ADOPTION
Prepared by:
Melinda Hugdahl, Staff Attorney
Legal Services Advocacy Project
651-222-3749, ext. 107
mthugdahl@mnlsap.org

I. ADOPTION ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS
Chapter 79, Article 2, Section 33 (HF 1362)
Adds Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 3b
Effective October 1, 2010

Chapter 163, Article 2, Sections 5-12 (SF 1503)
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subds. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 7
Adds Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subds. 2a and 11
Repeals Minn. Rules parts 9560.0081; 9560.0083, subparts 1, 5, and 6; and 9560.0091, subpart 4, item C
Effective August 1, 2009

A. Adoption Assistance Agreements

1. Requirements
Requires adoption assistance agreements to contain more specific terms, including: (1) the nature of payment, services and assistance to be provided; (2) the child's eligibility for Medicaid and for reimbursement of up to $2,000 in nonrecurring expenses related to adoption; (3) how the agreement may be modified; (4) that the effective date of the agreement is the effective date of the adoption decree; and (5) that the agreement must remain in place regardless of the adoptive parents' state of residence. Specifies that a monthly payment be part of the adoption assistance agreement to support the care of a child who has manifested special needs.
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 2
2. Extensions
Requires that an application to extend an adoption assistance agreement must: (1) be completed by the adoptive parent before the child becomes 18 years old; (2) comply with Department of Human Services (DHS) requirements, including documentation of eligibility; and (3) be made on a DHS form. Provides that: (1) an extension application triggers a reassessment of a child's disability and risk; and (2) the agreement must be renegotiated if the reassessment shows a change in either the level of parenting required or the manifested disability. Prohibits any change in the subsequent agreement unless DHS and the adoptive parents agree to the changes.
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 3

3. Terminations
Provides that the agreement terminates if the DHS determines that the adoptive parents are no longer legally responsible or providing financial support for the child.
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 3

B. Child Over 16
Permits extension of payments to age 21 where the adoption was finalized after the child reached age 16, and the child is: (1) completing a secondary education program leading to an equivalent credential; (2) enrolled in a postsecondary or vocational program; or (3) working at least 80 hours a month. Allows payments in circumstances where the child does not meet any of the criteria due to a medical condition, provided there are regular updates on the condition in the case plan.
Adds Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 3b

C. Eligibility for Assistance Payments

1. Reorganization of Section

Reorganizes the section by moving general eligibility criteria from subdivision 4 to subdivision 1 and replacing the general eligibility criteria in subdivision 4 with eligibility criteria for determining whether the child is considered a "special needs" child.
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subds. 1 and 4

2. New Eligibility Criteria

a. Eligibility For Adoption Assistance
Establishes a two-prong test for eligibility, requiring a child to:

1) Be determined to have special needs; and
2) Either:
a) Meet the criteria set forth in the federal adoption and guardianship assistance program (section 473 of the Social Security Act); or
b) Have had foster care payments paid on the child's behalf while in out-of-home placement through the county or tribe, and be either under the guardianship of DHS or under the jurisdiction of a Minnesota tribe.
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 1(a)

b. Eligibility for IV-E Assistance
Requires the child to be a United States citizen or otherwise be eligible for public benefits under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PWRORA).
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 1(c)

c. Eligibility for State-Funded Assistance
Requires the child to be a citizen of the United States or meet the qualified alien requirements as defined PWRORA.
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 1(c)

3. Determination of Special Needs Child

a. New and Supplemental Criteria
Eliminates parts of existing law that set general eligibility criteria for overall adoption assistance. Substitutes new criteria, and incorporates portions of previous criteria, for general adoption assistance to determine whether a child meets the "special needs" prong of eligibility requirement for adoption assistance. Provides that to meet the "special needs" prong:

1) There has been a determination that the child cannot or should not be returned home due to, among other things:

a) a termination of parental rights;
b) consent to adoption, voluntary relinquishment of parental rights;
c) a determination by a tribe where tribal law allows adoption without termination of parental right of why a child cannot or should not return home;
d) the death of the legal parent.
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 4(a)(3)

2) For non-Indian children: (1) the adoptive family has adopted a child of the same biological parents; and (2) the placing agency determines the adoption is in the child's best interests.
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 4(a)(2)

b. Determination that Providing a Home Without Assistance is Difficult
Includes in characteristics or circumstances for making such determination whether: (1) the child is a member of a sibling group to be "adopted at the same time by the same parent"; and (2) the adoptive parents have previously adopted a child of the same biological parents or the child is eligible for Supplemental Security Income benefits.
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 4(b)

c. Documentation Requirements
Requires documentation to establish eligibility as "special needs" and limits documentation to evidence deemed "appropriate" by DHS.
Adds Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 4(d)

4. Agency Determinations
Provides that, subject to the approval of DHS, the agency must make eligibility determinations. Specifies that children who are not otherwise eligible for IV-E adoption assistance and who meet all criteria will receive adoption assistance through state funds.
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 1

5. Ineligibility

a. For IV-E or State-Funded Assistance
Makes either IV-E or State-Funded assistance unavailable for: (1) a biological parent who later adopts the same child; or (2) international adoptions, unless: (i) the child has been placed into the public child welfare system after adoption has failed; and (ii) all eligibility criteria are met.
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 1

b. For State-Funded Assistance Only
Provides that state-funded assistance is not available for: (1) direct adoptive placements, including equivalent tribal placements; (2) adoptions by a child's legal custodian or guardian; and (3) a child placed in the state from another state or a tribe outside of the state, if eligibility criteria are met and no other state's agency is responsible for the child.
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 1(Direct Placements/Custodians)
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 5 (Out-of-State Placements)

D. Payments
Establishes a basic maintenance payment schedule, based upon the child's age, for all children eligible for adoption. Mandates that a child must receive the maximum amount for his or her age, unless otherwise negotiated with the adoptive parents. Permits supplemental payments for children whose disabilities require additional care, supervision, and structure (as compared to ordinary care provided to children the same age), and establishes a supplemental payment schedule based on the severity of a child's disability and the level of parenting required to care for the child.
Adds Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 2a

E. Publicity for Adoption Assistance Program
Requires DHS to: (1) actively promote the adoption assistance program; and (2) inform all parents who adopt children under DHS guardianship about adoption tax credits.
Adds Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 2a

F. Reimbursement
Limits administrative reimbursement for adoption services to those services agreed upon by DHS prior to commencement of services. Permits DHS to determine whether services are reasonable and appropriate.
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.67, subd. 7

G. Repeal of Administrative Rules
Repeals administrative rule requiring adoptive parents to submit an annual affidavit to DHS for adoption subsidies.
Repeals Minn. Rules parts 9560.0081; 9560.0083, subparts 1, 5, and 6; and 9560.0091, subpart 4, item C

II. FATHER'S ADOPTION REGISTRY
Chapter 163, Article 2, Sections 3 and 4 (SF 1503)
Amends Minn. Stat. § 259.52, subds. 2 and 6
Effective August 1, 2009

Exempts agencies from searching the Father's Adoption Registry if the adoption petition is proceeding under the Safe Place for Newborns Act (Minn. Stat. § 260C.217). Prohibits putative fathers who registered with the Father's Adoption Registry from asserting an interest in a child in a termination of parental rights proceeding under Chapter 260C.