Text: SF00186 Text: SF00188 Text: SF00100 - SF00199 Text: SF Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
PAG LIN
1 1 Section 1. Section 137.5, Code 2001, is amended by adding
1 2 the following new unnumbered paragraph:
1 3 NEW UNNUMBERED PARAGRAPH. A county board shall establish
1 4 the county's community review committee in accordance with
1 5 section 232.71B, subsection 15.
1 6 Sec. 2. Section 232.70, Code 2001, is amended by adding
1 7 the following new subsections:
1 8 NEW SUBSECTION. 1A. A reporter of child abuse shall be
1 9 offered an opportunity to provide a written statement swearing
1 10 under penalty of perjury that the facts stated to be true are
1 11 true to the best of the reporter's knowledge. If the reporter
1 12 declines to provide the written statement, the reporter's
1 13 response and reasons stated in declining shall be noted by the
1 14 person accepting the report or performing the assessment of
1 15 the report.
1 16 NEW SUBSECTION. 4A. a. For the purposes of this
1 17 subsection unless the context otherwise requires:
1 18 (1) "Imminent danger report" means a report that may
1 19 constitute an allegation of child abuse that is specifically
1 20 listed in paragraph "f", subparagraphs (1) through (3),
1 21 suggesting that the child may be in a circumstance or
1 22 condition that presents an imminent danger to the child's life
1 23 or health so that taking custody of the child without a court
1 24 order in accordance with section 232.79 or taking custody of
1 25 the child pursuant to a court order may be necessary to avoid
1 26 imminent danger to the child's life or health.
1 27 (2) "Rejected report" means a report that is determined
1 28 not to constitute an allegation of child abuse.
1 29 (3) "Serious report" means a report that may constitute an
1 30 allegation of child abuse but does not constitute an imminent
1 31 danger report or a spurious report.
1 32 (4) "Spurious report" means a report that may constitute
1 33 an allegation of child abuse but one for which the child
1 34 protection worker believes that protective concerns are not
1 35 present or that the reporter submitted the report intending to
2 1 harass or call into question the reputation or credibility of
2 2 the person alleged to have committed the child abuse.
2 3 b. Immediately upon receiving a report alleging child
2 4 abuse, the department shall classify the report as a rejected
2 5 report, a spurious report, a serious report, or an imminent
2 6 danger report.
2 7 c. An initial determination by a child protection worker
2 8 that a report is a rejected report shall require the
2 9 concurrence of the worker's supervisor in order to be
2 10 classified as a rejected report.
2 11 d. An initial determination by a child protection worker
2 12 that a report is a spurious report shall require the
2 13 concurrence of the worker's supervisor in order to be
2 14 classified as a spurious report. For a report that is
2 15 initially classified as a spurious report, the department
2 16 shall complete an assessment in accordance with section
2 17 232.71B.
2 18 e. For a report that is classified as a serious report,
2 19 the department shall complete an assessment in accordance with
2 20 section 232.71B. Priority in completing such assessments
2 21 shall be given to cases in which any of the following
2 22 circumstances or conditions are alleged to exist:
2 23 (1) The person responsible for the care of the child or an
2 24 adult person living in the child's home or in the location in
2 25 which the child is cared for is unrelated to the child by
2 26 blood or marriage and such person has a record of any of the
2 27 following:
2 28 (a) A criminal offense involving possession, manufacture,
2 29 or distribution of a controlled substance.
2 30 (b) A criminal offense or other documented act involving
2 31 an act of abuse or violence against a person documented in a
2 32 previous child abuse assessment or other official record.
2 33 (c) A criminal offense involving an act causing a risk to
2 34 the life or health of another person.
2 35 (2) The person responsible for the child or an adult
3 1 person living in the child's home or in the location in which
3 2 the child is cared for has a chemical dependency as defined in
3 3 section 125.2.
3 4 (3) The reporter who submitted the serious report also
3 5 submitted a written statement swearing under penalty of
3 6 perjury that the facts stated to be true are true to the best
3 7 of the reporter's knowledge in accordance with subsection 1A.
3 8 f. Unless a report of child abuse is classified as a
3 9 rejected report or a spurious report, the department shall
3 10 make an initial determination as to whether the report should
3 11 be classified as an imminent danger report. If the initial
3 12 determination suggests that the report should be classified as
3 13 an imminent danger report, the department shall expedite the
3 14 assessment of the report under section 232.71B, and shall
3 15 immediately involve law enforcement in accordance with section
3 16 232.71B, subsection 3, and inform the county attorney and the
3 17 juvenile court. If the information provided by the reporter
3 18 of child abuse is considered by the department to be credible,
3 19 a report containing an allegation of child abuse involving any
3 20 of the following shall be classified as an imminent danger
3 21 report:
3 22 (1) Child abuse causing a nonaccidental physical injury as
3 23 described in section 232.68, subsection 2, paragraph "a", that
3 24 is a serious injury. Unless other information regarding the
3 25 extent of the injury is provided, an allegation regarding the
3 26 application of reasonable discipline to the buttocks of the
3 27 child, considering the age of the child, shall not by itself
3 28 be considered to have caused a serious injury.
3 29 (2) Child abuse involving the commission of a sexual
3 30 offense as described in section 232.68, subsection 2,
3 31 paragraph "c".
3 32 (3) Child abuse involving prostitution as described in
3 33 section 232.68, subsection 2, paragraph "e".
3 34 Sec. 3. Section 232.71B, subsection 11, Code 2001, is
3 35 amended by adding the following new paragraphs:
4 1 NEW PARAGRAPH. h. A copy of the assessment report shall
4 2 be provided to the community review committee for the county
4 3 in which the report was made.
4 4 NEW PARAGRAPH. i. If after completing the assessment
4 5 process the child protection worker determines, with the
4 6 concurrence of the worker's supervisor and the department's
4 7 area administrator, that a report is a spurious report or that
4 8 protective concerns are not present, the portions of the
4 9 assessment report described under paragraphs "d" and "e" shall
4 10 not be required.
4 11 Sec. 4. Section 232.71B, Code 2001, is amended by adding
4 12 the following new subsection:
4 13 NEW SUBSECTION. 15. COMMUNITY REVIEW COMMITTEE.
4 14 a. The county board of health in each county shall
4 15 establish a volunteer community review committee in accordance
4 16 with this subsection. Unless provided otherwise in this
4 17 subsection, the membership of the committee shall be appointed
4 18 by the county board of health. Membership terms shall be for
4 19 two-year staggered terms and a member shall not serve for more
4 20 than one consecutive term. The membership of a community
4 21 review committee shall include but is not limited to the
4 22 following persons serving in a volunteer capacity:
4 23 (1) A public health nurse or other representative of the
4 24 county board of health.
4 25 (2) A member of the clergy.
4 26 (3) A parent with children residing in the parent's home.
4 27 (4) An individual appointed by the community empowerment
4 28 area board established pursuant to section 28.6 for the area
4 29 in which the county is located.
4 30 b. The committee shall review the department's
4 31 classification, assessment, and disposition of child abuse
4 32 reports in that county. In any hearing held under this
4 33 division involving a child abuse report in which the court
4 34 gives consideration to removal of a child from the child's
4 35 home, except for an initial emergency hearing for temporary
5 1 custody of a child held under section 232.78, the committee
5 2 shall make a recommendation regarding removal or nonremoval of
5 3 the child which shall be considered by the court. The
5 4 recommendation may be made in writing.
5 5 c. A committee shall have full access to any record,
5 6 report, or other confidential child abuse information obtained
5 7 by the department in performing an assessment or other
5 8 response to a report of child abuse. A committee member is
5 9 subject to the confidentiality restrictions in law or
5 10 administrative rule applicable to the child abuse information
5 11 provided to the committee member including but not limited to
5 12 restrictions on redissemination of the information.
5 13 Notwithstanding chapter 21, the portion of a committee meeting
5 14 in which a specific child abuse case is reviewed or discussed
5 15 shall be closed.
5 16 Sec. 5. Section 235A.15, subsection 2, paragraph b, Code
5 17 2001, is amended by adding the following new subparagraph:
5 18 NEW SUBPARAGRAPH. (10) To a community review committee
5 19 established in accordance with section 232.71B, subsection 15,
5 20 reviewing the reports for the county in which the report was
5 21 made.
5 22 EXPLANATION
5 23 This bill relates to child abuse reporting, classification,
5 24 determination, and review procedures under the juvenile
5 25 justice code.
5 26 Code section 137.5, relating to local boards of health, is
5 27 amended to require a county board of health to establish a
5 28 community review committee as provided in the bill.
5 29 The bill includes several amendments to Code section
5 30 232.70, relating to child abuse reporting. New subsection 1A
5 31 requires a reporter of child abuse to be offered an
5 32 opportunity to provide a written statement swearing under
5 33 penalty of perjury that the facts stated are true. If the
5 34 reporter declines to provide the statement, the reporter's
5 35 response and reasons stated are to be noted.
6 1 New subsection 4A provides that upon receipt, a report is
6 2 to be initially classified as one of the four following report
6 3 types as defined in the bill: imminent danger, serious,
6 4 spurious, or rejected. A child protection worker's
6 5 classification of a report as a rejected report requires the
6 6 concurrence of the worker's supervisor. A child abuse
6 7 assessment must be performed on reports that are classified as
6 8 spurious, serious, or imminent danger reports. The bill
6 9 establishes directives to the department of human services for
6 10 applying exceptions and priorities under those
6 11 classifications.
6 12 A community review committee created under Code section
6 13 232.71B is required to receive a copy of child abuse
6 14 assessment reports.
6 15 Code section 232.71B is also amended in new subsection 15
6 16 to require establishment of a community review committee in
6 17 each county by the county board of health. The review
6 18 committee membership is to include a public health nurse, a
6 19 member of the clergy, a parent with children in the home, and
6 20 an individual appointed by the community empowerment area
6 21 board. The committee is to review the department of human
6 22 services' classification, assessment, and disposition of child
6 23 abuse reports made in that county. The committee is required
6 24 to make a recommendation to be considered by the court in any
6 25 child in need of assistance hearing involving removal of a
6 26 child except for an emergency removal hearing under Code
6 27 section 232.78.
6 28 Code section 235A.15 is amended to provide a committee with
6 29 access to confidential child abuse information for the reports
6 30 made in the county or multicounty area served by the
6 31 committee. Notwithstanding Code chapter 21, the open meetings
6 32 law, the portion of a committee meeting in which a specific
6 33 case of child abuse is discussed is required to be closed.
6 34 In addition, Code section 232.71B requirements for
6 35 completion of a child abuse assessment report are modified.
7 1 If, after a child protection worker completes the assessment
7 2 process, the worker determines that the child abuse report was
7 3 spurious or that there are not protective concerns present,
7 4 the assessment report need not include identification of the
7 5 strengths and needs of the child and the child's family or the
7 6 services available to address the strengths and needs.
7 7 Concurrence with the worker's determination by the worker's
7 8 supervisor and the department's area administrator is
7 9 required.
7 10 LSB 1217XS 79
7 11 jp/gg/8.2
Text: SF00186 Text: SF00188 Text: SF00100 - SF00199 Text: SF Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
© 2001 Cornell College and League of Women Voters of Iowa
Comments about this site or page?
webmaster@legis.iowa.gov.
Please remember that the person listed above does not vote on bills. Direct all comments concerning legislation to State Legislators.
Last update: Wed May 9 09:40:00 CDT 2001
URL: /DOCS/GA/79GA/Legislation/SF/00100/SF00187/010214.html
jhf