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Senate keeps closed adoption default but allows birth parents to opt in to share records
Summary
Senators advanced first substitute SB77 on adoption records: the bill preserves closed adoptions as the default but lets birth parents elect (and later change) whether to make identifying information and medical records available to adoptees; sponsors said the Office of Vital Records will hold and process the election.
Senators debated first substitute Senate Bill 77, which the sponsor described as maintaining a closed-adoption default while allowing birth parents to opt in to making identifying information—such as medical records—available to adult adoptees and adoptive families.
Senator Weiler, the sponsor, said the bill keeps the default closed but permits a birth parent, at the time of placement or later, to file a written election with the Office of Vital Records to make specific information available. "The default will remain closed," he said, and added that a birth parent "may at any time, file a written document with the office to change the election described above." The sponsor said the election would be stored at the Office of Vital Records and that birth parents could update elections as circumstances or medical history change.
Senators raised practical and privacy questions. Senator Maine asked how the process would work for previously closed adoptions and whether repeated changes could be disruptive; the sponsor said the bill intentionally allows flexibility, noting that birth parents have varied life circumstances. Senator Harper asked why the state tax commission website was referenced in the bill and the sponsor explained the proposal uses a simple public link on the tax commission’s site to point visitors to the adoption registry; he said the tax commission had reviewed and accepted that approach.
Senator Dayton asked for clarification whether the bill is opt-in (requiring a birth parent to elect to share information), and the sponsor confirmed it retains the current default closed regime and requires an affirmative opt-in to release records. After discussion the sponsor moved for third reading; the roll call showed the bill had sufficient support to advance.
The bill’s text identifies the Office of Vital Records as the custodian of elections and sets out a written-consent mechanism for parents who choose to make identifying information available. The Senate advanced the bill toward final consideration.
