Multiethnic Placement Act/Interethnic Adoption Provision (MEPA - IEP) 622-05-15-45

(Revised 6/1/22 ML #3677)

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The Multiethnic Placement Act of 1994 (MEPA) was amended in the Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996.  The language of the 1996 provision is as follows:

 

A person or government that is involved in adoption or foster care placement may not –

1. Deny to any individual the opportunity to become a foster care provider, on the basis of the race, color, or national origin of the individual, or of the child involved; or
2. Delay or deny the placement of a child into foster care on the basis of the race, color, or national origin of the foster care provider, or the child involved.

 

The purpose of MEPA/IEP is to promote the best interest of children by:

1. Decreasing the length of time that children wait to be adopted.
2. Preventing discrimination in the placement of children on the basis of race, color, or national origin; and
3. Facilitating the identification and recruitment of foster and adoptive families that can meet children’s needs.

MEPA/IEP provides for diligent recruitment of potential foster and adoptive families that reflect the ethnic and racial diversity of children in the State for whom foster and adoptive homes are needed. (Refer to further MEPA/IEP policy in 624-05.)