Adoptive parents sue over cuts.

Byline: Randi Bjornstad The Register-Guard

Parents who have adopted some of Oregon's most emotionally and physically damaged foster children have filed a class action suit against the state for cutting back their assistance.

The suit was filed in federal court on behalf of four couples - two from Lane County - who altogether have adopted eight children through the state's Adoption Assistance Program.

The families contend that the state Department of Human Resources, which oversees the adoption program, doesn't have the right to reduce monthly assistance payments to adoptive parents by 7.5 percent.

The payments can be less than $200 per month per child or more than $1,000, depending on the severity of each child's needs. The state makes adoption assistance payments on behalf of about 7,000 adoptees each month.

In the case of the four families, monthly payments for individual children ranged from $250 to $1,200 before the cutbacks, which went into effect Feb. 1.

The children suffer a variety of ailments, including attachment disorder from abuse and neglect, developmental delays, physical disabilities and prenatal exposure to drugs and alcohol.

The suit, filed last month, says federal law requires states to enter into assistance agreements with families that adopt children with conditions severe enough to qualify for the payments. Once in place, the plaintiffs contend, federal law requires parental assent to change the amount, unless for some reason the child or family no longer fulfills the eligibility requirements.

In mid-December, the state sent out a letter to adoptive parents, telling them of the impending rollback. The letter acknowledged that the contracts between the state and the families didn't allow the government to reduce the payments unilaterally, said the families' attorney, Art Johnson of Eugene.

The letter instructed the parents to agree in writing to the reduction within 10 days or face complete termination of their assistance agreements, and by extension their entire payment. The state also told the families that hearings to protest the change would not be an option.

The suit is one of several under way to challenge state program cuts made to cope with a $2.5 billion budget shortfall.