18-1511. SALE OR BARTER OF CHILD FOR ADOPTION OR OTHER PURPOSE PENALIZED — ALLOWED EXPENSES. Any person or persons who shall sell or barter any child for adoption or for any other purpose, shall be guilty of a felony, and upon conviction shall be punished by imprisonment in the state penitentiary for not more than fourteen (14) years, or by a fine of not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000), or by both such fine and imprisonment.

Provided however, this section shall not prohibit any person, or adoption agency from providing, in addition to legal and medical costs, reasonable maternity and living expenses during the pregnancy and for a period not to exceed six (6) weeks post partum based upon demonstrated financial need.

Any person or agency, seeking to provide financial assistance in excess of five hundred dollars ($500) shall do so after informally submitting to a court of competent jurisdiction, a verified financial plan outlining proposed expenditures. The court may approve or amend such a proposal. Only after court approval shall assistance totaling more than five hundred dollars ($500) become available to the birth parent. A prospective adoptive parent, or another person acting on behalf of a prospective adoptive parent, shall make payments for allowed expenses only to third party vendors, as is reasonably practical. All actual expenditures shall be presented by verified affidavit of counsel or the agency at the time of the adoption finalization.

No financial assistance to a birth parent shall exceed the sum of two thousand dollars ($2,000) unless otherwise authorized by the court. The financial assistance contemplated by this section shall be considered a charitable gift, not subject to recovery under the terms of section 16-1515, Idaho Code.

History:

[I.C., sec. 18-1511, as added by 1972, ch. 336, sec. 1, p. 873; am. 2000, ch. 172, sec. 1, p. 441.]