For a remarkable 36 years, Michigan has held distinguished standing as the sole jurisdiction in the nation to criminalize compensated surrogacy arrangements. Even uncompensated surrogacy arraignments have been fraught with onerous legal procedures, prolonging the time until the intended parents gain recognition as the rightful parents of their own children.
This situation has inevitably led to severe difficulties for residents needing aid with conceiving children. Prospective parents have been subjected to costly, uncertain, and drawn-out legal journeys, or compelled to travel beyond state borders to grow their families.
Nonetheless, the prospect of change is on the horizon. On the 19th of March, 2024, the Michigan Senate approved the Michigan Family Protection Act. The final step for the bill to become law is for Governor Gretchen Whitmer to sign it, something she has shown agreement with and pledged to do. Once signed, the new law will be enforced 90 days later.
After a harsh encounter with an ectopic pregnancy, Stephanie Jones discovered the harsh reality of Michigan’s anti-surrogacy laws while grappling with her own infertility. Choosing to dodge the risks embodied in the 1988 surrogacy ban, she pursued her surrogacy journey out of state. Despite this, Jones pledged to make a difference for others in the same predicament, contributing to the formation of the Michigan Fertility Alliance, a grassroots advocacy group. They embarked on an ambitious journey to modify the state’s law, with victory now in sight.
Upon enactment, the Michigan Family Protection Act will pave the path for would-be parents, converting the law from anti-surrogacy to pro-surrogacy. The law will provide important protections for gestational carriers, sperm, egg, and embryo donors and recipients, intended parents, and children. Alongside this, the law provides clarity for the various entities who have been seeking guidance on matters related to parentage of children born through assisted reproductive technologies.
The Michigan Family Protection Act is an aggregation of nine distinct bills, each focusing on various elements related to assisted reproduction. These include enacting surrogacy parentage and assisted reproduction acts, updating regulations for vital records processes, removing criminal sentencing guidelines from the soon-to-be-repealed anti-surrogacy Surrogacy Parenting Act and modifying estate and probate provisions to include children conceived through assisted reproduction.
Among the anticipated changes is the move to officially regulate and protect surrogacy arrangements by enacting certain best practices. For instance, the law stipulates basic eligibility requirements for surrogates and requires that all surrogacy agreements contain protective provisions.
An important aspect of the new laws is the recognition of a legal parent-child relationship even when a child is conceived posthumously, provided consent is explicit and certain timing metrics are met. This acknowledgment could have crucial practical implications regarding survivor benefits and estate purposes.
In summary, the passage of the Michigan Family Protection Act marks a giant stride forward for the state and its residents, empowering the future parents to remain in Michigan to build their families.