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Why Do We Adopt? Humans have probably always created our own families, selecting our partners and friends, taking in the children of our relatives and neighbors and communities whenever necessary. While things may be more complicated today, most people can adopt a child in this state after showing a safe and appropriate home, clean criminal record and clear child abuse check, and stable mental/physical health. Beginning January 2000, all California individuals, unmarried partners, and married couples are invited to apply to adopt, according to the "best interests of the child." There are variations to each Adoption alternative, and most are outlined below: Step-Parent Adoptions; Agency Adoption (Dependency/Foster and private); Independent Adoption (domestic private and agency, resident and out-of-state); Surrogacy (gestational and traditional); and International Adoption (completed from inside or outside of the U.S.). Each has its advantages and disadvantages, and choosing to adopt is no less risky than childbirth. Discussed are factors such as cost; wait time; extent of involvement with governmental agencies; choice of children and preferred characteristics; extent of known or unknown child abuse, disabilities, or special needs; risk of return to birthparents; etc. DCFS Agency Adoption The least expensive adoption, and most common type of Agency Adoption, involves placing a child, who is currently in the state juvenile dependency "system," into the home of a preadoptive family through the Department of Children & Family Services (DCFS). (Other "agencies" are discussed below.) Placement in your home can begin as a foster care placement, or the child can be placed after the birthparents' rights have been terminated. Either way, a social worker is involved from the onset of the case, and s/he visits the home, the child, and the Prospective Adoptive Parent ("PAP" or "Applicant") regularly and is available to provide services. The cost of adoption (trainings, homestudies, etc.) through either option is minimal and usually reimbursed by the state. Moreover, until the adoption is completed, foster parents receive monthly compensation for the children's care. (Thereafter, funding is provided by the state.) The DCFS Agency Adoption, however, can include a tremendous risk. If the preadopting parent begins the placement process as a foster parent, the process can be disrupted by return of the child to the parent by the Court. Unless the parental rights have been terminated prior to placement, it is not at all unusual for a birthparent to regain custody long after the foster-parent bond has developed. Another disadvantage of this Agency Adoption can be a lengthy wait. The Applicant will wait to attend pre-adoptive training classes, wait to qualify as a placement home, wait for placement, wait for termination of birthparents' rights, wait for the completion of adoption documents, and wait for each court hearing. While Applicants are permitted to specify permissible abuse histories and personal characteristics, these priorities may delay matching. Moreover, many children placed through DCFS have "special needs." These include children who have been prenatally exposed to drugs and/or alcohol; physically and/or emotionally abused/neglected; diagnosed mentally ill and/or hyperactive; witnesses of domestic violence; etc. In addition, until the birthparents' rights are terminated (but only by voluntary contractual agreement thereafter), the Agency adoptive parent must cooperate with birthparent visits with the children. Other private administrative agencies exist to assist with adoptions. Unlike DCFS, the private adoption agencies act as an Adoption Service Provider, assisting the birthmother by screening applicants. Therefore, these agencies can, and sometimes do, exercise control over Applicant approval. For example, religious agencies may deny adoption approval for Gays and Lesbians. Agencies may also "match" a pregnant mother with an Applicant, which eliminates the PAP's opportunity to select post-birth characteristics, such as infant gender, hair or eye color, race/ethnicity, types of birth defects or mental or physical limitations, etc. Other Agencies simply place children after birth. However, use of a private adoption agency limits participation by governmental agencies to drafting and approving a "homestudy" and one post-placement home-visit by a social worker. Also, private agencies require the birthparents to relinquish parental rights, and so adoptions finalize after a much shorter revocation period. Step-Parent Adoption (Superseding Second-Parent Adoption) Until recent changes by the California Appellate Court and the Assembly, unmarried couples used the "second-parent" adoption to form adoptive families. Now, the proper procedure for both married couples and domestic partners registered in California is to establish a Step-Parent Adoption under Independent Adoption (see next section). The birthparent must absolutely, irrevocably, and fully consent to the adoption by the life-partner, declaring willingness to share his/her sole right of parenting with this partner, who is otherwise unrelated to the child. If unmarried, the domestic partnership must be registered with the state. The adopting parent becomes a full parent, subject to the same obligation to provide for the child and the same rights in future custody disputes. The cost ranges from $1,800 to $5,000, depending on the attorney, and additional charges may be necessary where the parental rights of the uninvolved birthparent have not yet been terminated. The cost may or may not include DCFS homestudy (approximately $800). No birthparent counseling is necessary from an Adoption Service Provider. This adoption takes approximately six month to complete from date of petition filing. |
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