H.B. 232                                                 VETOES

House Bill No. 232

AN ACT concerning

Family Law - Adoption Search, Contact, and Reunion Services - Siblings

FOR the purpose of expanding the adoption search, contact, and reunion services
program within the Social Services Administration to include services to siblings
of adopted individuals; authorizing a sibling of an adopted individual to apply to
receive adoption search, contact, and reunion services under certain
circumstances; requiring a confidential intermediary to attempt to contact a
sibling of an adopted individual under certain circumstances; requiring the
Director of the Social Services Administration to adopt regulations concerning a
certain agreement between a confidential intermediary and a sibling of an
adopted individual; establishing that the consent of a natural parent to an
adoption or guardianship of a child is not valid unless the consent contains a
certain notice; defining a certain term; altering a certain definition; and
generally relating to adoption search, contact, and reunion services.

BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments,
Article - Family Law

Section 5-314(a), 5-4B-01(f), 5-4B-02(a), 5-4B-05, and 5-4B-12
Annotated Code of Maryland
(1999 Replacement Volume and 2003 Supplement)

BY adding to

Article - Family Law

Section 5-4B-01(g)

Annotated Code of Maryland

(1999 Replacement Volume and 2003 Supplement)

SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF
MARYLAND, That the Laws of Maryland read as follows:

Article - Family Law

5-314.

(a) The consent of a natural parent to either an adoption or guardianship of a
child is not valid unless the consent contains an express notice of:

(1)     the right to revoke consent under § 5-311 or § 5-317 of this subtitle;

(2)     the search rights of adopted individuals and biological parents under
[Subtitles 3A and 4B] SUBTITLE 3A of this title AND THE SEARCH RIGHTS OF
ADOPTED INDIVIDUALS, BIOLOGICAL PARENTS, AND SIBLINGS UNDER SUBTITLE 4B
OF THIS TITLE; and

(3)     the right to file a disclosure veto under § 5-3A-05 of this title.

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