House File 2029 - Introduced



                                       HOUSE FILE       
                                       BY  SWAIM


    Passed House, Date               Passed Senate, Date             
    Vote:  Ayes        Nays           Vote:  Ayes        Nays         
                 Approved                            

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act relating to cases of child abuse that are determined to be
  2    confirmed or founded by requiring the county attorney to be
  3    notified of the determination.
  4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
  5 TLSB 5076HH 81
  6 jp/gg/14

PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 232.71D, Code Supplement 2005, is
  1  2 amended by adding the following new subsection:
  1  3    NEW SUBSECTION.  6.  If the department performs a child
  1  4 abuse assessment of a report of child abuse in accordance with
  1  5 section 232.71B and determines the alleged child abuse meets a
  1  6 definition of child abuse under section 232.68, as described
  1  7 in subsection 2 or 3 of this section, the department's
  1  8 determination shall be reported to the appropriate county
  1  9 attorney.
  1 10                           EXPLANATION
  1 11    This bill relates to cases of child abuse that are
  1 12 determined to be confirmed or founded by requiring the county
  1 13 attorney to be notified of the determination by the department
  1 14 of human services.
  1 15    Code section 232.71D, relating to founded child abuse and
  1 16 the central child abuse registry, is amended.  The amendment
  1 17 provides that if the department has performed an assessment of
  1 18 a report of child abuse and determines that the alleged abuse
  1 19 meets one of the definitions of child abuse, the department is
  1 20 required to notify the appropriate county of the
  1 21 determination.
  1 22    Under Code section 232.71D, subsection 2, if a case of
  1 23 child abuse meets the definition of child abuse but the
  1 24 department determines the injury or risk of harm to the child
  1 25 was minor and isolated and is unlikely to reoccur, commonly
  1 26 referred to as "confirmed" child abuse, the child abuse
  1 27 information is not placed on the central child abuse registry.
  1 28 Otherwise, Code section 232.71D, subsection 3, provides that
  1 29 cases of child abuse that meet one of the definitions of child
  1 30 abuse listed in that subsection are required to be placed on
  1 31 the central child abuse registry.  Current law under Code
  1 32 section 235A.15 authorizes the county attorney to have access
  1 33 to the child abuse information under either scenario.
  1 34 LSB 5076HH 81
  1 35 jp:nh/gg/14