§ 19-5-207.3 — Placement of sibling groups

Colorado § 19-5-207.3

• Jurisdiction: Colorado
• Title 19: Children's
• Art.: Relinquishment and Adoption

Text

(1) When a child is placed for
adoption by the county department, if the child is part of a sibling group, as defined
in section 19-1-103, the county department shall include in the adoption report
prepared for the court the names and current physical custody and location of any
siblings of the child who are also available for adoption; except that the names of
children, parents, caretakers, and adoptive parents and any means of identifying
such persons must not be made available to any party to the adoption proceeding
except upon order of the court or as otherwise permitted by law.

(2) If the child is part of a sibling group, the county department shall make
thorough efforts to locate a joint placement for all of the children in the sibling
group who are available for adoption. If the county department locates an
appropriate, capable, willing, and available joint placement for all of the children in
the sibling group, it shall be presumed that placement of the entire sibling group in
the joint placement is in the best interests of the children. Such presumption may
be rebutted by a preponderance of the evidence that placement of the entire
sibling group in the joint placement is not in the best interests of a child or of the
children.

(3) If the child is part of a sibling group, as defined in section 19-1-103, and is
being placed for adoption by a child placement agency in either a circumstance
involving siblings who are the result of a multiple birth or a circumstance in which a
parent has relinquished parental rights to the children to a child placement agency,
the child placement agency shall make thorough efforts to locate a joint placement
for all of the children in the sibling group who are available for adoption. If the child
placement agency locates an appropriate, capable, willing, and available joint
placement for all of the children in the sibling group, it is presumed that placement
of the entire sibling group in the joint placement is in the best interests of the
children. Such presumption may be rebutted by a preponderance of the evidence
that placement of the entire sibling group in the joint placement is not in the best
interests of a child or of the children. If an entire sibling group is not placed
together in an adoptive placement, the child placement agency shall place as many
siblings of the group together as possible, considering their relationship and the
best interests of each child.

(4) Consideration of the placement of children together as a sibling group
shall not delay the efforts for expedited permanency planning or permanency
planning in order to achieve permanency for each child in the sibling group.

Legislative History

Source: L. 2000: Entire section added, p. 477, � 7, effective July 1. L. 2003: (2) and (3) amended, p. 2628, � 10, effective June 5. L. 2021: (1) and (3) amended, (SB 21-059), ch. 136, p. 735, � 89, effective October 1.