 Putative Father Registry
A Putative Father is defined as a man who may be the child’s biological father, but who is not married to the child’s mother on or before the date of the child’s birth and has not established his paternity through legal proceedings. The legal proceedings include signing a Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity, establishing paternity with the Clerk of the Circuit Court or visiting a representative from Healthcare and Family Services. The Illinois Dept. of Children and Family Services is required by law (750 ILCS 50/12.1) to administer the Putative Father Registry. The purpose of the Registry is to determine the identity and location of a putative father of a minor child who is, or who is expected to be, the subject of an adoption proceeding, so that the court can provide notice of the proceeding to the putative father. As a service of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, the Putative Father Registry was created in 1994 and was designed to improve the process of notifying a biological father that his child may be the subject of an adoption proceeding. This was to protect the father’s rights and to protect those interested in adopting the child. The Putative Father Registry has six basic functions:
- Facilitating the efforts of putative fathers to register with the Putative Father Registry
- Providing Certification of Registration with the PFR to fathers
- Maintaining confidentially of the information provided by fathers
- Facilitating the efforts of interested parties to search the registry for putative fathers
- Conducting searches of the Putative Father Registry for interested parties to determine if a putative father is registered; and
- Informing interested parties of the results of the search. An interested party is defined as:
- A child’s mother
- A child’s father
- A child welfare agency to whom the mother has expressed an interest in making an adoption plan
- The potential adoptive parent
- An attorney representing any one of the above parties
History and Transition
Between 1994 and 2005, the Illinois PFR was operated using an Access data file and it relied heavily on hard copy registry files and manual search of those hard copy files. The Department recognized the potential for human error in using and entering data into a hard copy file system. It was also determined that there was poor utilization of the software, and the search process did not include any cross matching capabilities, both of which contributed to the potential for error and significant liability. As a result, King Technology Inc. (KingTech) was contracted in March of 2005 to assume the operation of the Putative Father Registry System, as a Program of IDCFS. KingTech designed, developed and implemented a web based application consisting of multiple websites with links from the DCFS intranet (D-net), the DCFS external website and the Diligent Search Services Center D-net home page. A free standing website with its own domain name and address that can be reached directly from the Internet was established. Links were developed to the Child Support Division of Healthcare and Human Services that offer information to fathers. A User Guide and FAQ were developed on the website and provide step by step instruction on how to use the on-line system.
King Technology Inc. developed, revised and redeveloped the current web based Putative Father Registry (PFR) and has operated the online PFR for five years. KingTech will maintain the web based application system, the PFR website, which allows for on-line registration by fathers and for on-line requests for searches of the Registry as well as provides Certifications of Registration and Certified Search Results that can be downloaded and printed from the PFR website. KingTech provides:
- Project management staff who coordinate and supervise the PFR activities and interface with DCFS staff
- Full time, highly skilled Operators who perform the customer assistance services, father registration, and conduct the searches and provide results.
- An on site information technology team to maintain and redevelop, when indicated, all software and hardware needs.
- Monthly data analysis reports to the Contract Administrator in the approved format
- Weekly reports of checks received on the approved template, along with the checks, to the designated staff person in the DCFS accounting department.
- Billing of users weekly using the approved billing notification and invoicing process.
The On-line System
The interactive website was built in three parts with required fields to ensure necessary information is collected:
- FATHER REGISTRATION WITH THE PUTATIVE FATHER REGISTRY
- On-line Registration
- Faxing a Registration form
- Mailing a Registration form
- Walk In to register in person
Fathers or potential fathers who want to register with the Putative Father Registry have the option of registering either by fax, mail, online or in person. It is necessary for the father to provide all the information, to the best of his knowledge, about the mother as well as himself. By doing so it enables the search Operator to effectively correlate the father to the information on the child or the mother that is provided by the person requesting the search. If a father wants to be found he must provide the best information that is as accurate as possible.
- APPLICATION FOR SEARCH ACCESS TO THE PUTATIVE FATHER REGISTRY
To become a user on the Putative Father Registry system and submit search requests online, it is necessary to first apply for search access and receive approval. This process verifies the identity of the user and protects the confidentiality of the Registry information.
- REQUESTING A SEARCH OF THE PUTATIVE FATHER REGISTRY
With an active e-mail address (username) and password, provided by the system, an approved user can submit a request for search of the PFR by completing specifically established steps, described in detail in the Guide to Use of the Putative Father Registry located under the User Guide tab on the website.
Search results, as well as billing status can be provided, electronically within search requestor’s personal filing system accessible with their username and password. Search results and electronically signed and stamped Court Certifications are available on the website immediately after the search is completedThe system was designed to first search by last name and all names similar to the names of Mother, Father and Child and then cross referencing the search request information and all last names on all PFR Registrations in the system. The automated system is capable of expanding the search and looking for any similarities in any field relating to the search request. Once the search has been expanded, the system generates all names with any similarities for the father, mother and the child, as well as similar spellings of a name against the names entered for the search. When any registrations are found with similarities to the search request, the Operators personally view all fields on both the search request and fathers registration for a positive match or No match. This includes information regarding physical characteristics, race or color, DOB of the child or whatever information has been provided.
Users of the system are:
a) Fathers Registering to the System and Lawyer (if applicable)
b) Non-Billable Users with Username and Password Access
- Field staff from POS agencies and DCFS with access to the D-Net
- POS agencies without access to the D-net
- Not for profit legal aid organizations
- Others by individual case review
c) Billable Users
- Private Adoption Agencies
- Lawyer of Prospective Adoptive Parents
- Other.
|
