Adoption changes sought
The New Jersey Catholic Conference announced its opposition to a bill that would permit adults who had been adopted as children, as well as the guardians or adoptive parents of a child who is currently a minor, to learn the identity of a biological parent.
The NJCC is seeking an amendment to the bill (A2557) that would provide an enhanced mutual consent registry system to link biological parents and adult adopted persons when all parties have requested and consented to such a reunion, said Patrick R. Brannigan, executive director of the NJCC in a statement Feb. 15.
“An enhanced mutual consent registry would be a robust system that would use a qualified individual or agency to function as an intermediary,” he said.
The Senate passed an identical version of the bill Dec. 4 by a 26-12 margin. It is currently being considered in the Assembly Human Services Committee.
Under current law, the state registrar is required to place the adopted person’s original birth certificate and all papers pertaining to the new certificate of birth under seal.
A2557 also amends the law to eliminate language that allows the court, before which an adoption proceeding has taken place, to order that the residence of the adopting parents replace the place of birth on the birth certificate of an adopted child. In the case of a foundling, the bill requires a court of competent jurisdiction to designate the date and place of birth recorded on the original birth certificate.
The NJCC opposes A2557 because biological parents had surrendered children for adoption with not merely an expectation of confidentiality but with actual statutory assurance that his or her identity as the child’s parent will be shielded from public disclosure, Brannigan said.
The issue is also a concern to Catholic Charities agencies statewide, which for decades have had the privilege of sponsoring adoption services, Brannigan said.
“It is important to note that for those adopted persons who desire a reunion, agencies make this possible when the biological parents have also agreed to it — mutual consent is the key principle,” he said.
— Chris Donahue
*The attached/referenced article was originally published in The Catholic Spirit, the official newspaper of the Diocese of Metuchen, and is protected under U.S. and international copyright law