Sponsors (19)
The bill strengthens federal protections and deterrence against exploitative intermediaries in interstate adoptions, but does so by imposing stricter licensing and criminal rules that may delay or raise costs for informal/private placements, burden state/nonprofit actors, and create enforcement uncertainty for small facilitators and outreach efforts.
Children and birth families: private interstate adoptions routed to licensed providers and new federal penalties reduce exploitation, commodification, and trafficking risks.
Prospective adoptive and placing parents: federal prohibitions on paid intermediary advertising/payments and criminal penalties make it safer to pursue interstate adoptions and deter unscrupulous brokers.
Parents and families seeking adoption services: greater availability of regulated, licensed adoption providers increases oversight, legal compliance, and predictable processes in many communities.
Families using informal kinship or private placements: tighter licensing and routing requirements could slow placements and increase adoption costs for families who relied on informal/private routes.
Individuals and small organizations that facilitate informal adoptions: risk of severe federal criminal penalties and unclear boundaries could expose small nonprofits, facilitators, and parents to prosecution for routine or informal assistance.
Small agencies, nonprofits, and individuals conducting outreach: broad definitions of advertising (including internet/paid communications) may chill lawful speech and community outreach for fear of violating the statute.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Creates a federal criminal prohibition on unlawful private domestic interstate adoption practices and defines adoption advertising and intermediary services.
Official title: To amend title 18, United States Code, to criminalize unlawful adoption practices.
Introduced November 20, 2025 by Robert Aderholt · Last progress November 20, 2025
Creates a new federal criminal prohibition on unlawful practices in private domestic interstate adoptions, defines key terms for adoption advertising and intermediary services, and sets an effective date 120 days after enactment. The bill aims to protect placing parents, prospective adoptive parents, and children from exploitation by unlicensed or unscrupulous adoption intermediaries and to direct adoption-seekers toward licensed, regulated providers. The law adds a new chapter and section to title 18 of the U.S. Code establishing "unlawful adoption practices," supplies statutory definitions for adoption advertising and intermediary services, and broadly criminalizes certain private intermediary conduct in interstate adoptions (the supplied excerpt did not include the detailed elements, penalties, or exceptions for the new offense).