Enact Cassidy's Law

hb908_00_IN

As Introduced

136th
General Assembly

Regular
Session
H. B. No. 908

2025-2026

Representative Jarrells

Cosponsors: Representatives Brennan,
Brewer, Upchurch, McNally, Lett, Robinson

To
amend sections 307.626 and 3701.045 and to enact sections 2151.4212
,

2151.4214
,
and 2151.4216

of the Revised Code
to
enact Cassidy's Law regarding information sharing related to child
welfare.

BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

Section
1.
That
sections 307.626 and 3701.045 be amended and sections 2151.4212
,

2151.4214
,
and 2151.4216

of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:

Sec.
307.626.
(A)
By the first day of April of each year, the person convening the
child fatality review board shall prepare and submit to the
Ohio

department
of health a report that summarizes the following information with
respect to the child deaths that were reviewed by the review board in
the previous calendar year:

(1)
The cause of death;

(2)
Factors contributing to death;

(3)
Age;

(4)
Sex;

(5)
Race;

(6)
The geographic location of death;

(7)
The year of death.

The
report shall specify the number of child deaths that were not
reviewed during the previous calendar year.

The
report
shall
include recommendations to address cross-system inadequacies or gaps
that may have contributed to child deaths. The report also
may
include recommendations for actions that might prevent other deaths,
as well as any other information the review board determines should
be included.

(B)
(B)(1)

Reports prepared under division (A) of this section shall be
considered public records under section 149.43 of the Revised Code.

(2)
As soon as practicable after receiving a report submitted under this
section, the department of health shall make the report available on
the internet web site that the department maintains. Reports made
available under this division shall be organized by county and
region.

(C)
The child fatality review board shall submit individual data with
respect to each child death review into the
Ohio

department
of health child death review database or the national child death
review database. The individual data shall include the information
specified in division (A) of this section and any other information
the board considers relevant to the review. Individual data related
to a child death review that is contained in the
Ohio

department
of health child death review database is not a public record under
section 149.43 of the Revised Code.

Sec.
2151.4212.
(A)
As used in this section:

(1)
"Disability or special needs" means a physical, sensory,
intellectual, developmental, behavioral, or neurological condition
that is congenital, acquired, or chronic in nature, impairs a child's
daily functioning, safety, or ability to meet age-appropriate
expectations in one or more areas of development, including social,
emotional, cognitive, communicative, perceptual, motor, physical, and
behavioral development, and requires the child to receive additional
care, intervention, support, supervision, accommodations, or
services.

(2)
"Professional" means an individual who is trained or
experienced and holds a license or certification in good standing in
the fields of child welfare, medicine, psychology, social work, or
any related field and may be involved in caring for or recommending
the placement of a child. A "professional" includes a
physician, psychologist, therapist, counselor, or guardian ad litem.

(B)
Prior to issuing any order related to the permanent placement or
final reunification with a parent or caregiver of a child who is
under the age of five or has a disability or special needs, including
a grant of permanent custody under section 2151.414 of the Revised
Code or an order or disposition upon the termination of a temporary
custody order under section 2151.415 of the Revised Code, a court
shall consider feedback or recommendations by one or more
professionals, as appropriate, for the following purposes:

(1)
To determine whether the permanent placement or final reunification
is appropriate;

(2)
With regard to reunification with a parent or caregiver, to consider
the ability of the parent or caregiver to manage the increased stress
and demands associated with caring for a child who is under the age
of five or has a disability or special needs.

Sec.
2151.4214.
(A)
As used in this section, "law enforcement agency" and
"peace officer" have the same meanings as in section
2151.3515 of the Revised Code.

(B)
A public children services agency and law enforcement agencies within
the county served by the agency may collaborate to share, by
electronic means or digital communication, reports regarding each
residence to which a peace officer was called in the previous
twenty-four hours to respond to an incident or situation involving
allegations of a domestic dispute, assault, or use of a weapon,
regardless of whether a child is present in the home at the time of
the response. The report shall include the address of the residence,
a summary of the peace officer's findings, and any actions that the
peace officer took.

(C)
The public children services agency may use and aggregate the reports
it receives under division (B) of this section to determine whether
the address corresponds to an active case or a case that was closed
in the previous six months regarding a child who is or was alleged or
adjudicated to be an abused, neglected, or dependent child. If an
address corresponds to an active case or a case that was closed in
the previous six months, the agency may use the information received
to make determinations and take appropriate actions regarding the
safety and well-being of the child.

Sec.
2151.4216.
The
department of children and youth, in collaboration with the
department of health, shall develop and implement a continuous public
awareness campaign to inform citizens of this state of the signs of
child abuse and neglect and how to report suspected child abuse and
neglect.

Sec.
3701.045.
(A)
The department of health, in consultation with the department of
children and youth and any bodies acting as child fatality review
boards on October 5, 2000, shall adopt rules in accordance with
Chapter 119. of the Revised Code that establish a procedure for
county or regional child fatality review boards to follow in
conducting a review of the death of a child. The rules shall do all
of the following:

(1)
Establish the format for the annual reports required by section
307.626 of the Revised Code;

(2)
Establish guidelines for a county or regional child fatality review
board to follow in compiling statistics for annual reports so that
the reports do not contain any information that would permit any
person's identity to be ascertained from a report;

(3)
Establish guidelines for a county or regional child fatality review
board to follow in creating and maintaining the comprehensive
database of child deaths required by section 307.623 of the Revised
Code, including provisions establishing uniform record-keeping
procedures;

(4)
Establish guidelines for reporting child fatality review data to the
department of health or a national child death review database,
either of which must maintain the confidentiality of information that
would permit a person's identity to be ascertained;

(5)
Establish guidelines, materials, and training to help educate members
of county or regional child fatality review boards about the purpose
of the review process and the confidentiality of the information
described in section 307.629 of the Revised Code and to make them
aware that such information is not a public record under section
149.43 of the Revised Code
;

(6)
Establish guidelines, materials, and training to help county or
regional child fatality review boards in disseminating annual reports
to individuals, public and private entities, community stakeholders,
and other community partners engaged in efforts to improve child
welfare or prevent child deaths
.

(B)
On or before the thirtieth day of September of each year, the
department of health and the department of children and youth jointly
shall prepare
and
publish
a
report organizing and setting forth
all
of
the

data

following:

(1)
Data
from
the department of health child death review database or the national
child death review database
,
data
;

(2)
Data
in
all the reports provided by county or regional child fatality review
boards in their annual reports for the previous calendar year
,
and recommendations
;

(3)
Recommendations to address cross-system inadequacies or gaps
identified by county or regional child fatality review boards in
their annual reports for the previous calendar year;

(4)
Recommendations
for
any changes to law and policy that might prevent future deaths.
The

The

department
of health and the department of children and youth jointly shall
provide a copy of the report to the governor,
the
speaker of the house of representatives, the president of the senate,
the minority leaders of the house of representatives and the
senate
each
member of the general assembly
,
each county or regional child fatality review board, and each county
or regional family and children first council.

Each
department also shall publish a copy of the report on the internet
web site that the department maintains.

Section
2.
That
existing sections 307.626 and 3701.045 of the Revised Code are hereby
repealed.

Section
3.
This
act shall be known as Cassidy's Law.