ATLANTA – State Representative Bert Reeves (R-Marietta) today announced that House Bill 159 was signed into law by Governor Nathan Deal. Rep. Reeves authored HB 159, which will substantially update Georgia’s adoption laws for the first time in almost three decades and streamline and expedite all types of adoptions in Georgia.
“Getting t
o this moment as this critical bill becomes law has been much more about the journey than today’s destination,” said Rep. Reeves. “While the journey to seeing this bill signed into law has had a few obstacles, I believe that these obstacles, while unclear at the time, have ultimately helped to bring a higher level of attention to adoption in Georgia than ever before. HB 159 has shed light on one of the greatest sources of hope for families and children – that is the hope that comes through adoption. Many of you have been on this journey with me, along with thousands of families and children this bill will help, and I sincerely thank each of you. I also want to thank my House colleagues for their overwhelming, bipartisan support of this bill, and I especially want to thank Gov. Deal and Speaker Ralston, our state’s leaders who have great hearts for this issue.”
“It is a great day to be a Georgian, and this is a day that has been a long time coming,” said Speaker of the House David Ralston (R-Blue Ridge). “Today we’re going to take meaningful and substantive steps to fix Georgia’s foster care problem. Simply put, HB 159 makes it easier to adopt a child in Georgia. It helps children find permanent, stable and loving homes – the kind of home that every child deserves – and embraces everyone who is willing to open their homes and hearts to a child in need. Nothing we do this session will be as important as moving our most vulnerable children from foster care to a home. I want to express my appreciation to each of my fellow House members. The House never wavered, and we passed this legislation unanimously three times. I’d especially like to thank the sponsor of this legislation, Rep. Reeves, who has spent much of the last three years working on this bill. He advocated thoughtfully and passionately for Georgia’s children, and I could not be prouder of the work Rep. Reeves has done.”
Rep. Reeves spent nearly two-and-a-half years refining the bill, which has been a top priority in the House for the past two legislative sessions. HB 159 is a total update and modernization to Georgia’s adoption laws. The new adoption laws will allow increased efficiencies in all aspects of Georgia adoption, including the first ever incorporation of a process to domesticate international adoption decrees. The bill expands jurisdictional options for both in state and out of state adoptions and also eliminates the 6 month residency requirement in Georgia. Additionally, Georgia law will now have a shorter revocation period, from a 10 days to four days. Georgia’s current 10-day revocation period is one of most rigorous revocation policies in the nation, and HB 159 seeks to strike the right balance between the rights of birth mother and the adoptive parents by shortening this revocation period. Additionally, the adoption bill will allow birth mothers to receive reasonable living expenses in both private and agency adoptions. Under current law, only birth mothers in agency adoptions are allowed reasonable living expenses, but this change seeks to create a level playing field and give all birth mothers equal access to reasonable living expenses, regardless of which type of adoption they go through. This is the law in most states in the country. Lastly, the bill includes several safeguards on temporary powers of attorney, provides for nonresidents to adopt a child, updates maternity and paternity leave time for new adoptive parents and changes the age at which an individual may access the Adoption Reunion Registry.
According Rep. Reeves, overall, Georgia is now on par with the rest of the nation and Georgia’s updated adoption code will ensure that our residents can adopt and stay in Georgia to do so. The new laws will benefit every family going through the adoption process, and every child in this State who is need of adoption.
For more information on HB 159, please click here.
Representative Bert Reeves represents the citizens of District 34, which includes portions of Cobb County. He was elected into the House of Representatives in 2014, and currently serves as the Vice-Chairman of the Judiciary Non-Civil Committee. He also serves on the Higher Education, Insurance, Interstate Cooperation and Ways & Means committees.
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