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New Jersey: Panel OKs bill on access to adoption records
From NJ.com:
Lawmakers this evening advanced a bill that would allow adoptees in New Jersey to access medical history and birth records.
The measure was approved by the Assembly Human Services Committee by a 6-0 vote with four abstentions. It now advances to the full Assembly. It has already passed the state Senate.
With six Democrats voting yes and four Republicans abstaining, the Assembly Human Services Committee approved the bill, (S-7999/A1406, siding with most adopted adults who argued having access to the birth records was a civil rights issue.
If the bill becomes law, parents in the future who put their children up for adoption would be able to request in writing not to be contacted, but the state would still have to produce the birth certificates and the contact preference form if requested.
Biological mothers who surrendered children before the law passes and who want to maintain their privacy have 12 months to submit a notarized letter to the state requesting no contact. After that initial year, an adopted person 18 years of age or older would be able to request from the State Registrar a copy of the adoptee’s original birth certificate.
If enacted, New Jersey would be the ninth state in the nation to give adopted people access to their birth records.
Access the full article here.
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