On September 15, 2003, the Department of State published for public comment two proposed regulations on intercountry adoptions in the Federal Register. The first proposed regulation concerns the accreditation and approval of adoption service providers who wish to provide services in adoption cases subject to the Hague Intercountry Adoption Convention (Part 96). This proposed regulation addresses the procedures and standards that will be used in the accreditation and approval process. The second proposed regulation addresses the federal government's preservation of Hague Convention records (Part 98). Both regulations are available at www.regulations.gov and are published in Part 2 of the Federal Register for September 15, 2003. These proposed rules are open for a 90-day public comment period that commenced on September 15, 2003 and will conclude on December 15, 2003. Any interested person or organization may comment in writing on the proposed regulations. Interested parties are encouraged to provide comments that suggest and justify changes to the proposed regulations and which also identify provisions of the regulations that they support. Receiving both positive and negative feedback will help the Department to evaluate proposed changes in the context of general views held by interested parties. Information on how to send written comments by email or by hard copy to the Department is contained in the Preamble to the proposed regulations published in the September 15, 2003, Federal Register and is reprinted at www.regulations.gov. Written email comments may be sent to adoptionregs@state.gov during the 90-day comment period.

Once the public comment period has ended, the Department will review and analyze the written public comments, modify the proposed rules as it deems appropriate, and publish responses to the written public comment along with the final rules in the Federal Register.

The Department is simultaneously commencing the process of designating accrediting entities to undertake the accreditation and approval function. If you are interested in applying for designation as an accrediting entity, please contact Amanda Sollers or Gloria Laguna at 202-736-9099.

Please communicate this information to any party interested in the status of the proposed regulations. To be added or deleted to this informal email distribution list, please send an email to Amanda Sollers at SollersAM@state.gov or call her at 202-736-9099.

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