Several New Hampshire lawmakers are sponsoring a bill to clarify the state’s policies on adoption by same-sex couples, and explicitly permit it in all 10 counties. Currently, adoption law allows a married couple or an unmarried adult to adopt. It does not specifically permit or deny it to two committed unmarried adults. This means that judges may interpret the law in various ways. Probate judges in six counties have allowed same-sex couples to adopt, while those in the other four have not, based on the fact that same-sex couples cannot marry in the state.
While the Senate and House have yet to vote on the bill, and the governor has not yet expressed an opinion, I think it is a good sign that there are both Democrats and Republicans co-sponsoring it. As Representative Frank Tupper, a Democratic co-sponsor, said: “If two loving adults have proven they are in a committed fiscal relationship . . . good Lord, give the child a two-parent home.”
(Thanks to PageOneQ for the sighting.)