Amends Division 23 (Internal Relations), specifies who must report allegations of child abuse and who is encouraged to report allegations of child abuse, and regulates the reporting process. amends Division 18 (Misdemeanours), which provides that the offence of simple bodily harm and the offence of serious bodily harm include bodily harm inflicted on a child; in cases of falsification and intimidation, a criminal offence for the offence of making false statements of child abuse and an offence for intimidation or retaliation in cases of child abuse. The Act also provides for a criminal offence of obstructing an investigation. Amends Division 23 (Internal Relations), which updates the definition of “child abuse” in many respects. Amends Division 23 (Internal Relations), which provides for education and training, by requiring training on the detection and reporting of child maltreatment for certain designated rapporteurs. amends Division 23 (Internal Relations), which provides that prison staff may testify when imprisoned parents of an adopted person complete an adoption consent form; amends the Child Protection Services Act (CPSL) by no longer allowing temporary hiring of staff or volunteers. Daycares, children`s group homes and family children`s homes may continue to temporarily hire staff or approve volunteers for a single period not exceeding 45 days, subject to certain conditions and an exemption is granted by the Department of Human Services (DHS), Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OECDL). Finally, licensing requirements for daycares, group daycares and family children`s homes were amended as follows: inclusion of arson and strangulation convictions in the list of prohibitive rental offences; call for a review of the National Sex Offender Registry; and require out-of-state authorizations for staff and volunteers who have lived outside of Pennsylvania in the past five years. Since 2013, laws have been passed that change the way Pennsylvania responds to child abuse.
These changes will have a significant impact on the reporting, investigation, assessment, prosecution and judicial handling of child abuse and neglect. These new laws expand and define mandated registrants and the reporting process, increase penalties for those responsible for reporting allegations of child abuse who fail to do so, and provide protection from discrimination in the workplace for filing a bona fide report on child abuse. In addition, government agencies should develop “interagency protocols” that provide guidance to local multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) on infant identification and assessment to ensure the development of a safe care plan that supports the delivery of services to the child and his or her caregivers. Amends Division 23 (Family Relations) to make clearer and more explicit the provisions of the legislation passed in the last session, which require adult staff and volunteers working with children to obtain authorizations to check criminal history and child abuse Title 23 (Family Relations) amends Division 23 (Family Relations) and provides whistleblower protection for persons who file a bona fide child abuse. Titles 18 (Offences and Misdemeanours) and 23 (Internal Relations) are amended to allow an emergency service provider to place a child in preventive detention on the basis of an institution employing or providing access to the emergency service provider in accordance with Chapter 65 (Protection of Newborns) of Title 23. Amendments to Titles 21 (Internal Relations) and 42 (Justice) Factors related to child abuse must be taken into account when granting custody. The amendment to title 23, Internal relations, grants immunity to listed individuals or entities who report allegations of child abuse in good faith. It is also a request for consultation and a procedure for deleting records. The Ministry of Health must double the fee to obtain a certified copy of a birth certificate at $20. For the 2014/15 financial year, 50% of the fees are to be transferred to DPW for the training of commissioned whistleblowers on child abuse and child abuse costs. As of fiscal year 2015-2016, 25% of these DPW allocations will be used to train mandated rapporteurs and 75% from the CDCP to provide grants to Child Advocacy Centres and multidisciplinary investigation teams.
Amendment to Division 23 (Domestic Political Relations), which allows the court to appoint an interim family member in 90-day increments for up to one year if the custodial parent has entered a rehabilitation facility for drug and alcohol treatment or has undergone emergency medical intervention for drug or alcohol abuse. Law 88 also requires cooperation and exchange of information between a common plea court, DHS, and county authorities when a court is considering granting temporary guardianship for common objections. DARE fund closes at the end of fiscal year 2012-2013. All remaining funds from the DARE Fund will be transferred to the DCCP for the purposes listed, as they relate to the funding of the Children`s Representative Centres. Amends the Educators` Discipline Act by expanding the basis of discipline to include well-founded and appropriate reports of child abuse, as well as “grooming” behaviours such as sending sexually explicit text messages to a student. The Act sets out requirements for a multidisciplinary review team and a multidisciplinary investigation team to perform various investigative functions in the investigation of alleged child abuse by an offender. amends Titles 18 (Crimes and Misdemeanors), 23 (Internal Relations) and 42 (Justice and Trial) and expands Pennsylvania`s definition of child abuse to include when a person leaves a child unattended with someone other than the parent of the child they know, or reasonably should have known, to be a violent sexual predator under Pennsylvania`s Megan Act (42 Pa.C.S. Chapter 97); or to be subject to lifetime registration.
In addition, the law provides 29 grounds for involuntary deprivation of parental rights for parents who must register as sex offenders. Amends Division 23 (Internal Relations) by specifying the persons required to obtain child abuse licences. It is also planned that PDE/DPW/PCCD will conduct a study on prohibitions. If Title 23 (Family Relations) changes, some lawyers are required to report allegations of child abuse and privileged communication. Also increases penalties for journalists who fail to report child abuse. The Child Protection Act describes the legal implications of the CPS and can help the reader understand how a complaint is handled. For more information, visit the Michigan Legislature website and the Child Protection Act – DHS Pub-3. Amends Title 42 (Judicial and Litigation) The Pennsylvania Sentencing Commission provides for an increase in penalties in its guidelines for crimes related to child sexual abuse, setting deviations from the range of applicable penalties due to aggravating circumstances such as the age of the child, the number of images possessed by the accused and the nature and nature of the abuse depicted in the images. Amends the Administrative Code, 1929 by requiring the Department of Social Services to charge a fee not exceeding thirteen dollars ($13) to certify employees who have contact with children, including adoptive parents and foster parents.
In addition, no fee will be charged to those who apply to volunteer at a Big Brothers Big Sisters of America affiliate or at a rape center or domestic violence shelter. Amends Division 23 (Internal Relations), which allows for the exchange of information between medical officers and district authorities responsible for children and young people when a child`s health is adversely affected. Amend Division 23 (Family Relations), which provides a reporting obligation for infants, by requiring a health care provider to promptly report if they are involved in the birth or care of a child under one year of age who is born and identified as being affected by: (1) abuse of illicit substances by the child`s mother; (2) withdrawal symptoms resulting from prenatal drug exposure; or (3) fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Division 18 (Crime and Offences) is amended to establish additional definitions and classifications for the offence of luring a child.
