The Safe Home Act of 2025 aims to address and prevent unregulated custody transfers of adopted children by adding a formal definition and creating federal advisory and public awareness efforts. The bill would insert a new Section 205 into the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment and Adoption Reform Act of 1978 (CAPTA) to define what constitutes an “unregulated custody transfer” and to recognize the challenges and potential harms these transfers pose to children, families, and the adoption system. It directs the federal government to improve guidance and public education, particularly for child welfare agencies, prospective adoptive families, and other stakeholders, and it requires a comprehensive report to Congress within two years detailing causes, methods (including online avenues), effects, and policy recommendations to prevent and respond to such transfers. In short, the bill seeks to (1) formally define unregulated custody transfers, (2) increase federal efforts to raise awareness and provide technical assistance, and (3) require a federally led findings-and-recommendations report to inform future policy and practice. The act also makes a conforming adjustment to ensure consistency in cross-references within CAPTA.
Key Points
- 1Establishes a new Section 205 (and moves Section 205 to 206) within CAPTA to address unregulated custody transfers.
- 2Definition of unregulated custody transfer: abandonment or placement of a child with a non-family caregiver without safety measures (home study, background checks, supervision) or proper transfer of parental rights, with the intent to sever the parent-child relationship; excludes infant surrenders to safe havens as allowed by state law.
- 3Sense of Congress plus technical assistance and public awareness obligations: the Secretary of Health and Human Services, with other federal agency heads, must improve public awareness and update resources for child welfare workers and prospective adoptive families, including information on pre-adoption education and post-adoption services.
- 4Report to Congress due within two years: the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of State, must produce a report detailing causes, methods (including social media/internet), effects, prevalence by state, and recommended policies to prevent and respond to unregulated transfers; also to describe activities carried out under the public awareness mandate.
- 5Conforming amendment: aligns cross-references in CAPTA to reflect the new numbering (section 206(a) instead of 205(a)).