Official Summary Text
HB4004 - 572R - Senate Fact Sheet
Assigned to
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COMMITTEE
ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Seventh
Legislature, Second Regular Session
FACT SHEET FOR
H.B. 4004
DCS; abuse investigation;
protective parent
Purpose
Requires the
Department of Child Safety (DCS) to initiate an investigation and protective
action upon receipt of a report of abuse or neglect of a child through the DCS
hotline, even if one of the child's parents is a protective parent.
Background
DCS was
established to protect the children of Arizona by: 1) investigating reports of
abuse and neglect; 2) assessing, promoting and supporting the safety of a child
in a safe and stable family or other appropriate placement in response to
allegations of abuse or neglect; 3) working cooperatively with law enforcement
regarding reports that include criminal conduct allegations; and 4) without
compromising child safety, coordinating services to achieve and maintain
permanency on behalf of the child, strengthen the family and provide
prevention, intervention and treatment services. DCS must operate a 24/7
centralized intake hotline that receives communications concerning suspected
child abuse or neglect. The hotline must be operated to record communications, provide
information to law enforcement, create DCS reports and determine priority level
of investigation (A.R.S. ��
8-451
and
8-455
).
According to
DCS, protective capacities are personal qualities or characteristics that
contribute to vigilant child protection and are associated with one�s ability
to perform effectively as a parent in order to provide and ensure a
consistently safe environment for a child. The DCS Program Policy Manual
requires a DCS specialist to assess and document outlined behavioral, cognitive
and emotional protective capacities of a parent or caregiver as part of an
investigation of alleged abuse or neglect of a child (
DCS
).
There is no
anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this
legislation.
Provisions
1.
Requires DCS to initiate an investigation and protective action upon
receipt of a credible report of abuse or neglect of a child through the DCS
hotline, even if one of the child's parents is a protective parent.
2.
Allows
DCS, after receiving a report of child abuse or neglect, to:
a)
begin an immediate and thorough investigation of the allegation;
b)
develop a safety plan for the child;
c)
provide support services to the child and the child's protective parent;
or
d)
provide recommendations for temporary modification of parenting time or
legal
decision-making orders when there is a credible risk of harm to the child.
3.
Prohibits
DCS from declining to investigate an abuse or neglect allegation solely because
of a determination that one parent may be able to protect the child if:
a)
the parent who is alleged to have abused or neglected the child has
parenting time or legal decision-making authority; or
b)
the protective parent lacks the resources, authority or capacity to
ensure the child's safety.
4.
Requires
DCS to continue to investigate a parent who is the subject of a child abuse or
neglect allegation if the child's parents are legally separated or do not
reside in the same household and the protective parent provides a safe
environment for the child.
5.
Requires
DCS, when investigating a parent who is the subject a child abuse or neglect
allegation, to:
a)
conduct a full investigation of the parent's household;
b)
provide safety planning and protective measures to the protective
parent; and
c)
participate in judicial proceedings involving the child or the parent to
ensure that restrictions or protective orders are implemented.
6.
Requires
DCS to annually publish a report on its official website that includes the
following information regarding cases involving an allegation of abuse or
neglect by a parent:
a)
the number of cases in which DCS declined to intervene;
b)
the reasons why DCS declined to intervene; and
c)
the outcome of cases in which DCS declined to intervene and if there
were any subsequent findings of abuse or neglect.
7.
Defines
child
as a child who is the subject of a report of alleged abuse or
neglect.
8.
Becomes effective on the general effective date.
House Action
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Prepared by
Senate Research
March 20, 2026
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Current Bill Text
Read the full stored bill text
HB4004 - 572R - H Ver
House Engrossed
DCS; abuse
investigation; protective parent
State of Arizona
House of Representatives
Fifty-seventh Legislature
Second Regular Session
2026
HOUSE BILL 4004
AN
ACT
amending title 8, chapter 4, article 1,
arizona revised statutes, by adding section 8-469.03; relating to child
welfare.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it
enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Title 8, chapter 4, article 1,
Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 8-469.03, to read:
START_STATUTE
8-469.03.
Abuse; neglect; protective parent; mandatory intervention;
report; definition
A. The department shall initiate an
investigation and protective action when the department receives a credible
report of abuse or neglect of a child through the centralized intake hotline
pursuant to section 8-455 even if one of the child's parents is a
protective parent.
B. after receiving a report pursuant
to subsection A of this section, the department may take any of the following
actions:
1. Begin an immediate and thorough
investigation of the allegation of abuse or neglect.
2. Develop a safety plan for the
child.
3. Provide support services to the
child and the child's protective parent.
4. Provide recommendations for
temporary modification of parenting time or legal decision-making orders when a
credible risk of harm to the child exists.
C. The department may not decline to
investigate an allegation of abuse or neglect solely because the department
determines that one parent may be able to protect the child if one of the
following exists:
1. The parent who is alleged to have
abused or neglected the child has parenting time or legal decision-making
authority pursuant to a current parenting time or legal decision-making order.
2. The protective parent lacks the
resources, authority or capacity to ensure the child's safety.
D. if the parents of the child are
legally separated or otherwise do not reside in the same household and the
protective parent provides a safe ENVIRONMENT for the child, the department
shall continue to investigate the parent who is the subject of the allegation
of abuse or neglect.� The department shall do all of the following:
1. Conduct a full investigation of
the household of the parent who is the subject of the allegation of abuse or
neglect.
2. Provide safety planning and
protective measures to the protective parent who is not the subject of an
allegation of abuse or neglect.
3. Participate in judicial
proceedings involving the child or the parent who is the subject of an
allegation of abuse or neglect to ensure that restrictions or protective orders
are implemented against the parent who is the subject of an allegation of abuse
or neglect.
E. The
department shall annually publish on the department's official website a report
that includes all of the following regarding cases received pursuant to this
section that involve an allegation of abuse or neglect:
1. The number of cases in which the
department declined to intervene.
2. The reasons why the department
declined to intervene.
3. The outcome of cases in which the
department declined to intervene and if there were any subsequent findings of
abuse or neglect.
F. For the purposes of this section,
"child" means a child who is the subject of a report of alleged abuse
or neglect.
END_STATUTE