[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 16529-16530]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




       INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION UNIVERSAL ACCREDITATION ACT OF 2012

  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 539, S. 3331.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 3331) to provide for universal intercountry 
     adoption accreditation standards, and for other purposes.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. CARDIN. I further ask unanimous consent that the Kerry amendment, 
which is at the desk, be agreed to, and the Senate proceed to a voice 
vote on passage of the bill, as amended.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 3310) was agreed to, as follows:

                (Purpose: In the nature of a substitute)

       Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
     following:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Intercountry Adoption 
     Universal Accreditation Act of 2012''.

     SEC. 2. UNIVERSAL ACCREDITATION REQUIREMENTS.

       (a) In General.--The provisions of title II and section 404 
     of the Intercountry Adoption

[[Page 16530]]

     Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 14901 et seq.), and related 
     implementing regulations, shall apply to any person offering 
     or providing adoption services in connection with a child 
     described in section 101(b)(1)(F) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(b)(1)(F)), to the same extent 
     as they apply to the offering or provision of adoption 
     services in connection with a Convention adoption. The 
     Secretary of State, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the 
     Attorney General (with respect to section 404(b) of the 
     Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 14944)), and the 
     accrediting entities shall have the duties, responsibilities, 
     and authorities under title II and title IV of the 
     Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 and related implementing 
     regulations with respect to a person offering or providing 
     such adoption services, irrespective of whether such services 
     are offered or provided in connection with a Convention 
     adoption.
       (b) Effective Date.--The provisions of this section shall 
     take effect 18 months after the date of the enactment of this 
     Act.
       (c) Transition Rule.--This Act shall not apply to a person 
     offering or providing adoption services as described in 
     subsection (a) in the case of a prospective adoption in 
     which--
       (1) an application for advance processing of an orphan 
     petition or petition to classify an orphan as an immediate 
     relative for a child is filed before the date that is 180 
     days after the date of the enactment of this Act; or
       (2) the prospective adoptive parents of a child have 
     initiated the adoption process with the filing of an 
     appropriate application in a foreign country sufficient such 
     that the Secretary of State is satisfied before the date that 
     is 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 3. AVAILABILITY OF COLLECTED FEES FOR ACCREDITING 
                   ENTITIES.

       (a) Section 403 of the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 
     (42 U.S.C. 14943) is amended by striking subsection (c).
       (b) Report Requirement.--Section 202(b) of the Intercountry 
     Adoption act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 14922(b)) is amended by 
     adding at the end the following:
       ``(5) Report on use of federal funding.--Not later than 90 
     days after an accrediting entity receives Federal funding 
     authorized by section 403, the entity shall submit a report 
     to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the 
     Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives 
     that describes--
       ``(A) the amount of such funding the entity received; and
       ``(B) how such funding was, or will be, used by the 
     entity.''.

     SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act, the terms ``accrediting entity'', ``adoption 
     service'', ``Convention adoption'', and ``person'' have the 
     meanings given those terms in section 3 of the Intercountry 
     Adoption Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 14902).

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there further debate?
  Hearing none, the question is on the engrossment and third reading of 
the bill.
  The bill was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading and was read 
the third time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The bill having been read the third time, the 
question is, Shall it pass?
  The bill (S. 3331), as amended, was passed.
  Mr. CARDIN. I further ask unanimous consent that the motion to 
reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, with no 
intervening action or debate, and that any statements relating to the 
measure be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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