Statement of the
Vote
No on S1093/S620
We the undersigned, oppose S1093/S620.
This bill, which proposes an “open records” adoption policy, violates the
privacy rights of birth parents and is detrimental to the institution of
adoption in
S1093/S620 threatens the privacy rights of birth parents by opening previously sealed records from past adoptions and eliminating future birth parents’ option to choose confidentiality and privacy. In doing so, this proposed legislation legalizes and encourages the unilateral empowerment of one party to receive private, identifying information about the other and possibly to impose unwanted contact.
Every adoption is distinct, each
involving unique and often difficult personal circumstances. Law and policy
ought therefore to reflect the uniqueness inherent in each adoption, rather
than prescribe a one-size-fits-all policy that unnecessarily infringes upon the
rights and interests of involved parties. For some birth parents especially,
the promises of privacy and confidentiality are critical in their decisions to
choose adoption. Indeed, birth parents who consider placing children for
adoption if S1093/S620 becomes law would no longer even have the option of
confidentiality that is often at the crux of the adoption decision, virtually
eliminating the option for a private adoption in
Unfortunately, the one-year contact preference provision in these bills does very little to protect birth parents’ privacy. Most birth parents will be unaware that a change in the law has repealed the promise of privacy they received at the time of the adoption and unaware that a contact preference provision exists. Moreover, the provision is only an indication of preference. It does not prohibit contact or have any binding effect whatsoever. In addition, the bill imposes very onerous and burdensome provisions on the birth parent.
While we sympathize with adopted people wanting to contact their birth parents, their interests must not negate the potentially oppositional interests of birth parents. Instead, the decision to share private, identifying information and to have contact must be a mutual one. To this effect, we support mutual consent registries that help birth parents and adopted persons who wish to connect the opportunity to do so.
Forty five states, as well as the National Council for Adoption, have recognized the violations of birth parents’ rights that are inherent in legislation like S1093/S620 and the threat this poses to the institution of adoption. We urge you, too, to recognize the critical importance of birth parents’ privacy and the threat to adoption posed by its violation. Please oppose S1093/S620.
Rev. Bruce Davidson, Lutheran Office of Governmental Ministry