Gregory Luce of Adoptees United has informed us about a new development in South Carolina which concerns me greatly.
HB4566: Consent-based bill applied retroactively to all adoptions in the state, no matter the date the adoption was finalized.
Representative R.J. May has pre-filed a bill that will amend Section 44-63-140, which was amended as recently as 2019 but the enacted law at that time only applied to adoptions finalized after July 1, 2019. HB4566 effectively makes the 2019 law retroactive to all adoptions no matter when finalized, stating that adult adoptees may obtain a “copy of their original birth certificate and accompanying evidence of adoption with the consent of the biological parent and applies retroactively, regardless of the date on which the adoption was finalized.”
Status: Referred to Judiciary Committee the same day it was pre-filed. Awaiting to learn of its status, and what subcommittee.
In my view, the notion of Adoptees as perpetual children is archaic. The South Carolina Legislative Session begins on the second Tuesday of January. I'm awaiting more information from SC adoptee open records advocates.
Til next time,
Mary Ellen