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GOVERNOR QUINN SIGNS HB5428 INTO LAW, MAKING ILLINOIS THE 10TH STATE TO RELEASE OBC'S TO ADOPTEES !

State Rep. Sara Feigenholtz (D-Chicago) cheers as Illinois Governor Pat Quinn signs HB5428 into law on May 21, 2010. Surrounding Rep. Feigenholtz and Governor Quinn at the bill signing are, from left to right, Sheba Seif of Agudath Israel; Jackie Kaplan, adoptive mother, and her adopted son, David; Sen. Jeff Schoenberg (D-Evanston); Howard Griffith, adoptee and former NFL full back; Sen. A.J. Wilhelmi (D-Joliet); and Melisha Mitchell, Executive Director of the White Oak Foundation. Photo by John H. White of the Chicago Sun Times)
The day we've all been waiting for has finally arrived! On May 21, 2010, Illinois became the tenth state in the United States to authorize the release of original birth certificates to adult adopted persons upon request.
For adopted persons born prior to January 1, 1946, the law takes effect immediately. Please click here for additional information and instructions for obtaining your obc if you were born prior to January 1, 1946 (or if you wish to obtain the obc of a deceased spouse or parent who was born prior to 1/1/1946 ).
Adult adopted persons over the age of 21 who were born after January 1, 1946, will have to wait until November 15, 2011, to begin requesting copies of their obc's. Please click here for additional information and instructions for obtaining your obc if you were born on or after 1/1/1946 (or if you wish to obtain the obc of a deceased spouse or parent who was born on or after 1/1/1946 ).
Birth parents of adopted persons who were born on or after January 1, 1946, may file an information veto with the state Registry and request that their first name, last name and/or last known address be removed from any copies of the obc released during their lifetime. Birth parents of adopted persons born before OR after 1/1/1946 may share medical and social background information with an adult adoptee and/or indicate a desire to initiate contact with their birth son or daughter by filing the relevant forms with the Registry. Please click here for additional information and instructions.
Here is a quick recap of the new law's main provisions:
Provides
for the release of the original birth certificate to an adopted person born
prior to January 1, 1946, upon written request.
Provides
for the release of the original birth certificate to an adopted person born
after January 1, 1946, upon written request, beginning November 15, 2011,
providing he or she is over the age of 21 and one or both birth parents listed
on the original birth certificate has not requested anonymity through the state
Registry. A request for anonymity by one birth parent does not prohibit the release of
identifying information pertaining to the other birth parent.
Creates
a Birth Parent Preference Form which allows birth parents to indicate their
wishes regarding contact and the release of identifying information
and/or provide non-identifying information to their surrendered children at
the time of relinquishment OR any time thereafter.
Releases
a copy of the original birth certificate to surviving spouses and surviving
children over the age of 21 of deceased adopted persons who have registered with
the Illinois Adoption Registry (same caveats as for adult adopted persons).
Releases
a copy of the original birth certificate to adopted persons whose birth parents
have filed a request for anonymity in cases where the birth parent is deceased
and a death certificate has been filed with the Registry (effective immediately, even in cases where the adopted person was born after 1/1/1946).
Authorizes
adopted persons who are the subject of a request for anonymity to conduct a FREE confidential intermediary search to obtain updated medical information and/or to
ascertain whether the birth parent still wishes to remain anonymous once five
years have elapsed since the birth parent filed the request for anonymity.
Adoptees who are the subject of a request for anonymity may also request a
second intermediary search once ten years have elapsed since their initial
search. Should the intermediary learn that the birth parent is deceased, he/she
will now be required to obtain a copy of the birth parents death certificate and
submit it to the Registry so that the original birth certificate can be
immediately released to the adoptee.
Specifies
that the filing requirements and filing fees for adopted persons seeking to
obtain their original birth certificates shall be the same as those required of
non-adopted persons requesting copies of their birth certificates.
While adoptees seeking copies of their obc are not required to sign up with the state Registry, in cases where Vital Records possesses medical background
information, pictures, letters or requests for contact from birth family
members of an adopted person who has not signed up with the Registry, they will let the adoptee know and give him or her the opportunity to sign up with the
Registry.
To see local news coverage of this historic event (along with interviews of White Oak's Executive Director, Melisha Mitchell, and her birth daughter, Elizabeth Hutchison) please click here and here....
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A not-for-profit organization offering a
wide range of programs
& services
aimed at facilitating the
post-adopton experience
for Illinois
adoptees
& their birth
and adoptive
families...
for
additional information:
ILtreesurgeon@aol.com
or
call: 312-666-5721
©
2010 The White Oak Founation Site last updated on May 28 2010
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