Senate advances adoption recodification bill after technical fix
Summary
Senators unanimously advanced Senate Bill 14, a recodification of state adoption statutes intended to modernize language; lawmakers made a small wording amendment and discussed timing rules before passing the bill on third reading 27–0.
The Utah Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 14, the Adoption Recodification Act, moving a package of language changes intended to modernize adoption statutes and harmonize terminology across the code.
Senator David H. Steele, who presented the bill, described it as a nontechnical recodification designed to update language (for example, replacing terms such as "natural parents" with "birth parents" and "person adopting" with "adoptive parent") rather than to change substantive law. The social services interim committee reviewed the draft and gave it unanimous support, and the bill carried no fiscal note.
Senator McAllister raised a technical drafting question about language on page 4, lines 22–23, suggesting retention of a preposition such as "under" or "pursuant to." Senators agreed to the small wording motion and the motion carried. Members also asked about time elements tied to petitions and final decrees; the sponsor said timing issues would be addressed in subsequent related bills.
The Senate called the question and recorded 27 ayes, no nays; the bill was placed on the third reading calendar and will proceed to the next step in the legislative process.
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