An act relating to confirmatory adoptions and standby guardianships
This bill modifies Maine's adoption and guardianship laws. It allows parents to finalize certain adoptions without court approval and enables parents to designate standby guardians for their children without requiring court involvement. The changes affect families seeking to formalize adoptions or plan for child care in emergencies. The bill became law when the Governor signed it on May 22, 2025.
Bill status
signed
all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2025
Committee Review
Feb 2025
House Passage
May 2025
Senate Passage
May 2025
Signed into Law
May 2025
Introduced Jan 28, 2025
Signed May 22, 2025
Floor votes
How they voted
This bill passed the House by voice vote (no roll call recorded).
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
40
Key actions
4
Committee
2
Amendments
14
May 22, 2025
Signed into law
Signed by Governor on May 22, 2025
executive
May 16, 2025
Lower · Passed
Delivered to the Governor on May 16, 2025
lower
May 14, 2025
Introduced
House message: House concurred in Senate proposal of amendment
upper
May 13, 2025
Introduced
Senate proposal of amendment concurred in
lower
May 9, 2025
Introduced
Action Calendar: Senate Proposal of Amendment
lower
May 8, 2025
Introduced
Notice Calendar: Senate Proposal of Amendment
lower
May 7, 2025
Introduced
Senate Message: Passed in concurrence with proposal of amendment
lower
May 6, 2025
Introduced
Read 3rd time & passed in concurrence with proposal of amendment
upper
May 2, 2025
Introduced
Proposal of amendment by Committee on Judiciary agreed to
upper
May 2, 2025
Introduced
Read 2nd time, reported favorably with proposal of amendment by Senator Hashim for Committee on Judiciary
upper
May 2, 2025
Introduced
Favorable report with proposal of amendment by Committee on Judiciary
upper
May 1, 2025
Introduced
Favorable report with proposal of amendment by Committee on Judiciary
upper
Apr 30, 2025
Introduced
Favorable report with proposal of amendment by Committee on Judiciary
upper
Feb 25, 2025
Introduced
Read 1st time & referred to Committee on Judiciary
upper
Feb 20, 2025
Introduced
Rep. LaLonde of South Burlington moved to amend the bill, which was agreed to
lower
Feb 19, 2025
Lower · Passed
Report of Committee on Judiciary agreed to
lower
Feb 19, 2025
Lower · Passed
Rep. LaLonde of South Burlington reported for the Committee on Judiciary
lower
Feb 13, 2025
Introduced
Action Calendar: Favorable with Amendment
lower
Feb 12, 2025
Introduced
Notice Calendar: Favorable with Amendment
lower
Jan 28, 2025
Introduced
Read first time and referred to the Committee on Judiciary
lower
6 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
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