Governor Raimondo has vetoed a bill that would have given grandparents, with temporary custody of their grandchildren, adoption -- and parental-termination rights -- they do not currently have.
The grandparents adoption bill sponsored by Rep. Anastasia Williams, D-Providence, cleared the General Assembly in the final hours of this year's legislative session. It would have allowed grandparents to petition the Family Court to terminate the parents' rights, so they could adopt children in their care.
In her veto message, Raimondo said the legislation "could undermine the rights of natural parents and may inadvertently hinder the Department of Children, Youth, and Families' ability ... to place children, even on a temporary basis, in the care of their grandparents."
Among the concerns she listed: "If grandparents have the right to petition for the termination of parental rights once children are placed with them, then parents are less likely to agree to such kinship placements or guardianships, even though they might be in the best interest of the child."
Beyond that, "attorneys may choose to advise their clients not to agree to such guardianships or placements if this bill were to become law. In 2015 alone, there were 128 guardianship petitions filed in the Family Court. If parents do not agree to such kinship care arrangements ... children could end up in unnecessarily intensive settings of care such as group homes."
Under current law, she also noted, "natural parents have a right to counsel in any termination proceeding brought by the state, and the state is generally required to demonstrate that it has made all reasonable efforts to encourage and strengthen the parental relationship ... It is unclear whether natural parents would still have a right to counsel in the event of a private right of action authorized by this bill."
According to the governor's office, requests for a veto came from the Rhode Island Family Court, the Office of the Public Defender, DCYF and the Rhode Island Coalition for Children and Families.
The governor noted the Senate has created a special legislative commission to review and make recommendations relative to grandparents rights.
(c)2016 The Providence Journal (Providence, R.I.)
