COMMONWEALTH CHILD CUSTODY JURISDICTION ACT - REPEALED — 1978 Pa. Act 47 (historical enacted text)

Historical Act text

SENATE AMENDED
PRIOR PRINTER'S NOS. 1284, 1328, 2312, PRINTER'S NO. 2445
2438
INTRODUCED BY MESSRS. RHODES, BERSON, W. D. HUTCHINSON AND
SCIRICA, MAY 2, 1977
AS AMENDED ON THIRD CONSIDERATION, IN SENATE, DECEMBER 13, 1977
AN ACT
1 Providing for the custody of children.
2 TABLE OF CONTENTS
3 Section 1. Short title.
4 Section 2. Purposes of act; construction of provisions.
5 Section 3. Definitions.
6 Section 4. Jurisdiction.
7 Section 5. Notice and opportunity to be heard.
8 Section 6. Notice to persons outside the jurisdiction of the
9 court; submission to jurisdiction.
10 Section 7. Simultaneous proceedings in other courts.
11 Section 8. Inconvenient forum.
12 Section 9. Jurisdiction declined by reason of conduct.
13 Section 10. Information under oath to be submitted to the
14 court.
15 Section 11. Additional parties.
16 Section 12. Appearance of parties and the child.
1 Section 13. Binding force of custody decree.
2 Section 14. Recognition of custody decrees of other courts.
3 Section 15. Modification of custody decrees of other courts.
4 Section 16. Filing and enforcement of custody decree of another
5 court.
6 Section 17. Registry of custody decrees and proceedings of
7 other courts.
8 Section 18. Certified copies of custody decree.
9 Section 19. Taking testimony in another jurisdiction.
10 Section 20. Hearings and studies in another jurisdiction;
11 orders to appear.
12 Section 21. Assistance to courts of other jurisdictions.
13 Section 22. Preservation of documents for use in other
14 jurisdictions.
15 Section 23. Request for court records of another jurisdiction.
16 Section 24. Priority.
17 Section 25. Repeal.
18 Section 26. Effective date.
19 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
20 hereby enacts as follows:
21 Section 1. Short title.
22 This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Commonwealth
23 Child Custody Jurisdiction Act."
24 Section 2. Purposes of act; construction of provisions.
25 (a) The general purposes of this act are to:
26 (1) avoid jurisdictional competition and conflict with
27 courts of the respective counties of the Commonwealth in
28 matters of child custody which have in the past resulted in
29 the shifting of children from county to county with harmful
30 effects on their well-being;
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1 (2) promote cooperation among the courts of the
2 Commonwealth to the end that a custody decree is rendered in
3 that jurisdiction which can best decide the case in the
4 interest of the child;
5 (3) assure that litigation concerning the custody of a
6 child take place ordinarily in the jurisdiction with which
7 the child and his family have the closest connection and
8 where significant evidence concerning his care, protection,
9 training and personal relationships is most readily
10 available, and that courts decline the exercise of
11 jurisdiction when the child and his family have a closer
12 connection with another court;
13 (4) discourage continuing controversies over child
14 custody in the interest of greater stability of home
15 environment and of secure family relationships for the child;
16 (5) deter abductions and other unilateral removals of
17 children undertaken to obtain custody awards;
18 (6) avoid relitigation of custody decisions so far as
19 feasible;
20 (7) facilitate the enforcement of custody decrees;
21 (8) promote and expand the exchange of information and
22 other forms of mutual assistance between the courts concerned
23 with the same child; and
24 (9) make uniform the exercise of jurisdiction in the
25 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
26 (b) This act shall be construed to promote the general
27 purposes stated in this section.
28 Section 3. Definitions.
29 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
30 have, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the
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1 meanings given to them in this section:
2 "Contestant." An institution or a person, including a
3 parent, who claims a right to custody or visitation rights with
4 respect to a child.
5 "Court." Any of the courts of common pleas of the
6 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania before which a custody action is
7 pending.
8 "Custody determination." A court decision and court orders
9 and instructions providing for the custody of a child, including
10 visitation rights; it does not include a decision relating to
11 child support or any other monetary obligation of any person.
12 "Custody proceeding." Proceedings in which a custody
13 determination is one of several issues, such as an action for
14 divorce or separation, and includes child neglect and dependency
15 proceedings.
16 "Decree" or "custody decree." A custody determination
17 contained in a judicial decree or order made in a custody
18 proceeding, and includes an initial decree and a modification
19 decree.
20 "Home jurisdiction." The jurisdiction in which the child
21 immediately preceding the time involved lived with his parents,
22 a parent, a person acting as a parent or in an institution, for
23 at least six consecutive months, and in the case of a child less
24 than six months old the state in which the child lived from
25 birth with any of the persons mentioned. A period of temporary
26 absence of the child from the physical custody of the parent,
27 institution, or person acting as a parent shall not affect the
28 six months or other period.
29 "Initial decree." The first custody decree concerning a
30 particular child.
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1 "Modification decree." A custody decree which modifies or
2 replaces a prior decree, whether made by the court which
3 rendered the prior decree or by another court.
4 "Other court" or "another court." Another court of common
5 pleas of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania other than that court
6 of common pleas before which a custody action is pending.
7 "Other jurisdiction" or "another jurisdiction." The
8 jurisdiction of another judicial district of the Commonwealth of
9 Pennsylvania other than that before which the custody action is
10 pending.
11 "Person acting as parent." A person, other than a parent, or
12 an institution, who has physical custody of a child and who has
13 either been awarded custody by a court or claims a right to
14 custody.
15 "Petitioner." Anyone seeking change in the status of custody
16 of a child either by an affirmative action brought in a court or
17 as a defense to a custody action brought by a person acting as
18 parent who had previously been awarded custody of the child.
19 "Physical custody." Actual possession and control of a
20 child.
21 Section 4. Jurisdiction.
22 (a) A court which is competent to decide child custody
23 matters has jurisdiction to make a child custody determination
24 by initial or modification decree if:
25 (1) this court is the home jurisdiction of the child at
26 the time of commencement of the proceeding, or had been the
27 child's home jurisdiction within six months before
28 commencement of the proceeding and the child is absent from
29 this jurisdiction because of his removal or retention by a
30 person claiming his custody or for other reasons, and a
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1 parent or person acting as parent continues to live in this
2 jurisdiction;
3 (2) it is in the best interest of the child that the
4 court assume jurisdiction because the child and his parents,
5 or the child and at least one contestant, have a significant
6 connection with the jurisdiction of the court, and there is
7 available within the jurisdiction of the court substantial
8 evidence concerning the child's present or future care,
9 protection, training, and personal relationships;
10 (3) the child is physically present within the court's
11 jurisdiction and the child has been abandoned or it is
12 necessary in an emergency to protect the child because he has
13 been subjected to or threatened with mistreatment or abuse or
14 is otherwise neglected or dependent; OR <--
15 (4) it appears that no other court would have
16 jurisdiction under prerequisites substantially in accordance
17 with paragraphs (1), (2) or (3), or another court has
18 declined to exercise jurisdiction on the ground that the
19 court before which the action is pending is the more
20 appropriate forum to determine the custody of the child, and
21 it is in the best interest of the child that this court
22 assume jurisdiction.; or <--
23 (5) the child welfare agency of the county has made an
24 investigation of the home where the child would live if the
25 complaint for custody is granted and found it to be fit, that
26 court should take jurisdiction, assuming there is not another
27 court which would have jurisdiction under the prerequisites
28 substantially in accordance with paragraphs (1), (2) or (3)
29 of this section.
30 (b) Except under paragraphs (3) and (4) of subsection (a),
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1 physical presence of the child within the jurisdiction of the
2 court, or of the child and one of the contestants, is not alone
3 sufficient to confer jurisdiction on a court to make a child
4 custody determination.
5 (c) Physical presence of the child, while desirable, is not
6 a prerequisite for jurisdiction to determine his custody.
7 Section 5. Notice and opportunity to be heard.
8 Before making a decree under this act, reasonable notice and
9 opportunity to be heard shall be given to the contestants, any
10 parent whose parental rights have not been previously
11 terminated, and any person or institution that has physical
12 custody of the child. If any of these persons is outside the
13 jurisdiction of the court, notice and opportunity to be heard
14 shall be given pursuant to section 6.
15 Section 6. Notice to persons outside the jurisdiction of the
16 court; submission to jurisdiction.
17 (a) Notice required for the exercise of jurisdiction over a
18 period PERSON outside the jurisdiction of the court shall be <--
19 given in a manner reasonably calculated to give actual notice,
20 and may be:
21 (1) by personal delivery outside the jurisdiction of the
22 court;
23 (2) by any form of mail addressed to the person to be
24 served and requesting a receipt; or
25 (3) as directed by the court including publication, if
26 other means of notification are ineffective.
27 (b) Notice under this section shall be served, mailed or
28 delivered or last published at least 20 days before any hearing.
29 (c) Proof of service outside the jurisdiction of the court
30 may be made by affidavit of the individual who made the service.
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1 If service is made by mail, proof may be by receipt signed by
2 the addressee or other evidence of delivery to the addressee.
3 (d) Notice is not required if a person submits to the
4 jurisdiction of the court.
5 Section 7. Simultaneous proceedings in other courts.
6 (a) A court shall not exercise its jurisdiction under this
7 act if at the time of filing the petition a proceeding
8 concerning the custody of the child was IS pending in another <--
9 court of another jurisdiction exercising jurisdiction
10 substantially in conformity with this act, unless the proceeding
11 is stayed by the other court because this court is a more
12 appropriate forum or for other reasons.
13 (b) Before hearing the petition in a custody proceeding the
14 court shall examine the pleadings and other information supplied
15 by the parties under section 10 and shall consult the child
16 custody registry established under section 17 concerning the
17 pendency of proceedings with respect to the child in other
18 courts. If the court has reason to believe that proceedings may
19 be pending in another court, it shall direct an inquiry to the
20 court administrator or other appropriate official of the other
21 court.
22 (c) If the court is informed during the course of the
23 proceeding that a proceeding concerning the custody of the child
24 was pending in another court before the court assumed
25 jurisdiction it shall stay the proceeding and communicate with
26 the court in which the other proceeding is pending to the end
27 that the issue may be litigated in the more appropriate forum
28 and that information be exchanged in accordance with sections 20
29 through 23. If a court has made a custody decree before being
30 informed of a pending proceeding in another court, it shall
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1 immediately inform that court of the fact. If the court is
2 informed that a proceeding was commenced in another court after
3 it assumed jurisdiction it shall likewise inform the other court
4 to the end that the issues may be litigated in the more
5 appropriate forum.
6 Section 8. Inconvenient forum.
7 (a) A court which has jurisdiction under this act to make an
8 initial or modification decree may decline to exercise its
9 jurisdiction any time before making a decree if it finds that it
10 is an inconvenient forum to make a custody determination under
11 the circumstances of the case and that another court is a more
12 appropriate forum.
13 (b) A finding of inconvenient forum may be made upon the
14 court's own motion or upon motion of a contestant or a guardian
15 ad litem or other representative of the child.
16 (c) In determining if it is an inconvenient forum, the court
17 shall consider if it is in the interest of the child that
18 another court assume jurisdiction. For this purpose it may take
19 into account the following factors, among others:
20 (1) if another jurisdiction is or recently was the
21 child's home jurisdiction;
22 (2) if another jurisdiction has a closer connection with
23 the child and his family or with the child and one or more of
24 the contestants;
25 (3) if substantial evidence concerning the child's
26 present or future care, protection, training, and personal
27 relationships is more readily available in another
28 jurisdiction;
29 (4) if the parties have agreed on another forum which is
30 no less appropriate; and
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1 (5) if the exercise of jurisdiction by the court would
2 contravene any of the purposes stated in section 2.
3 (d) Before determining whether to decline or retain
4 jurisdiction the court may communicate with another court and
5 exchange information pertinent to the assumption of jurisdiction
6 by either court with a view to assuring that jurisdiction will
7 be exercised by the more appropriate court and that a forum will
8 be available to the parties.
9 (e) If the court finds that it is an inconvenient forum and
10 that a court of another jurisdiction is a more appropriate forum
11 it may dismiss the proceedings, or it may stay the proceedings
12 upon condition that a custody proceeding be promptly commenced
13 in another named jurisdiction or upon any other conditions which
14 may be just and proper, including the condition that a moving
15 party stipulate his consent and submission to the jurisdiction
16 of the other forum.
17 (f) The court may decline to exercise its jurisdiction under
18 this act if a custody determination is incidental to an action
19 for divorce or another proceeding while retaining jurisdiction
20 over the divorce or other proceeding.
21 (g) If it appears to the court that it is clearly an
22 inappropriate forum it may require the party who commenced the
23 proceedings to pay, in addition to the costs of the proceedings,
24 necessary travel and other expenses, including attorneys' fees,
25 incurred by other parties or their witnesses. Payment is to be
26 made to the prothonotary for remittance to the proper party.
27 (h) Upon dismissal or stay of proceedings under this section
28 the court shall inform the court found to be the more
29 appropriate forum of this fact, or if the court which would have
30 jurisdiction is not certainly known, shall transmit the
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1 information to its court administrator or other appropriate
2 official for forwarding to the appropriate court.
3 (i) Any communication received from another jurisdiction
4 informing a court of a finding of inconvenient forum because the
5 latter court is the more appropriate forum shall be filed in the
6 custody registry of the appropriate court. Upon assuming
7 jurisdiction the court shall inform the original court of this
8 fact.
9 Section 9. Jurisdiction declined by reason of conduct.
10 (a) If the petitioner for an initial decree has wrongfully <--
11 taken the child from another jurisdiction or has engaged in
12 improper conduct intending to benefit his position in a custody
13 proceeding the court may decline to exercise jurisdiction if
14 this is just and proper under the circumstances.
15 (A) IF IT IS JUST AND PROPER UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES, WHEN <--
16 THE PETITIONER FOR AN INITIAL DECREE HAS WRONGFULLY TAKEN THE
17 CHILD FROM ANOTHER JURISDICTION OR HAS ENGAGED IN IMPROPER
18 CONDUCT INTENDING TO BENEFIT HIS POSITION IN A CUSTODY
19 PROCEEDING, UPON PRESENTATION OF THE PETITION, THE COURT SHALL
20 DECLINE TO EXERCISE JURISDICTION OR SHALL EXERCISE JURISDICTION
21 ONLY TO ISSUE AN ORDER, PENDING A FULL HEARING IN THE
22 APPROPRIATE JURISDICTION, RETURNING THE PARTIES TO THE CUSTODIAL
23 STATUS QUO EXISTING PRIOR TO THE IMPROPER CONDUCT OR WRONGFUL
24 TAKING UNLESS THE PETITIONER CAN SHOW THAT CONDITIONS IN THE
25 FORMER CUSTODIAL HOUSEHOLD ARE PHYSICALLY OR EMOTIONALLY HARMFUL
26 TO THE CHILD.
27 (b) Unless required in the interest of the child, the court
28 shall not exercise its jurisdiction to modify a custody decree
29 of another court if the petitioner, without consent of the
30 person entitled to custody has:
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1 (1) improperly removed the child from the physical
2 custody of the person entitled to custody;
3 (2) has improperly retained the child after a visit or
4 other temporary relinquishment of physical custody; or
5 (3) removed the child from the jurisdiction of the court
6 entering the decree without 20 days written notice to the
7 court entering the decree and any party entitled to custody
8 or visitation rights under the terms of the decree.
9 If the petitioner has violated any provision of a custody decree
10 of another court, the court may SHALL decline to exercise its <--
11 jurisdiction unless the contestant can show that conditions in
12 the custodial household are physically or emotionally harmful to
13 the child. The burden of proof on this issue is on the
14 contestant requesting the court to take jurisdiction.
15 (c) In appropriate cases a court dismissing a petition under
16 this section may charge the petitioner with necessary travel and
17 other expenses, including attorneys' fees, incurred by other
18 parties or their witnesses.
19 Section 10. Information under oath to be submitted to the
20 court.
21 (a) Every party in a custody proceeding in his first
22 pleading or in an affidavit attached to that pleading shall give
23 information under oath as to the child's present address, the
24 places where the child has lived within the last five years, and
25 the names and present addresses of the persons with whom the
26 child has lived during that period. In this pleading or
27 affidavit every party shall further declare under oath whether:
28 (1) he has participated (as a party, witness, or in any
29 other capacity) in any other litigation concerning the
30 custody of the same child in this or any other court;
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1 (2) he has information of any custody proceeding
2 concerning the child pending in a court of this or any other
3 state; and
4 (3) he knows of any person not a party to the
5 proceedings who has physical custody of the child or claims
6 to have custody or visitation rights with respect to the
7 child.
8 (b) If the declaration as to any of the above items is in
9 the affirmative the declarant shall give additional information
10 under oath as required by the court. The court may examine the
11 parties under oath as to details of the information furnished
12 and as to other matters pertinent to the court's jurisdiction
13 and the disposition of the case.
14 (c) Each party has a continuing duty to inform the court of
15 any custody proceeding concerning the child in this or any other
16 state of which he obtained information during this proceeding.
17 Section 11. Additional parties.
18 If the court learns from information furnished by the parties
19 pursuant to section 10 or from other sources that a person not a
20 party to the custody proceeding has physical custody of the
21 child or claims to have custody or visitation rights with
22 respect to the child, it shall order that person to be joined as
23 a party and to be duly notified of the pendency of the
24 proceeding and of his joinder as a party. If the person joined
25 as a party is outside this county he shall be served with
26 process or otherwise notified in accordance with section 6.
27 Section 12. Appearance of parties and the child.
28 (a) The court may order any party to the proceeding who is
29 in this State to appear personally before the court. If that
30 party has physical custody of the child the court may order that
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1 he appear personally with the child.
2 (b) If a party to the proceeding whose presence is desired
3 by the court is outside the court's jurisdiction with or without
4 the child the court may order that the notice given under
5 section 6 include a statement directing that party to appear
6 personally with or without the child and declaring that failure
7 to appear may result in a decision adverse to that party.
8 (c) If a party to the proceeding who is outside the court's
9 jurisdiction is directed to appear under subsection (b) or
10 desires to appear personally before the court with or without
11 the child, the court may require another party to pay travel and
12 other necessary expenses of the party so appearing and of the
13 child if this is just and proper under the circumstances.
14 Section 13. Binding force of custody decree.
15 A custody decree rendered by a court of this Commonwealth
16 which has jurisdiction under section 4 binds all parties who
17 have been served in this State or notified in accordance with
18 section 6 or who have submitted to the jurisdiction of the
19 court, and who have been given an opportunity to be heard. As to
20 these parties the custody decree is conclusive as to all issues
21 of law and fact decided and as to the custody determination made
22 unless and until that determination is modified pursuant to law,
23 including the provisions of this act.
24 Section 14. Recognition of custody decrees of other courts.
25 A court shall recognize and enforce an initial or
26 modification decree of a court of this Commonwealth which has
27 assumed jurisdiction under statutory provisions substantially in
28 accordance with this act or which was made under factual
29 circumstances meeting the jurisdictional standards of the act,
30 so long as the decree has not been modified in accordance with
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1 jurisdictional standards substantially similar to those of this
2 act.
3 Section 15. Modification of custody decrees of other courts.
4 (a) If another court has made a custody decree, a court
5 before which a petition for modification is pending shall not
6 modify the decree of the other court unless it appears to the
7 court before which the petition is pending that the other court
8 which rendered the decree does not now have jurisdiction under
9 jurisdictional prerequisites substantially in accordance with
10 this act or has declined to assume jurisdiction to modify its
11 decree and the provisions of section 9(b) of this act will not
12 be violated by an exercise of jurisdiction by the court before
13 which the petition is pending.
14 (b) If a court of this Commonwealth is authorized under
15 subsection (a) to modify a custody decree of another court it
16 shall give due consideration to the transcript of the record and
17 other documents of all previous proceedings submitted to it in
18 accordance with section 23.
19 Section 16. Filing and enforcement of custody decree of another
20 court.
21 (a) A certified copy of a custody decree of another court
22 whose decrees are recognized under section 14 may be filed in
23 the office of the prothonotary of any court of common pleas of
24 this Commonwealth. The prothonotary shall treat the certified
25 copy of the decree in the same manner as a custody decree of the
26 recipient court of common pleas in which it is filed. A custody
27 decree so filed has the same effect and shall be enforced in
28 like manner as a custody decree rendered by the recipient court.
29 (b) A person violating a custody decree of one court which
30 makes it necessary to enforce the decree in another court may be
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1 required to pay necessary travel and other expenses, including
2 attorneys' fees, incurred by the party entitled to the custody
3 and his witnesses.
4 Section 17. Registry of custody decrees and proceedings of
5 other courts.
6 The prothonotary of each court of common pleas shall maintain
7 a registry in which he shall enter the following:
8 (1) Certified copies of custody decrees of other courts
9 received for filing.
10 (2) Communications as to the pendency of custody
11 proceedings in other jurisdictions.
12 (3) Communications concerning a finding of inconvenient
13 forum by another court of another jurisdiction.
14 (4) Other communications or documents concerning custody
15 proceedings in another jurisdiction which may affect the
16 jurisdiction of the court or the disposition to be made by it
17 in a custody proceeding.
18 Section 18. Certified copies of custody decree.
19 The prothonotary of any court of common pleas of this
20 Commonwealth, at the request of any other court or at the
21 request of any person who is affected by or has a legitimate
22 interest in a custody decree, shall certify and forward a copy
23 of the decree to that court or person.
24 Section 19. Taking testimony in another jurisdiction.
25 In addition to other procedural devices available to a party,
26 any party to the proceeding or a guardian ad litem or other
27 representative of the child may adduce testimony of witnesses,
28 including parties and the child, by deposition or otherwise, in
29 another jurisdiction. The court on its own motion may direct
30 that the testimony of a person be taken in another jurisdiction
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1 and may prescribe the manner in which and the terms upon which
2 the testimony shall be taken.
3 Section 20. Hearings and studies in another jurisdiction;
4 orders to appear.
5 (a) A court may request the appropriate court of another
6 jurisdiction to hold a hearing to adduce evidence, to order a
7 party to produce or give evidence under any proper procedure, or
8 to have social studies made with respect to the custody of a
9 child involved in proceedings pending in the court; and to
10 forward to the court certified copies of the transcript of the
11 record of the hearing, the evidence otherwise adduced, or any
12 social studies prepared in compliance with the request. The cost
13 of the services may be assessed against the parties or, if
14 necessary, ordered paid by the county.
15 (b) A court before which a custody proceeding is pending may
16 request the appropriate court of another jurisdiction to order a
17 party to that proceeding to appear in the court before which the
18 proceeding is pending and if that party has physical custody of
19 the child, to appear with the child. The request may state that
20 travel and other necessary expenses of the party and of the
21 child whose appearance is desired will be assessed against
22 another party or will otherwise be paid.
23 Section 21. Assistance to courts of other jurisdictions.
24 (a) Upon request of the court of another jurisdiction a
25 court which is competent to hear custody matters may order a
26 person to appear to adduce evidence or to produce or give
27 evidence under other procedures available or may order social
28 studies to be made for use in a custody proceeding in another
29 jurisdiction. A certified copy of the transcript of the record
30 of the hearing or the evidence otherwise adduced, any
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1 psychological studies and any social studies prepared shall be
2 forwarded to the requesting court.
3 (b) A person within the court's jurisdiction may voluntarily
4 give his testimony or statement in the jurisdiction for use in a
5 custody proceeding outside the jurisdiction.
6 (c) Upon request of the court of another jurisdiction, a
7 competent court may order a person within its jurisdiction to
8 appear alone or with the child in a custody proceeding in
9 another jurisdiction. The court may condition compliance with
10 the request upon assurance by the other court that travel and
11 other necessary expenses will be advanced or reimbursed.
12 Section 22. Preservation of documents for use in other
13 jurisdictions.
14 In any custody proceeding in this Commonwealth the court
15 shall preserve the pleadings, orders and decrees, any record
16 that has been made of its hearings, social studies, and other
17 pertinent documents until the child reaches 18 years of age.
18 Upon appropriate request of the court of another jurisdiction
19 the court shall forward to the other court certified copies of
20 any or all of such documents.
21 Section 23. Request for court records of another jurisdiction.
22 If a custody decree has been rendered in another jurisdiction
23 concerning a child involved in a pending custody proceeding, the
24 court before which the custody proceeding is pending upon taking
25 jurisdiction of the case shall request of the court of another
26 jurisdiction a certified copy of the transcript of any court
27 record and other documents mentioned in section 22.
28 Section 24. Priority.
29 Upon the request of a party to a custody proceeding which
30 raises a question of existence or exercise of jurisdiction under
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1 this act the case shall be given calendar priority and handled
2 expeditiously.
3 Section 25. Repeal.
4 All acts and parts of acts are repealed insofar as they are
5 inconsistent with this act.
6 Section 26. Effective date.
7 This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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