Sec. 3. Adoption offense
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/bill/118/hr/6220/ih/section-3A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Chapter 11A of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: Whoever, in any circumstance described in subsection (d), knowingly provides or offers to provide adoption intermediary services shall be punished as provided in accordance with subsection (e). Paragraph
(1)shall not apply to— a public child-placing agency; a private licensed child-placing agency; or a licensed attorney. Whoever, in any circumstance described in subsection (d), knowingly places an adoption advertisement shall be punished in accordance with subsection (e). Paragraph
(1)shall not apply to— a public child-placing agency or private licensed child-placing agency licensed to provide services in the State wherein the advertisement appears; an attorney licensed in the State wherein the advertisement appears; or an adoption service provider accredited or approved in accordance with the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 ( 42 U.S.C. 1490 note) advertising an intercountry adoption program. Whoever, in any circumstance described in subsection (d), knowingly provides anything of value, including money, property, or services, whether payment is made directly or indirectly for the benefit of the placing parent in furtherance of an adoption in an amount exceeding $500, shall be punished in accordance with subsection (e). Paragraph
(1)shall not apply with respect to payments made by or in cooperation with— a private child-placing agency licensed in the State where the placing parent resides or is located; or an attorney licensed in the State where the placing parent resides or is located. For the purposes of sections (a), (b), and (c), the circumstances described in these subsections are that— the offender or victim traveled in interstate commerce, or traveled using a means, channel, facility, or instrumentality of interstate commerce, in furtherance of or in connection with the conduct described in subsections (a), (b), or (c); the offender used a means, channel, facility, or instrumentality of interstate commerce in furtherance of or in connection with the conduct described in subsections (a), (b), or (c); any payment of any kind was made, directly or indirectly, in furtherance of or in connection with the conduct described in subsections (a), (b), or
(c)using any means, channel, facility, or instrumentality of interstate commerce or in or affecting interstate commerce; the offender transmitted in interstate commerce any communication relating to or in furtherance of the conduct described in subsections (a), (b), or
(c)using any means, channel, facility, or instrumentality of interstate commerce or in or affecting interstate commerce by any means or in manner, including by computer, mail, wire, or electromagnetic transmission; or the conduct described in subsection
(a)otherwise occurred in or affected interstate or foreign commerce. Whoever violates subsection (a), (b), or (c)— in the case of an individual, shall be fined $100,000, imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both, per violation; or in the case of an organization, shall be fined $250,000 per violation. Nothing in this section may be construed to affect the application of the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 ( 25 U.S.C. 1901 et seq. ) or limit the provision of intercountry adoption programs and services authorized under the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 ( 42 U.S.C. 14921 ). In this section: The term adoption advertising means a paid advertisement, article, notice, or other paid communication published in any newspaper, magazine, or on the internet, on a billboard, over radio or television, or other similar media that— solicits prospective adoptive parents for the purpose of acting as a link between a placing parent and a prospective adoptive parent, or the prospective adoptive parent’s representative, attorney, or agency, for the transfer of legal or physical custody of a child, including adoptive placement; solicits placing parents for the purpose of acting as a link between a placing parent and a prospective adoptive parent, or the prospective adoptive parent’s representative, attorney, or agency, for the transfer of legal or physical custody of a child, including adoptive placement; or offers to pay a placing parent’s living expenses in connection with any transfer or potential transfer of legal or physical custody of a child, including adoptive placement. The term adoption intermediary services means the provision of any of the following services, in exchange for direct or indirect compensation: Soliciting placing parents, whether through adoption advertising or other means, for the purposes of acting as a link between a placing parent and a prospective adoptive parent, or the prospective adoptive parent’s representative, attorney, or agency, for the transfer of legal or physical custody of their child, including adoptive placement. Soliciting prospective adoptive parents, whether through adoption advertising or other means, for the purpose of acting as a link between a placing parent and a prospective adoptive parent, or the prospective adoptive parent’s representative, attorney, or agency, for the transfer of legal or physical custody of a child, including adoptive placement. Acting as a link between placing parents of a child and prospective adoptive parents, whether directly or through the prospective adoptive parents’ representative, agency, or attorney, for the purpose of the transfer of physical or legal custody of the child, including adoptive placement. The term placing parent means a parent with legal authority to place the child for adoption. The term public child-placing agency means any government child welfare agency or child protection agency that has the legal authority to place children for adoption. The term private licensed child-placing agency means a licensed or State approved agency that has the legal authority to place children for adoption. . The chapter heading for chapter 11A of title 18, United States Code, is amended by inserting after and unlawful adoption practices . child support The table of sections for chapter 11A of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding after the item relating to section 228, the following: 228A. Unlawful adoption practices. .
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