Adoption Changes Get Unanimous Senate Suppport
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TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami/NSF) - The state's Senate unanimously approved a bill aimed at allowing judges to take the "best interests" of children into account when making adoption decisions.
Sponsor Nancy Detert said current law allows biological parents to influence where their children will be placed in adoption cases. She said her bill would change the law to let judges consider the best interests of children.
"Current law permits even a parent who has murdered a spouse, committed egregious acts against their children or who wishes to punish a foster parent that has provided a caring home for their child for a lengthy period of time … to choose who their child will be placed with, without requiring the court to consider what is in the best interest of the child, as it would for any other child in the dependency system," Detert said.
"This bill will allow more kids to get adopted who have been abused, neglected and abandoned,'' Senate Children, Families and Elder Affairs Chairwoman Eleanor Sobel.
A similar House bill, filed by Rep. Janet Adkins, is scheduled to be heard Thursday in the House Health & Human Services Committee.
The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.
