Adoptive parents propose bill to reduce adoption costs

By Jason Sweeney, Special to the Town Crier

Roxane Baxter and Michael Breslin of Los Altos, shown here with their adopted 4-year-old, Anya, join state Sen. Joe Simitian, back, for their Sacramento appearance.

There oughta be a law. Los Altos residents Michael Breslin and Roxane Baxter thought just that after going through the long and costly process of adopting their 4-year-old Russian daughter, Anya.

The couple knew of state Sen. Joe Simitian’s “There Oughta Be A Law” contest and submitted a winning proposal for a bill to lower adoption costs.

During the past three years, six winning entries in Simitian’s contest have been signed into law. This year, Breslin and Baxter’s proposal was one of five chosen from a total of 129 ideas.

When the couple first met Anya through Adoption Adventures last May, they immediately fell in love with her. Seven months later, Anya became their daughter. “She is just a joy and a blessing for our family,” Baxter said.

Throughout the adoption process, Breslin and Baxter realized the costs were prohibitive for most couples. Armed with their experience and knowledge, they put together a bill proposal and submitted it to the contest.

Simitian began the “There Oughta Be A Law” contest as a way to keep his constituents involved in the governmental process. “I have a very thoughtful, caring and informed constituency that wants to be involved,” Simitian said. “One of my commitments when I started this contest was that I would read every proposal personally.”

When Simitian read their proposal, he knew their issue was one that needed to be addressed. “I found it hard to justify that California charges four times as much as other states for the same service,” Simitian said. “We ought to be encouraging rather than discouraging loving families like this.”

The fees and bureaucratic hurdles that came with Breslin and Baxter’s decision to adopt cost $41,000, according to Breslin’s estimates.

They were aware that adopting a child, especially a child from another country, would be lengthy and expensive, involving international flights, FBI background checks, entanglements with foreign bureaucracies, and a slew of different fees. “You don’t roll out of bed and say, hey, I’m going to do this,” Breslin said. “It’s a very long process.”

A sizable chunk of the costs went to apostille fees charged by the state of California. The apostille process involves authenticating the notarization on documents submitted with an adoption dossier.

In California, the secretary of state’s office charges $20 for each document, along with an additional $6 for each different notary public used. With 40-50 documents in a dossier, the fees start to add up.

Breslin and Baxter learned that apostille fees in other states were considerably lower.

“Even high-tax Massachusetts charges $6 a document,” Breslin said. “If other states are able to charge $6, then certainly California can. The money saved will enter the economy and will be used to pay for the child’s clothing, health care and educational needs.”

Breslin and Baxter decided to put together a bill proposal and submit it to Simitian’s contest.

“We were overjoyed to be selected,” Baxter said. “We want to do a little something to help make adoption more affordable for other families.”

“I was very impressed with his ability and command of this matter,” Breslin said of Simitian. “The man had the entire scope.”

“We were delighted he took interest,” Baxter said. “It was a simple thing he could do to make adoption more affordable.”

Breslin, Baxter and their newly adopted daughter, Anya, appeared before a Senate judiciary committee April 6.

“They were very effective in their presentation,” Simitian said. “I think there is something very compelling about real people who are facing a real problem coming to the Capitol and asking for help.”

“They were very receptive and very kind,” Breslin said of the committee. “It was enjoyable. It was a very relaxed atmosphere.”

The couple found the meeting highly interesting, although Anya was slightly less intrigued. Halfway through the presentation she fell asleep, inviting self-deprecating comments from committee speakers.

If their bill proposal is signed into law, it will make adoption cheaper for couples hoping to adopt in the future.