9:3-54.2 Home study, fingerprint and criminal data.

21. a. (1) In addition to meeting the other requirements established by the Department of Children and Families, a home study completed by an approved agency shall include a recommendation regarding the suitability of the home for the placement of a child based upon the results of State and federal criminal history record checks for each prospective adoptive parent and each adult residing in the home.

For the purposes of this section, the federal criminal history record check conducted by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Department of Homeland Security on a prospective adoptive parent shall be valid for the prospective adoptive parent in fulfilling the home study requirement for the State.

(2) Each prospective adoptive parent and each member of the prospective adoptive parent's household, age 18 or older, shall submit to the approved agency standard fingerprint cards containing his name, address and fingerprints taken by a State or municipal law enforcement agency.

(3) The cost of all criminal history record checks conducted pursuant to this section shall be paid by the prospective adoptive parent or household member at the time the fingerprint cards are submitted.

(4) The approved agency shall forward the fingerprint cards and payment to the commissioner.

(5) The commissioner is authorized to exchange fingerprint data and receive criminal history record information from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Division of State Police for use in making the recommendations provided for in this section.

(6) The department shall advise the approved agency of information received from State and federal criminal history record checks based upon the fingerprints submitted by the agency. Information provided to the approved agency shall be confidential and not disclosed by the approved agency to any individual or entity without the written permission of the person who is the subject of the record check.

(7) The commissioner shall adopt regulations for the use of criminal history record information by approved agencies when determining the suitability of a home for the placement of a child for the purposes of adoption.

b. (1) Beginning one year after the effective date of P.L.1993, c.345, a home study completed by an approved agency shall include a recommendation regarding the suitability of the home for the placement of the child based upon a check for any records which might reveal a history of child abuse or neglect by the proposed adoptive parent or member of the parent's household who is 18 years of age or older.

(2) Beginning one year after the effective date, at the request of an approved agency, the commissioner or his designee shall conduct a search of the records of the Division of Child Protection and Permanency regarding referrals of dispositions of child abuse or neglect matters as to the proposed adoptive parent and any member of the parent's household 18 years of age or older, and, if there is information that would raise a question of the suitability of the proposed adoptive parent or member of the parent's household to have guardianship of a child, shall provide that information to the approved agency for its consideration. Information provided to the approved agency pursuant to this paragraph shall be confidential. The commissioner shall establish penalties for disclosure of this confidential information.

L.1993, c.345, s.21; amended 1997, c.176; 2006. c.47, s.40; 2012, c.16, s.18.