WBIR: Adoption Project announces 2023 legislative push

The Adoption Project announced its 2023 legislative priorities Monday. The organization recommends public policy changes that will help make Tennessee the "best state in the country" to build strong families through adoption and foster care.

Project organizers said these recommendations are the result of nearly a year of extensive research and conversations with stakeholders from across the adoption and foster care systems in Tennessee and around the country.

"Our priorities focus on the best interest of children and helping them reach permanency faster while respecting the dignity of all parties involved, including birth parents," said Jeremy Harrell, founder, president and CEO. "We are encouraged by the leadership and vision of Governor Lee, Commissioner Quin, Senator Haile, Representative Littleton, and so many others who have made child welfare a priority in Tennessee, and look forward to working with them to advance our shared goals this session."

The Adoption Project's legislative priorities include the following recommendations:

PRIVATE/AGENCY ADOPTION

• Streamline the process for voluntary surrender and placement of a child being adopted.

• Reduce the time to finalize an adoption and expand the venue options for finalization.

• Reduce the cost of adoption by streamlining and unifying the home study process for both foster care and adoptive homes.

• Strengthen enforcement against unlicensed adoption facilitators who take advantage of birth and adoptive families.

• Extend the length of time post-birth during which birth-parent expenses can be paid by an adoptive family.

FOSTER CARE

• Encourage and expedite the adoption of older children.

• Complete faster and more efficient searches for close family and social contacts.

• Where possible, create statutory timelines that reduce the current time to permanency for children in foster care.

• Make it easier for foster families to effectively care for the children in foster care placed in their homes by improving support systems available to them.

• Give foster parents a larger role in the process, including the right to be present, participate and speak at all court proceedings, and elevate their status in decisions regarding permanency.

"Our ultimate goal is to ensure that every child has a safe, loving and permanent family. Tennessee is making progress, and we believe that, if enacted, these proposals will help children and families across the state," Harrell said.

Adoption Project COO Jennifer Donnals says that includes the right to be present at and participate in court proceedings. 

"It's only natural that they're going to talk to their foster parents, a lot like any child, a parent would speak. So just to give them a bigger voice, I think it will just help them the overall process," Donnals said. 

"It's the perfect storm of all of this coming together, the policy work, the resources that they are asking for, and the public's help as well. If all three of those work together, I think we could get through this get through this issue."

Lawmakers introduced almost 20 bills targeting adoption and foster care on Monday....

Some of those were inspired by the work of the Adoption Project. The organization said it was able to get several of its ideas in front of lawmakers they are looking forward to Governor Bill Lee's state of the state address Monday.

The adoption project is expecting to hear more plans about adoption and foster care. More from WBIR >>