Child abuse or neglect: reporting.

Plain English Breakdown

The official source does not specify the exact content of the notice sent to parents' attorneys.

Child Abuse or Neglect Reporting: Parental Notification

AB-1688 requires local agencies to notify attorneys representing parents or legal guardians of children involved in child abuse or neglect cases, under certain conditions.

What This Bill Does

• Requires local agencies to send a notice to the attorney representing a parent or legal guardian when there is a report of suspected child abuse or neglect.
• Does not require notification if the parent's rights have been terminated.
• Prohibits the notice from including details about the report itself.
• Expands the requirement for sending reports to attorneys who represent children in dependency cases where abuse or neglect occurred in their placement.

Who It Names or Affects

• Local agencies responsible for investigating child abuse and neglect reports
• Attorneys representing parents or legal guardians of children involved in such cases

Terms To Know

Mandated reporters

Professionals like health practitioners and social workers who are required by law to report suspected child abuse or neglect.

Dependency court

A court that handles cases involving children who have been removed from their homes due to abuse, neglect, or other issues.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not specify the exact content of the notice sent to parents' attorneys.
• It is unclear how this change will affect existing procedures in dependency courts.

Official Summary Text

AB 1688, as amended, Carrillo.
Child abuse or neglect: reporting.
Existing law, the Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act, establishes procedures for the reporting and investigation of suspected child abuse or neglect. Existing law requires certain professionals, including specified health practitioners and social workers, known as “mandated reporters,” to report known or suspected child abuse or neglect to a local law enforcement agency or a county welfare or probation department, as specified. Existing law requires an employee of those agencies, in certain circumstances, to send or have sent, within 36 hours, a copy of a report made pursuant to these provisions to the attorney who represents the child, who is the subject of the report, in dependency court. Existing law requires the agency to maintain a copy of the written report and provide all information requested by the attorney for the child or the child’s guardian ad litem within 30 days of
the request.
This bill would require an employee of those agencies to additionally send
a copy
notice
of the report to the attorney who represents a parent or legal guardian of the child, as specified. Under the bill, that requirement would not apply to a parent whose parental rights have been terminated.
The bill would prohibit the notice from disclosing the substance of the report, as specified.
The bill would require an employee of the agency to send a copy of the report to all attorneys who represent children with an open dependency case in that placement if the suspected abuse or neglect occurred in a placement, as provided. By expanding the duties of local agencies
that receive reports alleging abuse or neglect of children, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Current Bill Text

Download Bill PDF