§ 18-1511 — SALE OR BARTER OF CHILD FOR ADOPTION OR OTHER PURPOSE PENALIZED — ALLOWED EXPENSES

(1) 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 no more than fourteen (14) years, or by a fine of no more than five thousand dollars ($5,000), or by both such fine and imprisonment.
(2) Any person or organization without a valid and unrevoked license to place children for adoption issued by the Idaho department of health and welfare or a valid and unrevoked license to practice law in Idaho shall be guilty of a misdemeanor if such person or organization:
(a) Advertises in any periodical or newspaper, by radio, or by any other public medium that the person or organization will place children for adoption;
(b) Accepts, supplies, provides, or obtains children for adoption; or
(c) Causes any advertisement to be published in or by any public medium soliciting, requesting, or asking for any child or children for adoption.
(3) Any person, organization, association, or corporation without a valid and unrevoked license to place children for adoption issued by the Idaho department of health and welfare that places any child for adoption shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to a birth parent.
(4) The provisions of 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 postpartum based on demonstrated financial need.
(5) Any person or agency seeking to provide financial assistance in excess of two thousand dollars ($2,000) 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 and shall not be required to make any findings prior to an approval. The court shall take into consideration all of the needs of the birth mother from the time of conception of the child, including housing, medical, basic living, transportation, and any increases to cost of living. 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 at the time of the adoption finalization.
(6) 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.

Legislative History

[18-1511, added 1972, ch. 336, sec. 1, p. 873; am. 2000, ch. 172, sec. 1, p. 441; am. 2024, ch. 231, sec. 1, p. 813; am. 2024, ch. 232, sec. 1, p. 814; am. 2025, ch. 211, sec. 9, p. 976.]