Coalition Formed to Reform RI Parentage Laws

Rhode Islanders for Parentage Equality (RIPE) is a coalition launched in early January to pass comprehensive parentage law reform. The state currently has no statutes clarifying parentage for children born through assisted reproduction or through surrogacy. Says Julie Keller, coalition member, "RIPE... parents have experienced firsthand the anguish of not being able to establish a clear legal tie to their children. That creates barriers to doing fundamental things like making school or medical decisions, forces parents into…costly legal proceedings and [puts us] at risk."

The reform law was passed unanimously by the senate last year but must be re-introduced in this session. Supporting organizations include Adoption RI, TGI Network, GLAD, National Association of Social Workers, RI NOW, and several others.