Bastard Nation
Action Alert!May 13, 2002 SUPPORT ADOPTEE RIGHTS! NO on PA's SB 859
Please write the members of the Pennsylvania Senate and ask them to vote NO on SB 859, as it perpetuates the violation of adoptees' rights to access their own birth and adoption records. PA law needs to acknowledge the UNCONDITIONAL right of ALL adult adoptees to access, at minimum, their original birth certificates, which they were able to do in PA as late as 1984. This bill is enormous and wide-ranging, with many beneficial changes to current PA adoption law, but the records access provisions are unacceptable.
For past adoptions:
* The bill maintains the status quo for adoptions prior to its passage, with an expansion of who can ask for a search to be done through an agency or court-appointed Confidential Intermediary (the most notable addition being birth parents of adoptees older than 21 -- currently only adoptees may ask).
* Permission must still be obtained from the birth parent by the intermediary for release of information --unless the court or agency searches for eighteen months without finding (new provision).
For future adoptions:
*For adoptions which occcur after the bill's passage, the adoptee would get information from the court and agency adoption records unless the birth parent objected (disclosure veto).
* For future adoptions the original birth certificate would be available to the adult adoptee upon request.
The provision for unrestricted access to the OBC for future adoptions is strongly opposed by Catholic Charities and others, including the NCFA. Because of this opposition, the Senate Judiciary Committee has not responded to the hundreds of letters, emails and faxes its members have received asking for the bill to be amended to grant unconditional access. They consider the prospective-only access to be a "good compromise."
Let the Senators of Pennsylvania know that ALL adult adoptees have an unconditional right to their original birth certificates, no matter when they were born! This bill will be coming to the floor soon!
Read the full text at http://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/BI/BT/2001/0/SB0859P0988.HTM Read our position paper at http://www.bastards.org/activism/position.htm
Contact InformationSenator Name E-Mail Address FAX
Armstrong, Gibson E. garmstrong@pasen.gov (717) 772-5471
Bell, Clarence D. cbell@pasen.gov (717) 783-7490
Bodack, Leonard J. bodack@dem.pasen.gov
Boscola, Lisa M. boscola@dem.pasen.gov
Brightbill, David J. dbrightbill@pasen.gov
Conti, Joe jconti@pasen.gov (717) 783-5962
Corman, Jake jcorman@pasen.gov (717) 772-3146
Costa Jr., Jay costa@dem.pasen.gov
Dent, Charles W. cdent@pasen.gov (717) 787-1349
Earll, Jane M. jearll@pasen.gov
Erickson, Edwin B. eerickson@pasen.gov (717) 787-0196
Fumo, Vincent J. Senator_Fumo@fumo.com
Gerlach, Jim jgerlach@pasen.gov (717) 783-4587
Greenleaf, Stewart J. sgreenleaf@pasen.gov (717) 783-7328
Helfrick, Edward W. ehelfrick@pasen.gov
Holl, Edwin G. eholl@pasen.gov (717) 787-8004
Hughes, Vincent J. hughes@dem.pasen.gov
Jubelirer, Robert C. rjubelirer@pasen.gov
Kitchen, Shirley M. kitchen@dem.pasen.gov (717) 772-0581
Kasunic, Richard A. (717) 787-0195
Kukovich, Allen G. kukovich@dem.pasen.gov
LaValle, Gerald J. lavalle@dem.pasen.gov (717) 772-2756
Lemmond Jr., Charles D.http://lemmond.pasenategop.com/Contact.htm
Logan, Sean logan@dem.pasen.gov (717) 772-3588
Madigan, Roger A. rmadigan@pasen.gov
Mellow, Robert J. mellow@dem.pasen.gov
Mowery Jr., Harold F. hmowery@pasen.gov (717) 772-0576
Murphy, Timothy F tmurphy@pasen.gov (717) 772-4437
Musto, Raphael J. musto@dem.pasen.gov (717) 783-4141
O'Pake, Michael A. opake@dem.pasen.gov (717) 772-0578
Orie, Jane Clare jorie@pasen.gov (717) 787-8625
Piccola, Jeffrey E. jpiccola@pasen.gov (717) 783-3722
Punt, Terry L. (phone) (717) 772-2753
Rhoades, James J. jrhoades@pasen.gov (717) 783-9149
Robbins, Robert D. rrobbins@pasen.gov
Scarnati, Joseph B. jscarnati@pasen.gov (717) 772-2755
Schwartz, Allyson Y. schwartz@dem.pasen.gov (717) 772-0572
Stack, Michael J. stack@dem.pasen.gov (717) 772-2162
Stout, J. Barry stout@dem.pasen.gov (717) 772-2753
Tartaglione, Christine M. tartaglione@dem.pasen.gov (717)787-7439
Thompson, Robert J. rthompson@pasen.gov (717) 772-1819
Tomlinson, Robert M. rtomlinson@pasen.gov (717) 772-2991
Wagner, Jack wagner@dem.pasen.gov (717) 772-5484
Waugh, Michael L. mwaugh@pasen.gov (717) 783-1900
Wenger, Noah W. nwenger@pasen.gov (717) 783-1900
White, Mary Jo mwhite@pasen.gov (724) 282-6852
White, Donald dwhite@pasen.gov (717) 772-1589
Williams, Anthony H. williams@dem.pasen.gov (717) 772-0574
Williams, Constance H. chwilliams@dem.pasen.gov (717)705-7741
Wozniak, John N. wozniak@dem.pasen.gov (717) 772-0573
Call, fax, write today! Your letters and phone calls do make a difference.
Legislative Committee
Bastard Nation: The Adoptee Rights Organization
http://www.bastards.org/
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