Collapse to view only § 14941. Access to Convention records
- § 14941. Access to Convention records
- § 14942. Documents of other Convention countries
- § 14943. Authorization of appropriations; collection of fees
- § 14944. Enforcement
§ 14941. Access to Convention records
(a) Preservation of Convention records
(1) In general
(2) Applicability of notice and comment rules
(b) Access to Convention records
(1) Prohibition
(2) Exception for administration of the Convention
(3) Penalties for unlawful disclosure
(c) Access to non-Convention records
(Pub. L. 106–279, title IV, § 401, Oct. 6, 2000, 114 Stat. 841.)
§ 14942. Documents of other Convention countries
Documents originating in any other Convention country and related to a Convention adoption case shall require no authentication in order to be admissible in any Federal, State, or local court in the United States, unless a specific and supported claim is made that the documents are false, have been altered, or are otherwise unreliable.
(Pub. L. 106–279, title IV, § 402, Oct. 6, 2000, 114 Stat. 841.)
§ 14943. Authorization of appropriations; collection of fees
(a) Authorization of appropriations
(1) In general
(2)
(b) Assessment of fees
(1) The Secretary may charge a fee for new or enhanced services that will be undertaken by the Department of State to meet the requirements of this chapter with respect to intercountry adoptions under the Convention and comparable services with respect to other intercountry adoptions. Such fee shall be prescribed by regulation and shall not exceed the cost of such services.
(2) Fees collected under paragraph (1) shall be retained and deposited as an offsetting collection to any Department of State appropriation to recover the costs of providing such services. Such fees shall remain available for obligation until expended.
(Pub. L. 106–279, title IV, § 403, Oct. 6, 2000, 114 Stat. 841; Pub. L. 107–228, div. A, title II, § 211(a), Sept. 30, 2002, 116 Stat. 1365; Pub. L. 112–276, § 3(a), Jan. 14, 2013, 126 Stat. 2467.)
§ 14944. Enforcement
(a) Civil penaltiesAny person who—
(1) violates section 14921 of this title;
(2) makes a false or fraudulent statement, or misrepresentation, with respect to a material fact, or offers, gives, solicits, or accepts inducement by way of compensation, intended to influence or affect in the United States or a foreign country—
(A) a decision by an accrediting entity with respect to the accreditation of an agency or approval of a person under subchapter II;
(B) the relinquishment of parental rights or the giving of parental consent relating to the adoption of a child in a case subject to the Convention; or
(C) a decision or action of any entity performing a central authority function; or
(3) engages another person as an agent, whether in the United States or in a foreign country, who in the course of that agency takes any of the actions described in paragraph (1) or (2),
shall be subject, in addition to any other penalty that may be prescribed by law, to a civil money penalty of not more than $50,000 for a first violation, and not more than $100,000 for each succeeding violation.
(b) Civil enforcement
(1) Authority of Attorney General
(2) Factors to be considered in imposing penalties
(c) Criminal penalties
(Pub. L. 106–279, title IV, § 404, Oct. 6, 2000, 114 Stat. 842.)