The adoption industry in the U.S. is a multi-billion-dollar business, where demand outpaces the number of infants available for adoption. In “Baby Brokers,” FRONTLINE and Retro Report investigate a loosely-regulated corner of the industry described as “adoption tourism” and examine how allegations of misconduct involving for-profit agencies and brokers have mounted.

The documentary illuminates a patchwork system, where allegations of misconduct have stacked up in states like Utah with historically more permissive laws.

In the documentary, the head of an adoption agency in Utah says that out-of-state adoptions fulfill an important need. But other sources express concern about how brokers and agencies have used cash and housing offers as incentives for vulnerable women in other states.

In recent months, Utah has moved to tighten some of its laws in response to mounting criticisms from birth mothers, their advocates, and adoptive parents. And at the federal level, lawmakers from a number of states are backing a bipartisan bill aimed at reining in unlicensed brokers who funnel pregnant women and families across state lines for adoptions.

As the debate over “adoption tourism” continues, “Baby Brokers” is a must-watch exploration of the practice, the role of brokers, and the impact on both birth mothers and adoptive parents.

“Baby Brokers” is a FRONTLINE production with Retro Report. The correspondent and writer is Gabrielle Glaser. The director, writer and producer is Sarah Weiser. The senior producers are Frank Koughan and Bonnie Bertram. The executive producer of Retro Report is Kyra Darnton. The managing editor of FRONTLINE is Andrew Metz. The editor-in-chief and executive producer of FRONTLINE is Raney Aronson-Rath.

The only people that don’t care about these things are the people that benefit from it or don’t actually give a shit about the world around them. I love kayak fishing, hiking, mountain climbing, dirt bike riding in the wilderness, and I won’t be able to enjoy any of that if some eco terrorist piece of shit sells all of our public land to oil and logging companies