I-A families in New York who are waiting for background clearance from the New York State Office of Children & Family Services were dealt a blow 2 weeks ago when new legislation went into effect that affects all prospective adopting parents residing in New York State. It requires that prospective foster and adoptive parents, as well as persons over 18 years of age currently residing in their home, be screened against the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) criminal history data base in addition to the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services' (DCJS) data base. This added step didn't take into consideration that all prospective I-A families have to go through the FBI screening as part of their approval from US Citizenship and Immigration Services. As of right now, it will add 10 weeks to the clearance process in New York, and particularly with the pending changes for the China and Guatemala adoption programs, 10 weeks is too long. And once the approval is granted by NYS, I-A families then need to wait for USCIS to grant their approval, currently taking 8-10 weeks in New York City's USCIS office. Just one more example of the left hand not knowing whtat the right hand is doing...
Now, if adoption in the United States were governed by federal law rather than state law, perhaps this little oversight might not be putting hundreds of NY families in jeopardy of completing their adoptions from the countries where they planned to adopt. Perhaps the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute needs to look at issues like this one and develop a plan to make a national adoption law, with legislation where adopting families, either international or domestic, can be sure that they won't be sideswiped by an oversight at the state level; so they can be assured that when their child enters the USA on an IR-3 visa that there is no need for readoption (as some states require, dispite the adoption being final).
The New York Chapter of Families with Children from China is spearheading a campaign to undo the FBI fingerprinting fiasco created with the new NYS legislation. Here is what all I-A parents and their families and friends can do to help:
from David Youtz, President of FCCNY:
Dear FCC Families,
We have just learned of a serious new bureaucratic hurdle for New York State families adopting internationally, which we hope may be overturned.
The NY State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) informed agencies this month that all prospective adoptive parents will need to undergo FBI clearance to qualify in NY for a positive home study - and the estimated clearance time is 10 weeks! OCFS is apparently unaware that families adopting internationally are ALREADY required to undergo FBI clearance as part of their USCIS application. A duplicative requirement would be annoying at any time, but with a large number of families currently rushing to have their paperwork prepared in time to meet the May 1st cut-off date before China's new restrictions begin, an added 10-week delay will be a crisis for some families.
We hear that OCFS may consider waiving the requirement for these particular families, or better yet, amend the process for all families. A conversation is underway with USCIS officials to see if USCIS might share the results of the clearances before placement instead. Meanwhile, the OCFS criminal clearance office is sending back already submitted regular fingerprint cards because they have received a directive not to process them without the new FBI cards - so, clearances are at a standstill. Given the intensely short time involved, some urgent citizen lobbying may be required to focus official attention on the need to change or roll back this new requirement.
We are asking FCC families to contact the OCFS Commission, or the office of Senator Hilary Clinton to register their concern and their strong wish to see fast action on behalf of adopting families caught in the middle. Contact telephone numbers are below, as is a sample letter to Senator Clinton for your use!
If anyone has a good contact with local television, this might be a good story for the media to look at, as well.
Thank you for your help!
-- David Youtz for FCCNY
WHO TO CONTACT:
OCFS Acting Commissioner, Gladys Carrion
Tel: 518-473-8437
New York State Office of Children & Family Services
Capital View Office Park
52 Washington Street
Rensselaer, New York 12144-2796
Phone: (518) 473-7793
Fax: (518) 486-7550
E-Mail via the web site: http://www.ocfs.state.ny.us/main/contact/contact.asp
Governor Eliot Spitzer
State Capitol
Albany, NY 12224
Phone: 518-474-8390
E-Mail from the Governor's web site: http://161.11.121.121/govemail
Senator Hilary Clinton
web site: www.clinton.senate.gov
New York City Office: Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton
780 Third Ave, Suite 2601
New York, NY 10017
Phone: (212) 688-6262 Fax: (212) 688-7444
OR: Albany/Hudson Valley Office
Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton
Leo W. O'Brien Federal Office Building
1 Clinton Square, Room 821
Albany, NY 12207
Phone: (518) 431-0120 Fax: (518) 431-0128
E-Mail from the Senator's web site: http://www.clinton.senate.gov/contact/webform.cfm
---------------SAMPLE TEMPLATE LETTER:-------------------
Dear Senator Clinton,
I am writing to ask for your immediate attention to a newly imposed New York State requirement announced by the Office of Children and Family Services which will have the unintended consequence of preventing a number of New York Families from adopting children from China.
China has just recently announced that it will impose stricter eligibility guidelines for prospective parents, beginning May 1, 2007. Those whose dossiers are received prior to that date will be "grandfathered" in. Those applicants who cannot make the deadline and who now fall outside the papameters of eligibility because of their single status, length of marriage, age, health issues and a variety of other factors, will not be able to adopt.
New York's OCFS notified adoption agencies on January 11, 2007, that all prospective adoptive parents must now undergo an FBI fingerprint clearance before their home study can be completed. This will add up to ten weeks to the home study process and duplicate services, since OCFS did not consider that all parents adopting internationally already undergo FBI clearance as part of their USCIS application process. Families who were close to completing their home study requirements and who are about to submit their home studies to USCIS will now be delayed past the deadline imposed by China if they must submit to an additional FBI clearance before the USCIS FBI clearance.
We need your help in two areas, the first critical:
1. The OCFS FBI fingerprint clearance requirement must be waived for families attempting to adopt from China if they are to submit dossiers by May 1, 2007.
2. Families pursuing international adoption should not be subjected to a duplication of services. Since all families pursuing international adoption undergo FBI fingerprint clearance through USCIS, it should be unecessary for the State of New York to add an unecessary layer to their already lengthy and complex process. Immediate action is needed to obtain a waiver for those prospective parents, all over New York State, who are racing against the clock in order to bring home their children from China.
You have always shown great support for adoptive families. We are counting on your immediate attention to solve this problem.
Sincerely,
