Sec. 102. Responsibilities of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for accreditation of adoption service providers

1,090 words·~5 min read·/bill/113/s/1530/is/section-102

A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

The Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 ( Public Law 106–279 ; 114 Stat. 825) is amended by inserting after section 103 ( 42 U.S.C. 14913 ) the following: The Secretary of Homeland Security, working through the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, shall carry out the functions prescribed by the Convention with respect to the accreditation of agencies and the approval of persons to provide adoption services in the United States in cases subject to the Convention as provided in title II.

Such functions may not be delegated to any other Federal agency. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall be responsible for managing and overseeing investigations related to the operation and services of adoption service providers, whether directly or indirectly. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall serve as the liaison with foreign governments with respect to queries about required post-placement reports and about specific intercountry adoption cases once the adopted children are living in the United States, including queries about the status of adopted children who are living in the United States in cases involving allegations of abuse, neglect, abandonment, or death. .

Section 1 of such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 103 the following: Sec. 103A. Responsibilities of the Department of Homeland Security. . Section 102 of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 14912 ) is amended— in subsection (a), by striking The Secretary and inserting Except as provided for under section 103A, the Secretary ; in subsection (b), by inserting , in coordination with the Secretary of Homeland Security, after The Secretary ; by striking subsection (c); by redesignating subsections

(d)and

(f)as subsections

(c)and (d), respectively; and by striking subsection (e). Section 202 of the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 ( 42 U.S.C. 14922 ) is amended by inserting of Homeland Security after Secretary each place it appears. Section 203 of the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 ( 42 U.S.C. 14923 ) is amended by inserting of Homeland Security after Secretary each place it appears in subsections

(a)and (b). Section 204 of the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 ( 42 U.S.C. 14924 ) is amended— by inserting of Homeland Security after Secretary each place it appears; and in subsection (c)— in paragraph (1), by amending the paragraph heading to read as follows: ; and in paragraph (2), by striking Secretary's debarment order and inserting debarment order of the Secretary of Homeland Security . Section 401(b) of the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 ( 42 U.S.C. 14941(b) ) is amended— in paragraph (1), by inserting , the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, after Secretary ; and in paragraph (2), by inserting the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, after Secretary, . Section 403(b) of the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 14943(b)) is amended— in paragraph (1)— by inserting or the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services after Secretary ; and by inserting or U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, respectively, after Department of State ; and in paragraph (2), by inserting or U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services appropriation, as the case may be, after Department of State appropriation . In this subsection and in section 103: The term adoption service has the meaning given the term in section 3 of the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 14902). The term Associate Director means the Associate Director of the Directorate. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, the term Directorate means the Field Operations Directorate of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The Associate Director shall carry out— the functions described in section 103A(a) of the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000, relating to accreditation of agencies and approval of persons to provide adoption services; the functions described in section 103A(b) of such Act, relating to management and oversight of investigations related to the operation of such providers; and the functions described in section 103A(c) of such Act, relating to liaison responsibilities regarding post-placement reports and certain adoption cases. The Associate Director shall establish and operate, in conjunction with the Secretary of State, a publicly accessible database of adoption service providers. The Associate Director, the Director, and the Secretary of State shall enter into an agreement under which the Director and the Secretary shall provide, for the database, data on intercountry adoption cases relating to adoption service providers. The database shall include, with respect to each accredited agency and approved person, who is an adoption service provider individually, and to the aggregate of all adoption service providers— information identifying such a provider; information on the accreditation status of an agency, or the approval status of a person, as an adoption service provider; information on the number of applications or petitions filed respecting adoption and the numbers of approvals and denials of the applications or petitions; the number of substantiated grievances filed with respect to an adoption service provider; and a description of any sanctions an adoption service provider, or corrective actions that the provider is required to take to maintain accreditation or approval described in subclause (II). The Associate Director, in conjunction with the Secretary of State, shall establish and operate a database containing data respecting children involved in intercountry adoption cases who have immigrated to the United States. Although the data available for adoptions finalized before the date of the enactment of this Act will likely be incomplete, the Associate Director should seek to import available data on all adoptions involving children who are younger than 18 years of age on the date of the enactment of this Act. In operating the database established under clause (i), the Associate Director shall track information about each such child before attaining United States citizenship, including— information identifying a child and the adoptive or prospective adoptive parents, including— the full name of the child in the country of origin and the full name of the child after the adoption is finalized; the gender, date of birth, nationality, and citizenship of the child; the physical address of the child at the time of the adoption; the type of visa issued to the child; and the date on which the child entered the United States; information on the particular adoption service provider, if any, providing services in the particular case; and information on immigration or citizenship status of the child. The Associate Director, the Director, and the Secretary of State shall enter into an agreement under which the Secretary of State shall provide, for the database, data on intercountry adoption cases concerning the adopted children, and the adoption service providers.

Connectionstraces to 8

Traces to 8 documents

U.S. Code