{"id":267146,"date":"2026-05-11T21:19:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T21:19:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/267146\/"},"modified":"2026-05-11T21:19:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T21:19:11","slug":"surrogacy-storm-explodes-after-florida-ag-brands-it-modern-day-slavery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/267146\/","title":{"rendered":"Surrogacy storm explodes after Florida AG brands it ‘modern day slavery’"},"content":{"rendered":"

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (CBS12) \u2014 Calling it “modern-day slavery,” Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier<\/a> claimed in a social media post that U.S. surrogacy companies are selling babies to criminals and foreign nationals.<\/p>\n

In the post, shared Saturday on X<\/a>, Uthmeier alleged that registered sex offenders and foreign buyers, including Chinese nationals, are using American surrogacy services to obtain children. He said the practice is morally wrong, endangers children, and poses a threat to national security, adding that it \u201cmust be stopped.\u201d The post did not include evidence, statistics, or examples to substantiate the claims.<\/p>\n

Uthmeier\u2019s remarks quickly drew attention online and renewed scrutiny of the largely state-regulated surrogacy industry. Commercial surrogacy is legal in several states, including Florida, and is governed by a mix of family law statutes, court rulings, and private contracts. There is no single federal law overseeing surrogacy, and requirements for background checks or screenings of intended parents vary widely among agencies and jurisdictions.<\/p>\n

Legal and bioethics experts note that while some surrogacy agencies conduct criminal background checks as part of their intake process, others are not legally required to do so. Unlike adoption, which involves extensive vetting and government oversight, surrogacy arrangements are often treated as private medical and contractual matters until parentage is established in court.<\/p>\n

International surrogacy has also been a subject of debate in recent years, particularly because children born in the United States automatically receive U.S. citizenship<\/a>. Immigration <\/a>attorneys say this has made the country an attractive destination for some foreign intended parents, though they caution that nationality alone is not evidence of misconduct or exploitation.<\/p>\n

See Related: Gov. DeSantis signs bill expanding Florida restrictions on foreign influence<\/a><\/p>\n

Advocates for surrogates and intended parents warn against broad generalizations, saying most surrogacy arrangements involve consenting adults operating within the law. At the same time, child welfare groups have argued for clearer rules, including uniform background checks, licensing requirements for agencies, and stronger enforcement mechanisms.<\/p>\n

\"NEW<\/p>\n

NEW BALTIMORE, VIRGINIA – OCTOBER 29: Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier speaks at a campaign rally for Virginia Republican gubernatorial candidate Winsome Earle-Sears at the Buckland Farm Market on October 29, 2025 in New Baltimore, Virginia. Earle-Sears will face off against Virginia Democratic gubernatorial candidate, former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, in the Commonwealth of Virginia\u2019s off-year election for governor and other statewide offices on November 4. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

It remains unclear whether Uthmeier\u2019s comments will lead to legislation, litigation, or formal investigations. His office has not yet outlined specific policy proposals, but the statement has intensified a broader debate over how reproductive technologies should be regulated\u2014and where the line should be drawn between personal choice, child protection, and government oversight.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (CBS12) \u2014 Calling it “modern-day slavery,” Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier claimed in a social media…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":267147,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[28,30,29],"class_list":["post-267146","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/267146","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=267146"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/267146\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/267147"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=267146"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=267146"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=267146"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}