violation.

10 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—

11 (1) COORDINATION WITH ATTORNEY GEN12 ERAL.—The Secretary of State may impose a civil

13 money penalty under subsection (a) pursuant to

14 such procedures as may be agreed upon by the Sec15 retary and the Attorney General.

16 (2) NOTICE AND HEARING.—No penalty shall

17 be assessed under this section until the person

18 charged has been given written notice and an oppor19 tunity to respond.

20 (3) FACTORS CONSIDERED IN IMPOSING PEN21 ALTY.—In determining the amount of the penalty,

22 the gravity of the violation, the degree of culpability,

23 and the history of prior violations, if any, shall be

24 considered.
43

•S 682 RS

1 (c) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.—Whoever knowingly and

2 willfully commits a violation specified in subsection (a)(2)

3 shall be subject to a fine of not more than $10,000, or

4 imprisonment for not more than one year, or both.

5 TITLE V—GENERAL PROVISIONS

6 SEC. 501. RELATION TO OTHER LAWS.

7 (a) LIMITED PREEMPTION.—No provision of Fed8 eral, State, or local law shall be considered preempted by

9 the Convention, this Act, or implementing regulations un10 less specified in this Act.

11 (b) INDIAN CHILD WELFARE ACT.—Nothing in this

12 Act or in the Convention is inconsistent with or modifies

13 the provisions of the Indian Child Welfare Act (25 U.S.C.

14 1901 et seq.) concerning custody and placement of chil15 dren subject to that Act.

16 (c) STATE LICENSING LAWS.—Nothing in the Con17 vention or this Act precludes any State from requiring

18 that a person or entity be licensed by the State as a condi19 tion of providing adoption-related services.

20 SEC. 502. NO PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.

21 Nothing in the Convention or this Act creates a pri22 vate right of action to seek administrative or judicial relief,

23 except to the extent specifically provided.

24 SEC. 503. EFFECTIVE DATE; TRANSITION PROVISIONS.

25 (a) EFFECTIVE DATE.—
44

•S 682 RS

1 (1) PROVISIONS EFFECTIVE UPON ENACT2 MENT.—Except as provided in paragraph (2), this

3 Act shall take effect upon its date of enactment.

4 (2) PROVISIONS EFFECTIVE UPON THE CON5 VENTION’S ENTRY INTO FORCE.—Subject to the pro6 visions of subsection (b), sections 104, 202, 402,

7 and 404 and titles III and IV shall take effect upon

8 the date of entry into force of the Convention for the

9 United States pursuant to Article 46(2)(a) of the

10 Convention, and shall govern Convention adoptions

11 made final thereafter.

12 (b) TRANSITION PROVISIONS.—

13 (1) ADOPTIONS IN PROCESS ON EFFECTIVE

14 DATE.—The Convention and this Act shall not

15 apply—

16 (A) in the case of a child immigrating to

17 the United States, if the application for advance

18 processing of an orphan petition or petition to

19 classify an orphan as an immediate relative for

20 such child is filed before the effective date spec21 ified in subsection (a); or

22 (B) in the case of a child emigrating from

23 the United States, if the prospective adoptive

24 parents initiated the adoption process in their

25 country of residence with the filing of an appro-
45

•S 682 RS

1 priate application before the effective date of

2 this Act.

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

5 ‘‘Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000’’.

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of this

7 Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

Sec. 2. Findings and purposes.

Sec. 3. Definitions.

TITLE I—UNITED STATES CENTRAL AUTHORITY

Sec. 101. Designation of central authority.

Sec. 102. Responsibilities of the Secretary of State.

Sec. 103. Responsibilities of the Attorney General.

Sec. 104. Annual report on intercountry adoptions.

TITLE II—PROVISIONS RELATING TO ACCREDITATION AND

APPROVAL

Sec. 201. Accreditation or approval required in order to provide adoption services

in cases subject to the Convention.

Sec. 202. Process for accreditation and approval; role of accrediting entities.

Sec. 203. Standards and procedures for providing accreditation or approval.

Sec. 204. Secretarial oversight of accreditation and approval.

Sec. 205. State plan requirement.

TITLE III—RECOGNITION OF CONVENTION ADOPTIONS IN THE

UNITED STATES

Sec. 301. Adoptions of children immigrating to the United States.

Sec. 302. Immigration and Nationality Act amendments relating to children

adopted from Convention countries.

Sec. 303. Adoptions of children emigrating from the United States.

TITLE IV—ADMINISTRATION AND ENFORCEMENT

Sec. 401. Access to Convention records.

Sec. 402. Documents of other Convention countries.

Sec. 403. Authorization of appropriations; collection of fees.

Sec. 404. Enforcement.

TITLE V—GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 501. Recognition of Convention adoptions.

Sec. 502. Special rules for certain cases.

Sec. 503. Relationship to other laws.
46

•S 682 RS

Sec. 504. No private right of action.

Sec. 505. Effective dates; transition rule.

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

2 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress recognizes—

3 (1) the international character of the Convention

4 on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Re5 spect of Intercountry Adoption (done at The Hague

6 on May 29, 1993), and

7 (2) the need for uniform interpretation and im8 plementation of the Convention in the United States

9 and abroad,

10 and therefore finds that enactment of a Federal law gov11 erning adoptions and prospective adoptions subject to the

12 Convention involving United States residents is essential.

13 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—

14 (1) to provide for implementation by the United

15 States of the Convention;

16 (2) to protect the rights of, and prevent abuses

17 against, children, birth families, and adoptive parents

18 involved in adoptions (or prospective adoptions) sub19 ject to the Convention, and to ensure that such adop20 tions are in the children’s best interests; and

21 (3) to improve the ability of the Federal Govern22 ment to assist United States citizens seeking to adopt

23 children from abroad and residents of other countries
47

•S 682 RS

1 party to the Convention seeking to adopt children

2 from the United States.

3 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

4 As used in this Act:

5 (1) ACCREDITED AGENCY.—The term ‘‘accredited

6 agency’’ means an agency accredited under title II to

7 provide adoption services in the United States in

8 cases subject to the Convention.

9 (2) ACCREDITING ENTITY.—The term ‘‘accred10 iting entity’’ means an entity designated under sec11 tion 202(a) to accredit agencies and approve persons

12 under title II.

13 (3) ADOPTION SERVICE.—The term ‘‘adoption

14 service’’ means—

15 (A) identifying a child for adoption and ar16 ranging an adoption;

17 (B) securing necessary consent to termi18 nation of parental rights and to adoption;

19 (C) performing a background study on a

20 child or a home study on a prospective adoptive

21 parent, and reporting on such a study;

22 (D) making determinations of the best in23 terests of a child and the appropriateness of

24 adoptive placement for the child;
48

•S 682 RS

1 (E) post-placement monitoring of a case

2 until final adoption; and

3 (F) where made necessary by disruption be4 fore final adoption, assuming custody and pro5 viding child care or any other social service

6 pending an alternative placement.

7 The term ‘‘providing’’, with respect to an adoption

8 service, includes facilitating the provision of the serv9 ice.

10 (4) AGENCY.—The term ‘‘agency’’ means any

11 person other than an individual.

12 (5) APPROVED PERSON.—The term ‘‘approved

13 person’’ means a person approved under title II to

14 provide adoption services in the United States in

15 cases subject to the Convention.

16 (6) ATTORNEY GENERAL.—Except as used in sec17 tion 404, the term ‘‘Attorney General’’ means the At18 torney General, acting through the Commissioner of

19 Immigration and Naturalization.

20 (7) CENTRAL AUTHORITY.—The term ‘‘central

21 authority’’ means the entity designated as such by

22 any Convention country under Article 6(1) of the

23 Convention.

24 (8) CENTRAL AUTHORITY FUNCTION.—The term

25 ‘‘central authority function’’ means any duty re-
49

•S 682 RS

1 quired to be carried out by a central authority under

2 the Convention.

3 (9) CONVENTION.—The term ‘‘Convention’’

4 means the Convention on Protection of Children and

5 Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption,

6 done at The Hague on May 29, 1993.

7 (10) CONVENTION ADOPTION.—The term ‘‘Con8 vention adoption’’ means an adoption of a child resi9 dent in a foreign country party to the Convention by

10 a United States citizen, or an adoption of a child

11 resident in the United States by an individual resid12 ing in another Convention country.

13 (11) CONVENTION RECORD.—The term ‘‘Conven14 tion record’’ means any item, collection, or grouping

15 of information contained in an electronic or physical

16 document, an electronic collection of data, a photo17 graph, an audio or video tape, or any other informa18 tion storage medium of any type whatever that con19 tains information about a specific past, current, or

20 prospective Convention adoption (regardless of wheth21 er the adoption was made final) that has been pre22 served in accordance with section 401(a) by the Sec23 retary of State or the Attorney General.
50

•S 682 RS

1 (12) CONVENTION COUNTRY.—The term ‘‘Con2 vention country’’ means a country party to the Con3 vention.

4 (13) OTHER CONVENTION COUNTRY.—The term

5 ‘‘other Convention country’’ means a Convention

6 country other than the United States.

7 (14) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ shall have the

8 meaning provided in section 1 of title 1, United

9 States Code, and shall not include any agency of gov10 ernment or tribal government entity.

11 (15) PERSON WITH AN OWNERSHIP OR CONTROL

12 INTEREST.—The term ‘‘person with an ownership or

13 control interest’’ has the meaning given such term in

14 section 1124(a)(3) of the Social Security Act (42

15 U.S.C. 1320a–3).

16 (16) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means

17 the Secretary of State.

18 (17) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the 50

19 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth

20 of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern

21 Mariana Islands, Guam, and the Virgin Islands.
51

•S 682 RS

1 TITLE I—UNITED STATES

2 CENTRAL AUTHORITY

3 SEC. 101. DESIGNATION OF CENTRAL AUTHORITY.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of the Convention and

5 this Act—

6 (1) the Department of State shall serve as the

7 central authority of the United States; and

8 (2) the Secretary shall serve as the head of the

9 central authority of the United States.

10 (b) PERFORMANCE OF CENTRAL AUTHORITY FUNC11 TIONS.—

12 (1) Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the

13 Secretary shall be responsible for the performance of

14 all central authority functions for the United States

15 under the Convention and this Act.

16 (2) All personnel of the Department of State per17 forming core central authority functions in a profes18 sional capacity in the Office of Children’s Issues shall

19 have a strong background in consular affairs, per20 sonal experience in international adoptions, or profes21 sional experience in international adoptions or child

22 services.

23 (c) AUTHORITY TO ISSUE REGULATIONS.—Except as

24 otherwise provided in this Act, the Secretary may prescribe
52

•S 682 RS

1 such regulations as may be necessary to carry out central

2 authority functions on behalf of the United States.

3 SEC. 102. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE.

4 (a) LIAISON RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Secretary shall

5 have responsibility for—

6 (1) liaison with the central authorities of other

7 Convention countries; and

8 (2) the coordination of activities under the Con9 vention by persons subject to the jurisdiction of the

10 United States.

11 (b) INFORMATION EXCHANGE.—The Secretary shall be

12 responsible for—

13 (1) providing the central authorities of other

14 Convention countries with information concerning—

15 (A) accredited agencies and approved per16 sons, agencies and persons whose accreditation or

17 approval has been suspended or canceled, and

18 agencies and persons who have been temporarily

19 or permanently debarred from accreditation or

20 approval;

21 (B) Federal and State laws relevant to im22 plementing the Convention; and

23 (C) any other matters necessary and appro24 priate for implementation of the Convention;
53

•S 682 RS

1 (2) providing Federal agencies, State courts, and

2 accredited agencies and approved persons with an

3 identification of Convention countries and persons

4 authorized to perform functions under the Convention

5 in each such country; and

6 (3) facilitating the transmittal of other appro7 priate information to, and among, central authorities,

8 Federal and State agencies (including State courts),

9 and accredited agencies and approved persons.

10 (c) ACCREDITATION AND APPROVAL RESPONSIBIL11 ITIES.—The Secretary shall carry out the functions pre12 scribed by the Convention with respect to the accreditation

13 of agencies and the approval of persons to provide adoption

14 services in the United States in cases subject to the Conven15 tion as provided in title II. Such functions may not be dele16 gated to any other Federal agency.

17 (d) ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES.—The

18 Secretary—

19 (1) shall monitor individual Convention adop20 tion cases involving United States citizens; and

21 (2) may facilitate interactions between such citi22 zens and officials of other Convention countries on

23 matters relating to the Convention in any case in

24 which an accredited agency or approved person is un25 willing or unable to provide such facilitation.
54

•S 682 RS

1 (e) ESTABLISHMENT OF REGISTRY.—The Secretary

2 and the Attorney General shall jointly establish a case reg3 istry of all adoptions involving immigration of children

4 into the United States and emigration of children from the

5 United States, regardless of whether the adoption occurs

6 under the Convention. Such registry shall permit tracking

7 of pending cases and retrieval of information on both pend8 ing and closed cases.

9 (f) METHODS OF PERFORMING RESPONSIBILITIES.—

10 The Secretary may—

11 (1) authorize public or private entities to per12 form appropriate central authority functions for

13 which the Secretary is responsible, pursuant to regu14 lations or under agreements published in the Federal

15 Register; and

16 (2) carry out central authority functions through

17 grants to, or contracts with, any individual or public

18 or private entity, except as may be otherwise specifi19 cally provided in this Act.

20 SEC. 103. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL.

21 In addition to such other responsibilities as are specifi22 cally conferred upon the Attorney General by this Act, the

23 central authority functions specified in Article 14 of the

24 Convention (relating to the filing of applications by pro25 spective adoptive parents to the central authority of their
55

•S 682 RS

1 country of residence) shall be performed by the Attorney

2 General.

3 SEC. 104. ANNUAL REPORT ON INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTIONS.

4 (a) REPORTS REQUIRED.—Beginning one year after

5 the date of the entry into force of the Convention for the

6 United States and each year thereafter, the Secretary, in

7 consultation with the Attorney General and other appro8 priate agencies, shall submit a report describing the activi9 ties of the central authority of the United States under this

10 Act during the preceding year to the Committee on Inter11 national Relations, the Committee on Ways and Means,

12 and the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep13 resentatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations, the

14 Committee on Finance, and the Committee on Judiciary

15 of the Senate.

16 (b) REPORT ELEMENTS.—Each report under sub17 section (a) shall set forth with respect to the year concerned,

18 the following:

19 (1) The number of intercountry adoptions in20 volving immigration to the United States, regardless

21 of whether the adoption occurred under the Conven22 tion, including the country from which each child

23 emigrated, the State to which each child immigrated,

24 and the country in which the adoption was finalized.
56

•S 682 RS

1 (2) The number of intercountry adoptions in2 volving emigration from the United States, regardless

3 of whether the adoption occurred under the Conven4 tion, including the country to which each child immi5 grated and the State from which each child emi6 grated.

7 (3) The number of Convention placements for

8 adoption in the United States that were disrupted,

9 including the country from which the child emigrated,

10 the age of the child, the date of the placement for

11 adoption, the reasons for the disruption, the resolu12 tion of the disruption, the agencies that handled the

13 placement for adoption, and the plans for the child,

14 and in addition, any information regarding disrup15 tion or dissolution of adoptions of children from other

16 countries received pursuant to section 422(b)(14) of

17 the Social Security Act, as amended by section 205

18 of this Act.

19 (4) The average time required for completion of

20 a Convention adoption, set forth by country from

21 which the child emigrated.

22 (5) The current list of agencies accredited and

23 persons approved under this Act to provide adoption

24 services.
57

•S 682 RS

1 (6) The names of the agencies and persons tem2 porarily or permanently debarred under this Act, and

3 the reasons for the debarment.

4 (7) The range of adoption fees charged in connec5 tion with Convention adoptions involving immigra6 tion to the United States and the median of such fees

7 set forth by the country of origin.

8 (8) The range of fees charged for accreditation of

9 agencies and the approval of persons in the United

10 States engaged in providing adoption services under

11 the Convention.

12 TITLE II—PROVISIONS RELAT13 ING TO ACCREDITATION AND

14 APPROVAL

15 SEC. 201. ACCREDITATION OR APPROVAL REQUIRED IN

16 ORDER TO PROVIDE ADOPTION SERVICES IN

17 CASES SUBJECT TO THE CONVENTION.

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided in

19 this title, no person may offer or provide adoption services

20 in connection with a Convention adoption in the United

21 States unless that person—

22 (1) is accredited or approved in accordance with

23 this title; or
58

•S 682 RS

1 (2) is providing such services through or under

2 the supervision and responsibility of an accredited

3 agency or approved person.

4 (b) EXCEPTIONS.—Subsection (a) shall not apply to

5 the following:

6 (1) BACKGROUND STUDIES AND HOME STUD7 IES.—The performance of a background study on a

8 child or a home study on a prospective adoptive par9 ent, or any report on any such study by a social work

10 professional or organization who is not providing any

11 other adoption service in the case, if the background

12 or home study is approved by an accredited agency.

13 (2) CHILD WELFARE SERVICES.—The provision

14 of a child welfare service by a person who is not pro15 viding any other adoption service in the case.

16 (3) LEGAL SERVICES.—The provision of legal

17 services by a person who is not providing any adop18 tion service in the case.

19 (4) PROSPECTIVE ADOPTIVE PARENTS ACTING ON

20 OWN BEHALF.—The conduct of a prospective adoptive

21 parent on his or her own behalf in the case, to the ex22 tent not prohibited by the law of the State in which

23 the prospective adoptive parent resides.
59

•S 682 RS

1 SEC. 202. PROCESS FOR ACCREDITATION AND APPROVAL;

2 ROLE OF ACCREDITING ENTITIES.

3 (a) DESIGNATION OF ACCREDITING ENTITIES.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall enter into

5 agreements with one or more qualified entities under

6 which such entities will perform the duties described

7 in subsection (b) in accordance with the Convention,

8 this title, and the regulations prescribed under section

9 203, and upon entering into each such agreement

10 shall designate the qualified entity as an accrediting

11 entity.

12 (2) QUALIFIED ENTITY.—In paragraph (1), the

13 term ‘‘qualified entity’’ means a nonprofit private en14 tity that has expertise in developing and admin15 istering standards for entities providing child welfare

16 services and that meets such other criteria as the Sec17 retary may by regulation establish.

18 (b) DUTIES OF ACCREDITING ENTITIES.—The duties

19 described in this subsection are the following:

20 (1) ACCREDITATION AND APPROVAL.—Accredita21 tion of agencies, and approval of persons, to provide

22 adoption services in the United States in cases subject

23 to the Convention.

24 (2) OVERSIGHT.—Ongoing monitoring of the

25 compliance of accredited agencies and approved per26 sons with applicable requirements, including review
60

•S 682 RS

1 of complaints against such agencies and persons in

2 accordance with procedures established by the accred3 iting entity and approved by the Secretary.

4 (3) ENFORCEMENT.—Taking of adverse actions

5 (including requiring corrective action, imposing sanc6 tions, and refusing to renew, suspending, or canceling

7 accreditation or approval) for noncompliance with

8 applicable requirements, and notifying the agency or

9 person against whom adverse actions are taken of the

10 deficiencies necessitating the adverse action.

11 (4) DATA, RECORDS, AND REPORTS.—Collection

12 of data, maintenance of records, and reporting to the

13 Secretary, the United States central authority, State

14 courts, and other entities (including on persons and

15 agencies granted or denied approval or accreditation),

16 to the extent and in the manner that the Secretary re17 quires.

18 (c) REMEDIES FOR ADVERSE ACTION BY ACCREDITING

19 ENTITY.—

20 (1) CORRECTION OF DEFICIENCY.—An agency or

21 person who is the subject of an adverse action by an

22 accrediting entity may re-apply for accreditation or

23 approval (or petition for termination of the adverse

24 action) on demonstrating to the satisfaction of the ac-
61

•S 682 RS

1 crediting entity that the deficiencies necessitating the

2 adverse action have been corrected.

3 (2) NO OTHER ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW.—An

4 adverse action by an accrediting entity shall not be

5 subject to administrative review.

6 (3) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—An agency or person

7 who is the subject of an adverse action by an accred8 iting entity may petition the United States district

9 court in the judicial district in which the agency is

10 located or the person resides to set aside the adverse

11 action. The court shall review the adverse action in

12 accordance with section 706 of title 5, United States

13 Code, and for purposes of such review the accrediting

14 entity shall be considered an agency within the mean15 ing of section 701 of such title.

16 (d) FEES.—The amount of fees assessed by accrediting

17 entities for the costs of accreditation shall be subject to ap18 proval by the Secretary. Such fees may not exceed the costs

19 of accreditation. In reviewing the level of such fees, the Sec20 retary shall consider the relative size of, the geographic loca21 tion of, and the number of Convention adoption cases man22 aged by the agencies or persons subject to accreditation or

23 approval by the accrediting entity.
62

•S 682 RS

1 SEC. 203. STANDARDS AND PROCEDURES FOR PROVIDING

2 ACCREDITATION OR APPROVAL.

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—

4 (1) PROMULGATION OF REGULATIONS.—The Sec5 retary, shall, by regulation, prescribe the standards

6 and procedures to be used by accrediting entities for

7 the accreditation of agencies and the approval of per8 sons to provide adoption services in the United States

9 in cases subject to the Convention.

10 (2) CONSIDERATION OF VIEWS.—In developing

11 such regulations, the Secretary shall consider any

12 standards or procedures developed or proposed by,

13 and the views of, individuals and entities with inter14 est and expertise in international adoptions and fam15 ily social services, including public and private enti16 ties with experience in licensing and accrediting

17 adoption agencies.

18 (3) APPLICABILITY OF NOTICE AND COMMENT

19 RULES.—Subsections (b), (c), and (d) of section 553

20 of title 5, United States Code, shall apply in the de21 velopment and issuance of regulations under this sec22 tion.

23 (b) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS.—

24 (1) ACCREDITATION.—The standards prescribed

25 under subsection (a) shall include the requirement

26 that accreditation of an agency may not be provided
63

•S 682 RS

1 or continued under this title unless the agency meets

2 the following requirements:

3 (A) SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS.—

4 (i) The agency provides prospective

5 adoptive parents of a child in a prospective

6 Convention adoption a copy of the medical

7 records of the child (which, to the fullest ex8 tent practicable, shall include an English9 language translation of such records) on a

10 date which is not later than the earlier of

11 the date that is 2 weeks before (I) the adop12 tion, or (II) the date on which the prospec13 tive parents travel to a foreign country to

14 complete all procedures in such country re15 lating to the adoption.

16 (ii) The agency provides prospective

17 adoptive parents with a training program

18 that includes counseling and guidance for

19 the purpose of promoting a successful inter20 country adoption before such parents travel

21 to adopt the child or the child is placed

22 with such parents for adoption.

23 (iii) The agency employs personnel

24 providing intercountry adoption services on
64

•S 682 RS

1 a fee for service basis rather than on a con2 tingent fee basis.

3 (iv) The agency discloses fully its poli4 cies and practices, the disruption rates of

5 its placements for intercountry adoption,

6 and all fees charged by such agency for

7 intercountry adoption.

8 (B) CAPACITY TO PROVIDE ADOPTION SERV9 ICES.—The agency has, directly or through ar10 rangements with other persons, a sufficient num11 ber of appropriately trained and qualified per12 sonnel, sufficient financial resources, appropriate

13 organizational structure, and appropriate proce14 dures to enable the agency to provide, in accord15 ance with this Act, all adoption services in cases

16 subject to the Convention.

17 (C) USE OF SOCIAL SERVICE PROFES18 SIONALS.—The agency has established procedures

19 designed to ensure that social service functions

20 requiring the application of clinical skills and

21 judgment are performed only by professionals

22 with appropriate qualifications and credentials.

23 (D) RECORDS, REPORTS, AND INFORMATION

24 MATTERS.—The agency is capable of—
65

•S 682 RS

1 (i) maintaining such records and mak2 ing such reports as may be required by the

3 Secretary, the United States central author4 ity, and the accrediting entity that accred5 its the agency;

6 (ii) cooperating with reviews, inspec7 tions, and audits;

8 (iii) safeguarding sensitive individual

9 information; and

10 (iv) complying with other requirements

11 concerning information management nec12 essary to ensure compliance with the Con13 vention, this Act, and any other applicable

14 law.

15 (E) LIABILITY INSURANCE.—The agency

16 agrees to have in force adequate liability insur17 ance for professional negligence and any other

18 insurance that the Secretary considers appro19 priate.

20 (F) COMPLIANCE WITH APPLICABLE

21 RULES.—The agency has established adequate

22 measures to comply (and to ensure compliance of

23 their agents and clients) with the Convention,

24 this Act, and any other applicable law.
66

•S 682 RS

1 (G) NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION WITH STATE

2 LICENSE TO PROVIDE ADOPTION SERVICES.—The

3 agency is a private nonprofit organization li4 censed to provide adoption services in at least

5 one State.

6 (2) APPROVAL.—The standards prescribed under

7 subsection (a) shall include the requirement that a

8 person shall not be approved under this title unless

9 the person is a private for-profit entity that meets the

10 requirements of subparagraphs (A) through (F) of

11 paragraph (1) of this subsection.

12 (3) RENEWAL OF ACCREDITATION OR AP13 PROVAL.—The standards prescribed under subsection

14 (a) shall provide that the accreditation of an agency

15 or approval of a person under this title shall be for

16 a period of not less than 3 years and not more than

17 5 years, and may be renewed on a showing that the

18 agency or person meets the requirements applicable to

19 original accreditation or approval under this title.

20 (c) TEMPORARY REGISTRATION OF SMALL COMMUNITY

21 BASED AGENCIES.—For a 2-year period after the entry

22 into force of the Convention and notwithstanding subsection

23 (b), the Secretary may provide, in regulations issued pursu24 ant to subsection (a), that an agency may register with the

25 Secretary and be accredited to provide adoption services in
67

•S 682 RS

1 the United States in cases subject to the Convention during

2 such period if the agency—

3 (1) is licensed in the State in which it is located

4 and is a non-profit agency;

5 (2) has been providing adoption services in con6 nection with intercountry adoptions for at least 5

7 years;

8 (3) has provided adoption services in fewer than

9 20 intercountry adoptions in the preceding calendar

10 year;

11 (4) has demonstrated that it will be able to pro12 vide the United States Government with all informa13 tion related to the elements described in section 104(b)

14 and provides such information;

15 (5) has initiated the process of becoming accred16 ited under the provisions of this Act and is actively

17 taking steps to become an accredited agency; and

18 (6) has not been found to be involved in any im19 proper conduct relating to intercountry adoptions.

20 SEC. 204. SECRETARIAL OVERSIGHT OF ACCREDITATION

21 AND APPROVAL.

22 (a) OVERSIGHT OF ACCREDITING ENTITIES.—The Sec23 retary shall—

24 (1) monitor the performance by each accrediting

25 entity of its duties under section 202 and its compli-
68

•S 682 RS

1 ance with the requirements of the Convention, this

2 Act, other applicable laws, and implementing regula3 tions under this Act; and

4 (2) suspend or cancel the designation of an ac5 crediting entity found to be substantially out of com6 pliance with the Convention, this Act, other applica7 ble laws, or implementing regulations under this Act.

8 (b) SUSPENSION OR CANCELLATION OF ACCREDITA9 TION OR APPROVAL.—

10 (1) SECRETARY’S AUTHORITY.—The Secretary

11 shall suspend or cancel the accreditation or approval

12 granted by an accrediting entity to an agency or per13 son pursuant to section 202 when the Secretary finds

14 that—

15 (A) the agency or person is substantially

16 out of compliance with applicable requirements;

17 and

18 (B) the accrediting entity has failed or re19 fused, after consultation with the Secretary, to

20 take appropriate enforcement action.

21 (2) CORRECTION OF DEFICIENCY.—At any time

22 when the Secretary is satisfied that the deficiencies on

23 the basis of which an adverse action is taken under

24 paragraph (1) have been corrected, the Secretary

25 shall—
69

•S 682 RS

1 (A) notify the accrediting entity that the de2 ficiencies have been corrected; and

3 (B)(i) in the case of a suspension, terminate

4 the suspension; or

5 (ii) in the case of a cancellation, notify the

6 agency or person that the agency or person may

7 re-apply to the accrediting entity for accredita8 tion or approval.

9 (c) DEBARMENT.—

10 (1) SECRETARY’S AUTHORITY.—On the initiative

11 of the Secretary, or on request of an accrediting enti12 ty, the Secretary may temporarily or permanently

13 debar an agency from accreditation or a person from

14 approval under this title, but only if—

15 (A) there is substantial evidence that the

16 agency or person is out of compliance with ap17 plicable requirements; and

18 (B) there has been a pattern of serious, will19 ful, or grossly negligent failures to comply or

20 other aggravating circumstances indicating that

21 continued accreditation or approval would not

22 be in the best interests of the children and fami23 lies concerned.

24 (2) PERIOD OF DEBARMENT.—The Secretary’s

25 debarment order shall state whether the debarment is
70

•S 682 RS

1 temporary or permanent. If the debarment is tem2 porary, the Secretary shall specify a date, not earlier

3 than 3 years after the date of the order, on or after

4 which the agency or person may apply to the Sec5 retary for withdrawal of the debarment.

6 (3) EFFECT OF DEBARMENT.—An accrediting

7 entity may take into account the circumstances of the

8 debarment of an agency or person that has been

9 debarred pursuant to this subsection in considering

10 any subsequent application of the agency or person,

11 or of any other entity in which the agency or person

12 has an ownership or control interest, for accreditation

13 or approval under this title.

14 (d) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—A person (other than a pro15 spective adoptive parent), an agency, or an accrediting en16 tity who is the subject of a final action of suspension, can17 cellation, or debarment by the Secretary under this title

18 may petition the United States District Court for the Dis19 trict of Columbia or the United States district court in the

20 judicial district in which the person resides or the agency

21 or accrediting entity is located. The court shall review the

22 action in accordance with section 706 of title 5, United

23 States Code.
71

•S 682 RS

1 SEC. 205. STATE PLAN REQUIREMENT.

2 Section 422(b) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.

3 622(b)) is amended—

4 (1) in paragraph (11), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the

5 end;

6 (2) in paragraph (12), by striking ‘‘children.’’

7 and inserting ‘‘children;’’; and

8 (3) by adding at the end the following new para9 graphs:

10 ‘‘(13) contain a description of the activities that

11 the State has undertaken for children adopted from

12 other countries, including the provision of adoption

13 and post-adoption services; and

14 ‘‘(14) provide that the State shall collect and re15 port information on children who are adopted from

16 other countries and who enter into State custody as

17 a result of the disruption of a placement for adoption

18 or the dissolution of an adoption, including the num19 ber of children, the agencies who handled the place20 ment or adoption, the plans for the child, and the rea21 sons for the disruption or dissolution.’’.
72

•S 682 RS

1 TITLE III—RECOGNITION OF

2 CONVENTION ADOPTIONS IN

3 THE UNITED STATES

4 SEC. 301. ADOPTIONS OF CHILDREN IMMIGRATING TO THE

5 UNITED STATES.

6 (a) LEGAL EFFECT OF CERTIFICATES ISSUED BY THE

7 SECRETARY OF STATE.—

8 (1) ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATES BY THE SEC9 RETARY OF STATE.—The Secretary of State shall,

10 with respect to each Convention adoption, issue a cer11 tificate to the adoptive citizen parent domiciled in the

12 United States that the adoption has been granted or,

13 in the case of a prospective adoptive citizen parent,

14 that legal custody of the child has been granted to the

15 citizen parent for purposes of emigration and adop16 tion, pursuant to the Convention and this Act, if the

17 Secretary of State—

18 (A) receives appropriate notification from

19 the central authority of such child’s country of

20 origin; and

21 (B) has verified that the requirements of

22 this Act have been met with respect to the adop23 tion.

24 (2) LEGAL EFFECT OF CERTIFICATES.—If ap25 pended to an original adoption decree, the certificate
73

•S 682 RS

1 described in paragraph (1) shall be treated by Federal

2 and State agencies, courts, and other public and pri3 vate persons and entities as conclusive evidence of the

4 facts certified therein and shall constitute the certifi5 cation required by section 204(d)(2) of the Immigra6 tion and Nationality Act, as amended by this Act.

7 (b) LEGAL EFFECT OF CONVENTION ADOPTION FINAL8 IZED IN ANOTHER CONVENTION COUNTRY.—A final adop9 tion in another Convention country, certified by the Sec10 retary of State pursuant to subsection (a) of this section

11 or section 303(c), shall be recognized as a final valid adop12 tion for purposes of all Federal, State, and local laws of

13 the United States.

14 (c) CONDITION ON FINALIZATION OF CONVENTION

15 ADOPTION BY STATE COURT.—In the case of a child who

16 has entered the United States from another Convention

17 country for the purpose of adoption, an order declaring the

18 adoption final shall not be entered unless the Secretary of

19 State has issued the certificate provided for in subsection

20 (a) with respect to the adoption.
74

•S 682 RS

1 SEC. 302. IMMIGRATION AND NATIONALITY ACT AMEND2 MENTS RELATING TO CHILDREN ADOPTED

3 FROM CONVENTION COUNTRIES.

4 (a) DEFINITION OF CHILD.—Section 101(b)(1) of the

5 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(b)(1)) is

6 amended—

7 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph

8 (E);

9 (2) by striking the period at the end of subpara10 graph (F) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and

11 (3) by adding after subparagraph (F) the fol12 lowing new subparagraph:

13 ‘‘(G) a child, under the age of sixteen at the time

14 a petition is filed on the child’s behalf to accord a

15 classification as an immediate relative under section

16 201(b), who has been adopted in a foreign state that

17 is a party to the Convention on Protection of Chil18 dren and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry

19 Adoption done at The Hague on May 29, 1993, or

20 who is emigrating from such a foreign state to be

21 adopted in the United States, by a United States cit22 izen and spouse jointly, or by an unmarried United

23 States citizen at least twenty-five years of age—

24 ‘‘(i) if—
75

•S 682 RS

1 ‘‘(I) the Attorney General is satisfied

2 that proper care will be furnished the child

3 if admitted to the United States;

4 ‘‘(II) the child’s natural parents (or

5 parent, in the case of a child who has one

6 sole or surviving parent because of the death

7 or disappearance of, abandonment or deser8 tion by, the other parent), or other persons

9 or institutions that retain legal custody of

10 the child, have freely given their written ir11 revocable consent to the termination of their

12 legal relationship with the child, and to the

13 child’s emigration and adoption;

14 ‘‘(III) the child is not the grandchild,

15 niece, nephew, brother, sister, aunt, uncle,

16 or first cousin of one or both of the adopting

17 parents, unless—

18 ‘‘(aa) the child has no living par19 ents because of the death or disappear20 ance of, abandonment or desertion by,

21 separation from, or loss of, both par22 ents; or

23 ‘‘(bb) the sole or surviving parent

24 is incapable of providing the proper

25 care for the child and has in writing
76

•S 682 RS

1 irrevocably released the child for emi2 gration and adoption; and

3 ‘‘(IV) in the case of a child who has

4 not been adopted—

5 ‘‘(aa) the competent authority of

6 the foreign state has approved the

7 child’s emigration to the United States

8 for the purpose of adoption by the pro9 spective adoptive parent or parents;

10 and

11 ‘‘(bb) the prospective adoptive

12 parent or parents has or have complied

13 with any pre-adoption requirements of

14 the child’s proposed residence; and

15 ‘‘(ii) except that no natural parent or prior

16 adoptive parent of any such child shall there17 after, by virtue of such parentage, be accorded

18 any right, privilege, or status under this Act.’’.

19 (b) APPROVAL OF PETITIONS.—Section 204(d) of the

20 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(d)) is

21 amended—

22 (1) by striking ‘‘(d)’’ and inserting ‘‘(d)(1)’’;

23 (2) by striking ‘‘section 101(b)(1)(F)’’ and in24 serting ‘‘subparagraph (F) or (G) of section

25 101(b)(1)’’; and
77

•S 682 RS

1 (3) by adding at the end the following new para2 graph:

3 ‘‘(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a)

4 and (b), no petition may be approved on behalf of a child

5 defined in section 101(b)(1)(G) unless the Secretary of State

6 has certified that the central authority of the child’s country

7 of origin has notified the United States central authority

8 under the convention referred to in such section

9 101(b)(1)(G) that a United States citizen habitually resi10 dent in the United States has effected final adoption of the

11 child, or has been granted custody of the child for the pur12 pose of emigration and adoption, in accordance with such

13 convention and the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000.’’.

14 (c) DEFINITION OF PARENT.—Section 101(b)(2) of the

15 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(b)(2)) is

16 amended by inserting ‘‘and paragraph (1)(G)(i)’’ after

17 ‘‘second proviso therein)’’.

18 SEC. 303. ADOPTIONS OF CHILDREN EMIGRATING FROM

19 THE UNITED STATES.

20 (a) DUTIES OF ACCREDITED AGENCY OR APPROVED

21 PERSON.—In the case of a Convention adoption involving

22 the emigration of a child residing in the United States to

23 a foreign country, the accredited agency or approved person

24 providing adoption services, or the prospective adoptive

25 parent or parents acting on their own behalf (if permitted
78

•S 682 RS

1 by the laws of such other Convention country in which they

2 reside and the laws of the State in which the child resides),

3 shall do the following:

4 (1) Ensure that, in accordance with the

5 Convention—

6 (A) a background study on the child is com7 pleted;

8 (B) the accredited agency or approved

9 person—

10 (i) has made reasonable efforts to ac11 tively recruit and make a diligent search for

12 prospective adoptive parents to adopt the

13 child in the United States; and

14 (ii) despite such efforts, has not been

15 able to place the child for adoption in the

16 United States in a timely manner; and

17 (C) a determination is made that placement

18 with the prospective adoptive parent or parents

19 is in the best interests of the child.

20 (2) Furnish to the State court with jurisdiction

21 over the case—

22 (A) documentation of the matters described

23 in paragraph (1);

24 (B) a background report (home study) on

25 the prospective adoptive parent or parents (in-
79

•S 682 RS

1 cluding a criminal background check) prepared

2 in accordance with the laws of the receiving

3 country; and

4 (C) a declaration by the central authority

5 (or other competent authority) of such other Con6 vention country—

7 (i) that the child will be permitted to

8 enter and reside permanently, or on the

9 same basis as the adopting parent, in the

10 receiving country; and

11 (ii) that the central authority (or other

12 competent authority) of such other Conven13 tion country consents to the adoption, if

14 such consent is necessary under the laws of

15 such country for the adoption to become

16 final.

17 (3) Furnish to the United States central

18 authority—

19 (A) official copies of State court orders cer20 tifying the final adoption or grant of custody for

21 the purpose of adoption;

22 (B) the information and documents de23 scribed in paragraph (2), to the extent required

24 by the United States central authority; and
80

•S 682 RS

1 (C) any other information concerning the

2 case required by the United States central au3 thority to perform the functions specified in sub4 section (c) or otherwise to carry out the duties of

5 the United States central authority under the

6 Convention.

7 (b) CONDITIONS ON STATE COURT ORDERS.—An order

8 declaring an adoption to be final or granting custody for

9 the purpose of adoption in a case described in subsection

10 (a) shall not be entered unless the court—

11 (1) has received and verified to the extent the

12 court may find necessary—

13 (A) the material described in subsection

14 (a)(2); and

15 (B) satisfactory evidence that the require16 ments of Articles 4 and 15 through 21 of the

17 Convention have been met; and

18 (2) has determined that the adoptive placement

19 is in the best interests of the child.

20 (c) DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE.—In a case

21 described in subsection (a), the Secretary, on receipt and

22 verification as necessary of the material and information

23 described in subsection (a)(3), shall issue, as applicable, an

24 official certification that the child has been adopted or a
81

•S 682 RS

1 declaration that custody for purposes of adoption has been

2 granted, in accordance with the Convention and this Act.

3 (d) FILING WITH REGISTRY REGARDING NONCONVEN4 TION ADOPTIONS.—Accredited agencies, approved persons,

5 and other persons, including governmental authorities, pro6 viding adoption services in an intercountry adoption not

7 subject to the Convention that involves the emigration of

8 a child from the United States shall file information re9 quired by regulations jointly issued by the Attorney General

10 and the Secretary of State for purposes of implementing

11 section 102(e).

12 TITLE IV—ADMINISTRATION AND

13 ENFORCEMENT

14 SEC. 401. ACCESS TO CONVENTION RECORDS.

15 (a) PRESERVATION OF CONVENTION RECORDS.—

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after

17 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary,

18 in consultation with the Attorney General, shall issue

19 regulations that establish procedures and require20 ments in accordance with the Convention and this

21 section for the preservation of Convention records.

22 (2) APPLICABILITY OF NOTICE AND COMMENT

23 RULES.—Subsections (b), (c), and (d) of section 553

24 of title 5, United States Code, shall apply in the de-
82

•S 682 RS

1 velopment and issuance of regulations under this sec2 tion.

3 (b) ACCESS TO CONVENTION RECORDS.—

4 (1) PROHIBITION.—Except as provided in para5 graph (2), the Secretary or the Attorney General may

6 disclose a Convention record, and access to such a

7 record may be provided in whole or in part, only if

8 such record is maintained under the authority of the

9 Immigration and Nationality Act and disclosure of,

10 or access to, such record is permitted or required by

11 applicable Federal law.

12 (2) EXCEPTION FOR ADMINISTRATION OF THE

13 CONVENTION.—A Convention record may be disclosed,

14 and access to such a record may be provided, in whole

15 or in part, among the Secretary, the Attorney Gen16 eral, central authorities, accredited agencies, and ap17 proved persons, only to the extent necessary to admin18 ister the Convention or this Act.

19 (3) PENALTIES FOR UNLAWFUL DISCLOSURE.—

20 Unlawful disclosure of all or part of a Convention

21 record shall be punishable in accordance with appli22 cable Federal law.

23 (c) ACCESS TO NON-CONVENTION RECORDS.—Disclo24 sure of, access to, and penalties for unlawful disclosure of,

25 adoption records that are not Convention records, including
83

•S 682 RS

1 records of adoption proceedings conducted in the United

2 States, shall be governed by applicable State law.

3 SEC. 402. DOCUMENTS OF OTHER CONVENTION COUN4 TRIES.

5 Documents originating in any other Convention coun6 try and related to a Convention adoption case shall require

7 no authentication in order to be admissible in any Federal,

8 State, or local court in the United States, unless a specific

9 and supported claim is made that the documents are false,

10 have been altered, or are otherwise unreliable.

11 SEC. 403. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; COLLEC12 TION OF FEES.

13 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be ap15 propriated such sums as may be necessary to agencies

16 of the Federal Government implementing the Conven17 tion and the provisions of this Act.

18 (2) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts appro19 priated pursuant to paragraph (1) are authorized to

20 remain available until expended.

21 (b) ASSESSMENT OF FEES.—

22 (1) The Secretary may charge a fee for new or

23 enhanced services that will be undertaken by the De24 partment of State to meet the requirements of this Act

25 with respect to intercountry adoptions under the Con-
84

•S 682 RS

1 vention and comparable services with respect to other

2 intercountry adoptions. Such fee shall be prescribed

3 by regulation and shall not exceed the cost of such

4 services.

5 (2) Fees collected under paragraph (1) shall be

6 retained and deposited as an offsetting collection to

7 any Department of State appropriation to recover the

8 costs of providing such services.

9 (3) Fees authorized under this section shall be

10 available for obligation only to the extent and in the

11 amount provided in advance in appropriations Acts.

12 (c) RESTRICTION.—No funds collected under the au13 thority of this section may be made available to an accred14 iting entity to carry out the purposes of this Act.

15 SEC. 404. ENFORCEMENT.

16 (a) CIVIL PENALTIES.—Any person who—

17 (1) violates section 201;

18 (2) makes a false or fraudulent statement or mis19 representation of material fact, or offers, gives, solic20 its, or accepts inducement by way of compensation

21 intended to influence or affect in the United States or

22 a foreign country—

23 (A) a decision by an accrediting entity with

24 respect to the accreditation of an agency or ap25 proval of a person under title II;
85

•S 682 RS

1 (B) the relinquishment of parental rights or

2 the giving of parental consent relating to the

3 adoption of a child in a case subject to the Con4 vention; or

5 (C) a decision or action of any entity per6 forming a central authority function; or

7 (3) engages another person as an agent, whether

8 in the United States or in a foreign country, who in

9 the course of that agency takes any of the actions de10 scribed in paragraph (1) or (2),

11 shall be subject, in addition to any other penalty that may

12 be prescribed by law, to a civil money penalty of not more

13 than $50,000 for a first violation, and not more than

14 $100,000 for each succeeding violation.

15 (b) CIVIL ENFORCEMENT.—

16 (1) AUTHORITY OF ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The

17 Attorney General may bring a civil action to enforce

18 subsection (a) against any person in any United

19 States district court.

20 (2) FACTORS TO BE CONSIDERED IN IMPOSING

21 PENALTIES.—In imposing penalties the court shall

22 consider the gravity of the violation, the degree of cul23 pability of the defendant, and any history of prior

24 violations by the defendant.
86

•S 682 RS

1 (c) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.—Whoever knowingly and

2 willfully violates paragraph (1) or (2) of subsection (a)

3 shall be subject to a fine of not more than $250,000, impris4 onment for not more than 5 years, or both.

5 TITLE V—GENERAL PROVISIONS

6 SEC. 501. RECOGNITION OF CONVENTION ADOPTIONS.

7 Subject to Article 24 of the Convention, adoptions con8 cluded between two other Convention countries that meet

9 the requirements of Article 23 of the Convention and that

10 became final before the date of entry into force of the Con11 vention for the United States shall be recognized thereafter

12 in the United States and given full effect. Such recognition

13 shall include the specific effects described in Article 26 of

14 the Convention.

15 SEC. 502. SPECIAL RULES FOR CERTAIN CASES.

16 (a) AUTHORITY TO ESTABLISH ALTERNATIVE PROCE17 DURES FOR ADOPTION OF CHILDREN BY RELATIVES.—To

18 the extent consistent with the Convention, the Secretary

19 may establish by regulation alternative procedures for the

20 adoption of children by individuals related to them by

21 blood, marriage, or adoption, in cases subject to the Conven22 tion.

23 (b) WAIVER AUTHORITY.—

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other

25 provision of this Act, to the extent consistent with the
87

•S 682 RS

1 Convention, the Secretary may, on a case-by-case

2 basis, waive applicable requirements of this Act or

3 regulations issued under this Act, in the interests of

4 justice or to prevent grave physical harm to the child.

5 (2) NONDELEGATION.—The authority provided

6 by paragraph (1) may not be delegated.

7 SEC. 503. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS.

8 (a) PREEMPTION OF INCONSISTENT STATE LAW.—The

9 Convention and this Act shall not be construed to preempt

10 any provision of the law of any State or political subdivi11 sion thereof, or prevent a State or political subdivision

12 thereof from enacting any provision of law with respect to

13 the subject matter of the Convention or this Act, except to

14 the extent that such provision of State law is inconsistent

15 with the Convention or this Act, and then only to the extent

16 of the inconsistency.

17 (b) APPLICABILITY OF THE INDIAN CHILD WELFARE

18 ACT.—The Convention and this Act shall not be construed

19 to affect the application of the Indian Child Welfare Act

20 of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1901 et seq.).

21 (c) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS.—Sections

22 3506(c), 3507, and 3512 of title 44, United States Code,

23 shall not apply to information collection for purposes of sec24 tions 104, 202(b)(4), and 303(d) of this Act or for use as

25 a Convention record as defined in this Act.
88

•S 682 RS

1 SEC. 504. NO PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.

2 The Convention and this Act shall not be construed

3 to create a private right of action to seek administrative

4 or judicial relief, except to the extent expressly provided in

5 this Act.

6 SEC. 505. EFFECTIVE DATES; TRANSITION RULE.

7 (a) EFFECTIVE DATES.—

8 (1) PROVISIONS EFFECTIVE UPON ENACTMENT.—

9 Sections 2, 3, 101 through 103, 202 through 205,

10 401(a), 403, 503, and 505(a) shall take effect on the

11 date of the enactment of this Act.

12 (2) PROVISIONS EFFECTIVE UPON THE ENTRY

13 INTO FORCE OF THE CONVENTION.—Subject to sub14 section (b), the provisions of this Act not specified in

15 paragraph (1) shall take effect upon the entry into

16 force of the Convention for the United States pursu17 ant to Article 46(2)(a) of the Convention.

18 (b) TRANSITION RULE.—The Convention and this Act

19 shall not apply—

20 (1) in the case of a child immigrating to the

21 United States, if the application for advance proc22 essing of an orphan petition or petition to classify an

23 orphan as an immediate relative for the child is filed

24 before the effective date described in subsection (a)(2);

25 or
89

•S 682 RS

1 (2) in the case of a child emigrating from the

2 United States, if the prospective adoptive parents of

3 the child initiated the adoption process in their coun4 try of residence with the filing of an appropriate ap5 plication before the effective date described in sub6 section (a)(2).
Calendar No. 523

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 682

[Report No. 106–276]

A BILL

To implement the Hague Convention on Protection

of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption, and for other purposes.

APRIL 27, 2000

Reported with an amendment