Vermont S 95: An act relating to government accountability and State quality of life outcomes

Bill Text

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VT LEG #380177 v.1
S.95 1
Introduced by Senator Hashim 2
Referred to Committee on 3
Date: 4
Subject: Guardianship; standby guardianship; adverse immigration actions 5
Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to establish 6
standby guardianships for children whose parents have been subject to adverse 7
immigration actions. 8
An act relating to standby guardianships for children whose parents have 9
been subject to adverse immigration actions 10
It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont: 11
Sec. 1. 14 V.S.A. § 2622 is amended to read: 12
§ 2622. DEFINITIONS 13
As used in this article: 14
(1) “Child” means an individual who is under 18 years of age and who 15
is the subject of a petition for guardianship filed pursuant to section 2623 of 16
this title. 17
(2) “Child in need of guardianship” means: 18
(A) A child who the parties consent is in need of adult care because 19
of any one of the following: 20

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VT LEG #380177 v.1
(i) The child’s custodial parent has a serious or terminal illness. 1
(ii) A custodial parent’s physical or mental health prevents the 2
parent from providing proper care and supervision for the child. 3
(iii) The child’s home is no longer habitable as the result of a 4
natural disaster. 5
(iv) A custodial parent of the child is incarcerated. 6
(v) A custodial parent of the child is on active military duty. 7
(vi) A custodial parent of the child is unavailable to care for the 8
child because the parent has been subject to an adverse immigration action. 9
(vii) The parties have articulated and agreed to another reason that 10
guardianship is in the best interests of the child. 11
(B) A child who is: 12
(i) abandoned or abused by the child’s parent; 13
(ii) without proper parental care, subsistence, education, medical, 14
or other care necessary for the child’s well-being; or 15
(iii) without or beyond the control of the child’s parent. 16
(3)(A) “Custodial parent” means a parent who, at the time of the 17
commencement of the guardianship proceeding, has the right and 18
responsibility to provide the routine daily care and control of the child. The 19
rights of the custodial parent may be held solely or shared and may be subject 20
to the court-ordered right of the other parent to have contact with the child. If 21

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physical parental rights and responsibilities are shared pursuant to court order, 1
both parents shall be considered “custodial parents” for purposes of this 2
subdivision (3). 3
(B) In standby guardianship cases filed pursuant to section 2626a of 4
this title, the following parents shall be considered “custodial parents” for 5
purposes of this subdivision (3): 6
(i) the custodial parent who has sole custody of the child; or 7
(ii) if custodial parenting rights are shared, all the parents who 8
share custody. 9
(4) “Nonconsensual guardianship” means a guardianship with respect to 10
which: 11
(A) a parent is opposed to establishing the guardianship; or 12
(B) a parent seeks to terminate a guardianship that the parent 13
previously agreed to establish. 14
(5) “Noncustodial parent” means a parent who is not a custodial parent 15
at the time of the commencement of the guardianship proceeding. 16
(6) “Parent” means a child’s biological or adoptive parent, including 17
custodial parents; noncustodial parents; parents with legal or physical 18
responsibilities, or both; and parents whose rights have never been adjudicated. 19
(7) “Parent-child contact” means the right of a parent to have visitation 20
with the child by court order. 21

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(8) “Standby guardianship” means a consensual guardianship agreement 1
between the custodial parent and their chosen guardian that meets the 2
requirements of section 2626a of this title, in which the custodial parent has 3
been subject to an adverse immigration action that has rendered the parent 4
unavailable to care for their child. 5
(9) “Adverse immigration action” means: 6
(A) arrest or apprehension by any local, state, or federal law 7
enforcement officer for an alleged violation of federal immigration law; 8
(B) arrest, detention, or custody by the Department of Homeland 9
Security or a federal, state, or local agency authorized by or acting on behalf of 10
the Department of Homeland Security; 11
(C) departure from the United States under an order of removal, 12
deportation, exclusion, voluntary departure, or expedited removal or a 13
stipulation of voluntary departure; 14
(D) the denial, revocation, or delay of the issuance of a visa or 15
transportation letter by the Department of State; 16
(E) the denial, revocation, or delay of the issuance of a parole 17
document or reentry permit by the Department of Homeland Security; or 18
(F) the denial of admission or entry into the United States by th