2023 Vermont Statutes › Title 15A - Adoption Act › Chapter 6 - Records of Adoption Proceeding; Retention, Confidentiality, and Access › § 6-104. Release of nonidentifying information

§ 6-104. Release of nonidentifying information
(a) The following persons may request nonidentifying information from confidential adoption records:
(1) the adoptive parent, the legal custodian or guardian of an adoptee, an adoptee who has attained the age of 18, an emancipated adoptee, a deceased adoptee’s direct descendant who has attained the age of 18, or the parent or guardian of a direct descendant who has not attained the age of 18; and
(2) the adoptee’s former parent, grandparent, or sibling.
(b) Upon request by a person listed in subdivision (a)(1) of this section, the court that heard the adoption petition, the agency that placed the adoptee for adoption, or other person who assisted in the adoption shall furnish a detailed summary of any relevant report or information contained in confidential reports in their possession about the adoptee, the adoptee’s former parents, and the adoptee’s genetic history, including the information required by section 2-105 of this title. This report shall exclude identifying information concerning an individual who has not signed a waiver of confidentiality.
(c) Upon request of a person listed in subdivision (a)(2) of this section, the court, the agency that placed the adoptee for adoption, or other person who assisted in the adoption shall release a summary of any relevant report or information in their possession about the adoptee’s history after the former parents’ rights were terminated. The summary shall exclude identifying information concerning an individual who has not signed a waiver of confidentiality.
(d) The court or agency may charge a reasonable fee for the compilation of nonidentifying information, based on the actual costs incurred.
(e) An individual who is denied access to nonidentifying information to which the individual is entitled under this article may petition the court for relief.
(f) If a court or the registry receives a certified statement from a physician explaining in detail how a health condition may seriously affect the health or reproductive decision of an adoptee or a direct descendant of an adoptee, the registry shall make a diligent effort to notify the adoptive parents of a minor adoptee, an adoptee who has attained 18 years of age, or an adoptive parent of a deceased adoptee that the nonidentifying information is available and may be requested from the registry.
(g) If a court or the registry receives a certified statement from a physician explaining in detail why a serious health condition of the adoptee or a direct descendant of the adoptee should be communicated to the adoptee’s genetic parent or sibling to enable them to make informed reproductive and other health related decisions, the registry shall make a diligent effort to notify those individuals that the nonidentifying information is available and may be requested from the registry.
(h) The registry shall prescribe a reasonable procedure for verifying the identity of an individual who requests or furnishes information under this section. (Added 1995, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.)