Florida Senate - 2019                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SB 832
       
       
       
       
       
       
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                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
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       The Committee on Health Policy (Rader) recommended the
       following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Delete everything after the enacting clause
    4  and insert:
    5         Section 1. Subsection (4) of section 63.162, Florida
    6  Statutes, is amended to read:
    7         63.162 Hearings and records in adoption proceedings;
    8  confidential nature.—
    9         (4)(a) A person may not disclose the following from the
   10  records without a court order the name and identity of a birth
   11  parent, an adoptive parent, or an adoptee unless:
   12         1.(a) The name and identity of the birth parent if the
   13  birth parent authorizes in writing the release of his or her
   14  name;
   15         2.(b) The name and identity of the adoptee, if the adoptee
   16  is 18 or more years of age or older and , authorizes in writing
   17  the release of his or her name; or, if the adoptee is less than
   18  18 years of age, written consent to disclose the adoptee’s name
   19  is obtained from an adoptive parent; or
   20         3.(c) The name and identity of the adoptive parent if the
   21  adoptive parent authorizes in writing the release of his or her
   22  name.; or
   23         (b)(d) A person may disclose from the records the name and
   24  identity of a birth parent, an adoptive parent, or an adoptee
   25  upon order of the court for good cause shown. In determining
   26  whether good cause exists, the court shall give primary
   27  consideration to the best interests of the adoptee, but must
   28  also give due consideration to the interests of the adoptive and
   29  birth parents. Factors to be considered in determining whether
   30  good cause exists include, but are not limited to:
   31         1. The reason the information is sought;
   32         2. The existence of means available to obtain the desired
   33  information without disclosing the identity of the birth
   34  parents, such as by having the court, a person appointed by the
   35  court, the department, or the licensed child-placing agency
   36  contact the birth parents and request specific information;
   37         3. The desires, to the extent known, of the adoptee, the
   38  adoptive parents, and the birth parents;
   39         4. The age, maturity, judgment, and expressed needs of the
   40  adoptee; and
   41         5. The recommendation of the department, licensed child
   42  placing agency, or professional which prepared the preliminary
   43  study and home investigation, or the department if no such study
   44  was prepared, concerning the advisability of disclosure.
   45         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.
   46  
   47  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
   48  And the title is amended as follows:
   49         Delete everything before the enacting clause
   50  and insert:
   51                        A bill to be entitled                      
   52         An act relating to adoption records; amending s.
   53         63.162, F.S.; providing that the name and identity of
   54         a birth parent, an adoptive parent, and an adoptee may
   55         be disclosed from the adoption records without a court
   56         order under certain circumstances; providing an
   57         effective date.