The bill amends the Adoption Act and the New Mexico Uniform Parentage Act to introduce "confirmatory adoptions," allowing parents of children conceived through assisted reproduction to confirm their parentage and obtain an adoption judgment. Key definitions, including "confirmatory adoption," are added to clarify this process. The legislation ensures equal treatment by stating that provisions applicable to father-child relationships also apply to mother-child and parent-child relationships. It also modifies existing law by removing pre-placement study requirements for confirmatory adoptions and detailing notice procedures for adoption petitions, ensuring that all parties are informed and their rights protected.

Additionally, the bill establishes requirements for accounting reports related to adoption expenses, which must be signed under penalty of perjury and include an itemized list of services and recipients of funds. It restricts payments for allowed expenses to prospective adoptive parents and outlines permissible expenses while introducing penalties for violations. The new section for confirmatory adoptions streamlines the petition process by eliminating certain requirements, mandating that courts grant petitions within thirty days if criteria are met, and clarifying that existing presumptions of parentage remain unaffected by the failure to petition for confirmatory adoption.

Statutes affected:
introduced version: 32A-5-3, 32A-5-14, 32A-5-27, 32A-5-34, 40-11A-704
Final Version: 32A-5-3, 32A-5-14, 32A-5-27, 32A-5-34, 40-11A-704