Mandated reporting/higher ed

AN ACT Relating to exempting attorney higher education employees 1
from mandated reporting of child abuse and neglect as it relates to 2
information gained in the course of providing legal representation to 3
a client; amending RCW 26.44.030; and creating a new section.4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that reporting of 6
abuse and neglect of children by employees, including student 7
employees, of academic, administrative, and athletic departments of 8
public and private institutions of higher education is vitally 9
important to prevent such abuse and neglect, and that such employees 10
in higher education may be in positions to observe and report abuse 11
that may not be readily observed by others.12
The legislature also finds that the values underlying the duty of 13
lawyers to preserve the confidentiality of client information may be 14
inadvertently undermined and violated if attorney employees who 15
supervise law students in clinical practices where such students are 16
inadvertently required to disclose information obtained in the course 17
of providing legal representation. If such information is not clearly 18
exempted from mandated reporting, clients will be denied adequate 19
representation by students and the attorney faculty or academic 20
employees supervising them in clinical programs. 21
H-0377.2
HOUSE BILL 1171
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Representatives Pollet and Goodman
Prefiled 01/06/25. Read first time 01/13/25. Referred to Committee
on Early Learning & Human Services.
p. 1 HB 1171
Therefore, the legislature finds it is necessary to clarify that 1
the mandated reporting requirement for child abuse and neglect should 2
not override the obligation of attorneys to maintain confidentiality 3
of information relating to the representation of a client.4
Sec. 2. RCW 26.44.030 and 2024 c 298 s 6 are each amended to 5
read as follows: 6
(1)(a) When any practitioner, county coroner or medical examiner, 7
law enforcement officer, professional school personnel, registered or 8
licensed nurse, social service counselor, psychologist, pharmacist, 9
employee of the department of children, youth, and families, licensed 10
or certified child care providers or their employees, employee of the 11
department of social and health services, juvenile probation officer, 12
diversion unit staff, placement and liaison specialist, responsible 13
living skills program staff, HOPE center staff, state family and 14
children's ombuds or any volunteer in the ombuds' office, or host 15
home program has reasonable cause to believe that a child has 16
suffered abuse or neglect, he or she shall report such incident, or 17
cause a report to be made, to the proper law enforcement agency or to 18
the department as provided in RCW 26.44.040. 19
(b) When any person, in his or her official supervisory capacity 20
with a nonprofit or for-profit organization, has reasonable cause to 21
believe that a child has suffered abuse or neglect caused by a person 22
over whom he or she regularly exercises supervisory authority, he or 23
she shall report such incident, or cause a report to be made, to the 24
proper law enforcement agency, provided that the person alleged to 25
have caused the abuse or neglect is employed by, contracted by, or 26
volunteers with the organization and coaches, trains, educates, or 27
counsels a child or children or regularly has unsupervised access to 28
a child or children as part of the employment, contract, or voluntary 29
service. No one shall be required to report under this section when 30
he or she obtains the information solely as a result of a privileged 31
communication as provided in RCW 5.60.060. 32
Nothing in this subsection (1)(b) shall limit a person's duty to 33
report under (a) of this subsection. 34
For the purposes of this subsection, the following definitions 35
apply: 36
(i) "Official supervisory capacity" means a position, status, or 37
role created, recognized, or designated by any nonprofit or for-38
profit organization, either for financial gain or without financial 39
p. 2 HB 1171
gain, whose scope includes, but is not limited to, overseeing, 1
directing, or managing another person who is employed by, contracted 2
by, or volunteers with the nonprofit or for-profit organization.3
(ii) "Organization" includes a sole proprietor, partnership, 4
corporation, limited liability company, trust, association, financial 5
institution, governmental entity, other than the federal government, 6
and any other individual or group engaged in a trade, occupation, 7
enterprise, governmental function, charitable function, or similar 8
activity in this state whether or not the entity is operated as a 9
nonprofit or for-profit entity. 10
(iii) "Reasonable cause" means a person witnesses or receives a 11
credible written or oral report alleging abuse, including sexual 12
contact, or neglect of a child. 13
(iv) "Regularly exercises supervisory authority" means to act in 14
his or her official supervisory capacity on an ongoing or continuing 15
basis with regards to a particular person. 16
(v) "Sexual contact" has the same meaning as in RCW 9A.44.010.17
(c) The reporting requirement also applies to department of 18
corrections personnel who, in the course of their employment, observe 19
offenders or the children with whom the offenders are in contact. If, 20
as a result of observations or information received in the course of 21
his or her employment, any department of corrections personnel has 22
reasonable cause to believe that a child has suffered abuse or 23
neglect, he or she shall report the incident, or cause a report to be 24
made, to the proper law enforcement agency or to the department as 25
provided in RCW 26.44.040. 26
(d) The reporting requirement shall also apply to any adult who 27
has reasonable cause to believe that a child who resides with them, 28
has suffered severe abuse, and is able or capable of making a report. 29
For the purposes of this subsection, "severe abuse" means any of the 30
following: Any single act of abuse that causes physical trauma of 31
sufficient severity that, if left untreated, could cause death; any 32
single act of sexual abuse that causes significant bleeding, deep 33
bruising, or significant external or internal swelling; or more than 34
one act of physical abuse, each of which causes bleeding, deep 35
bruising, significant external or internal swelling, bone fracture, 36
or unconsciousness. 37
(e) The reporting requirement also applies to guardians ad litem, 38
including court-appointed special advocates, appointed under Titles 39
11 and 13 RCW and this title, who in the course of their 40
p. 3 HB 1171
representation of children in these actions have reasonable cause to 1
believe a child has been abused or neglected. 2
(f) ((The)) (i) Except as provided in (f)(ii) of this subsection, 3
the reporting requirement in (a) of this subsection also applies to 4
administrative and academic or athletic department employees, 5
including student employees, of institutions of higher education, as 6
defined in RCW 28B.10.016, and of private institutions of higher 7
education. 8
(ii) The reporting requirement in (a) of this subsection does not 9
apply to an attorney who is employed by an institution of higher 10
education, as defined in RCW 28B.10.016, or private institution of 11
higher education as it relates to information gained in the course of 12
providing legal representation to a client.13
(g) The report must be made at the first opportunity, but in no 14
case longer than forty-eight hours after there is reasonable cause to 15
believe that the child has suffered abuse or neglect. The report must 16
include the identity of the accused if known. 17
(2) The reporting requirement of subsection (1) of this section 18
does not apply to the discovery of abuse or neglect that occurred 19
during childhood if it is discovered after the child has become an 20
adult. However, if there is reasonable cause to believe other 21
children are or may be at risk of abuse or neglect by the accused, 22
the reporting requirement of subsection (1) of this section does 23
apply. 24
(3) Any other person who has reasonable cause to believe that a 25
child has suffered abuse or neglect may report such incident to the 26
proper law enforcement agency or to the department as provided in RCW 27
26.44.040. 28
(4) The department, upon receiving a report of an incident of 29
alleged abuse or neglect pursuant to this chapter, involving a child 30
who has died or has had physical injury or injuries inflicted upon 31
him or her other than by accidental means or who has been subjected 32
to alleged sexual abuse, shall report such incident to the proper law 33
enforcement agency, including military law enforcement, if 34
appropriate. In emergency cases, where the child's welfare is 35
endangered, the department shall notify the proper law enforcement 36
agency within twenty-four hours after a report is received by the 37
department. In all other cases, the department shall notify the law 38
enforcement agency within seventy-two hours after a report is 39
received by the department. If the department makes an oral report, a 40
p. 4 HB 1171
written report must also be made to the proper law enforcement agency 1
within five days thereafter. 2
(5) Any law enforcement agency receiving a report of an incident 3
of alleged abuse or neglect pursuant to this chapter, involving a 4
child who has died or has had physical injury or injuries inflicted 5
upon him or her other than by accidental means, or who has been 6
subjected to alleged sexual abuse, shall report such incident in 7
writing as provided in RCW 26.44.040 to the proper county prosecutor 8
or city attorney for appropriate action whenever the law enforcement 9
agency's investigation reveals that a crime may have been committed. 10
The law enforcement agency shall also notify the department of all 11
reports received and the law enforcement agency's disposition of 12
them. In emergency cases, where the child's welfare is endangered, 13
the law enforcement agency shall notify the department within twenty-14
four hours. In all other cases, the law enforcement agency shall 15
notify the department within seventy-two hours after a report is 16
received by the law enforcement agency. 17
(6) Any county prosecutor or city attorney receiving a report 18
under subsection (5) of this section shall notify the victim, any 19
persons the victim requests, and the local office of the department, 20
of the decision to charge or decline to charge a crime, within five 21
days of making the decision. 22
(7) The department may conduct ongoing case planning and 23
consultation with those persons or agencies required to report under 24
this section, with consultants designated by the department, and with 25
designated representatives of Washington Indian tribes if the client 26
information exchanged is pertinent to cases currently receiving child 27
protective services. Upon request, the department shall conduct such 28
planning and consultation with those persons required to report under 29
this section if the department determines it is in the best interests 30
of the child. Information considered privileged by statute and not 31
directly related to reports required by this section must not be 32
divulged without a valid written waiver of the privilege.33
(8) Any case referred to the department by a physician licensed 34
under chapter 18.57 or 18.71 RCW on the basis of an expert medical 35
opinion that child abuse, neglect, or sexual assault has occurred and 36
that the child's safety will be seriously endangered if returned 37
home, the department shall file a dependency petition unless a second 38
licensed physician of the parents' choice believes that such expert 39
medical opinion is incorrect. If the parents fail to designate a 40
p. 5 HB 1171
second physician, the department may make the selection. If a 1
physician finds that a child has suffered abuse or neglect but that 2
such abuse or neglect does not constitute imminent danger to the 3
child's health or safety, and the department agrees with the 4
physician's assessment, the child may be left in the parents' home 5
while the department proceeds with reasonable efforts to remedy 6
parenting deficiencies. 7
(9) Persons or agencies exchanging information under subsection 8
(7) of this section shall not further disseminate or release the 9
information except as authorized by state or federal statute. 10
Violation of this subsection is a misdemeanor. 11
(10) Upon receiving a report that a child is a candidate for 12
foster care as defined in RCW 26.44.020, the department may provide 13
prevention and family services and programs to the child's parents, 14
guardian, or caregiver. The department may not be held civilly liable 15
for the decision regarding whether to provide prevention and family 16
services and programs, or for the provision of those services and 17
programs, for a child determined to be a candidate for foster care.18
(11) Upon receiving a report of alleged abuse or neglect, the 19
department shall make reasonable efforts to learn the name, address, 20
and telephone number of each person making a report of abuse or 21
neglect under this section. The department shall provide assurances 22
of appropriate confidentiality of the identification of persons 23
reporting under this section. If the department is unable to learn 24
the information required under this subsection, the department shall 25
only investigate cases in which: 26
(a) The department believes there is a serious threat of 27
substantial harm to the child; 28
(b) The report indicates conduct involving a criminal offense 29
that has, or is about to occur, in which the child is the victim; or30
(c) The department has a prior founded report of abuse or neglect 31
with regard to a member of the household that is within three years 32
of receipt of the referral. 33
(12)(a) Upon receiving a report of alleged abuse or neglect, the 34
department shall use one of the following discrete responses to 35
reports of child abuse or neglect that are screened in and accepted 36
for departmental response: 37
(i) Investigation; or 38
(ii) Family assessment. 39
p. 6 HB 1171
(b) In making the response in (a) of this subsection the 1
department shall: 2
(i) Use a method by which to assign cases to investigation or 3
family assessment which are based on an array of factors that may 4
include the presence of: Imminent danger, level of risk, number of 5
previous child abuse or neglect reports, or other presenting case 6
characteristics, such as the type of alleged maltreatment and the age 7
of the alleged victim. Age of the alleged victim shall not be used as 8
the sole criterion for determining case assignment;9
(ii) Allow for a change in response assignment based on new 10
information that alters risk or safety level; 11
(iii) Allow families assigned to family assessment to choose to 12
receive an investigation rather than a family assessment;13
(iv) Provide a full investigation if a family refuses the initial 14
family assessment; 15
(v) Provide voluntary services to families based on the results 16
of the initial family assessment. If a family refuses voluntary 17
services, and the department cannot identify specific facts related 18
to risk or safety that warrant assignment to investigation under this 19
chapter, and there is not a history of reports of child abuse or 20
neglect related to the family, then the department must close the 21
family assessment response case. However, if at any time the 22
department identifies risk or safety factors that warrant an 23
investigation under this chapter, then the family assessment response 24
case must be reassigned to investigation; 25
(vi) Conduct an investigation, and not a family assessment, in 26
response to an allegation that, the department determines based on 27
the intake assessment: 28
(A) Indicates a child's health, safety, and welfare will be 29
seriously endangered if not taken into custody for reasons including, 30
but not limited to, sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of the child 31
as defined in this chapter; 32
(B) Poses a serious threat of substantial harm to a child;33
(C) Constitutes conduct involving a criminal offense that has, or 34
is about to occur, in which the child is the victim;35
(D) The child is an abandoned child as defined in RCW 13.34.030;36
(E) The child is an adjudicated dependent child as defined in RCW 37
13.34.030, or the child is in a facility that is licensed, operated, 38
or certified for care of children by the department under chapter 39
74.15 RCW. 40
p. 7 HB 1171
(c) In addition, the department may use a family assessment 1
response to assess for and provide prevention and family services and 2
programs, as defined in RCW 26.44.020, for the following children and 3
their families, consistent with requirements under the federal family 4
first prevention services act and this section: 5
(i) A child who is a candidate for foster care, as defined in RCW 6
26.44.020; and 7
(ii) A child who is in foster care and who is pregnant, 8
parenting, or both. 9
(d) The department may not be held civilly liable for the 10
decision to respond to an allegation of child abuse or neglect by 11
using the family assessment response under this section unless the 12
state or its officers, agents, or employees acted with reckless 13
disregard. 14
(13)(a) For reports of alleged abuse or neglect that are accepted 15
for investigation by the department, the investigation shall be 16
conducted within time frames established by the department in rule. 17
In no case shall the investigation extend longer than ninety days 18
from the date the report is received, unless the investigation is 19
being conducted under a written protocol pursuant to RCW 26.44.180 20
and a law enforcement agency or prosecuting attorney has determined 21
that a longer investigation period is necessary. At the completion of 22
the investigation, the department shall make a finding that the 23
report of child abuse or neglect is founded or unfounded.24
(b) If a court in a civil or criminal proceeding, considering the 25
same facts or circumstances as are contained in the report being 26
investigated by the department, makes a judicial finding by a 27
preponderance of the evidence or higher that the subject of the 28
pending investigation has abused or neglected the child, the 29
department shall adopt the finding in its investigation.30
(14) For reports of alleged abuse or neglect that are responded 31
to through family assessment response, the department shall:32
(a) Provide the family with a written explanation of the 33
procedure for assessment of the child and the family and its 34
purposes; 35
(b) Collaborate with the family to identify family strengths, 36
resources, and service needs, and develop a service plan with the 37
goal of reducing risk of harm to the child and improving or restoring 38
family well-being; 39
p. 8 HB 1171
(c) Complete the family assessment response within forty-five 1
days of receiving the report except as follows: 2
(i) Upon parental agreement, the family assessment response 3
period may be extended up to one hundred twenty days. The 4
department's extension of the family assessment response period must 5
be operated within the department's appropriations;6
(ii) For cases in which the department elects to use a family 7
assessment response as authorized under subsection (12)(c) of this 8
section, and upon agreement of the child's parent, legal guardian, 9
legal custodian, or relative placement, the family assessment 10
response period may be extended up to one year. The department's 11
extension of the family assessment response must be operated within 12
the department's appropriations. 13
(d) Offer services to the family in a manner that makes it clear 14
that acceptance of the services is voluntary; 15
(e) Implement the family assessment response in a consistent and 16
cooperative manner; 17
(f) Have the parent or guardian agree to participate in services 18
before services are initiated. The department shall inform the 19
parents of their rights under family assessment response, all of 20
their options, and the options the department has if the parents do 21
not agree to participate in services. 22
(15)(a) In conducting an investigation or family assessment of 23
alleged abuse or neglect, the department or law enforcement agency:24
(i) May interview children. If the department determines that the 25
response to the allegation will be family assessment response, the 26
preferred practice is to request a parent's, guardian's, or 27
custodian's permission to interview the child before conducting the 28
child interview unless doing so would compromise the safety of the 29
child or the integrity of the assessment. The interviews may be 30
conducted on school premises, at day-care facilities, at the child's 31
home, or at other suitable locations outside of the presence of 32
parents. If the allegation is investigated, parental notification of 33
the interview must occur at the earliest possible point in the 34
investigation that will not jeopardize the safety or protection of 35
the child or the course of the investigation. Prior to commencing the 36
interview the department or law enforcement agency shall determine 37
whether the child wishes a third party to be present for the 38
interview and, if so, shall make reasonable efforts to accommodate 39
the child's wishes. Unless the child objects, the department or law 40
p. 9 HB 1171
enforcement agency shall make reasonable efforts to include a third 1
party in any interview so long as the presence of the third party 2
will not jeopardize the course of the investigation; and3
(ii) Shall have access to all relevant records of the child in 4
the possession of mandated reporters and their employees.5
(b) The Washington state school directors' association shall 6
adopt a model policy addressing protocols when an interview, as 7
authorized by this subsection, is conducted on school premises. In 8
formulating its policy, the association shall consult with the 9
department and the Washington association of sheriffs and police 10
chiefs. 11
(16) If a report of alleged abuse or neglect is founded and 12
constitutes the third founded report received by the department 13
within the last twelve months involving the same child or family, the 14
department shall promptly notify the office of the family and 15
children's ombuds of the contents of the report. The department shall 16
also notify the ombuds of the disposition of the report.17
(17) In investigating and responding to allegations of child 18
abuse and neglect, the department may conduct background checks as 19
authorized by state and federal law. 20
(18)(a) The department shall maintain investigation records and 21
conduct timely and periodic reviews of all founded cases of abuse and 22
neglect. The department shall maintain a log of screened-out 23
nonabusive cases. 24
(b) In the family assessment response, the department shall not 25
make a finding as to whether child abuse or neglect occurred. No one 26
shall be named as a perpetrator and no investigative finding shall be 27
entered in the department's child abuse or neglect database.28
(19) The department shall use a risk assessment process when 29
investigating alleged child abuse and neglect referrals. The 30
department shall present the risk factors at all hearings in which 31
the placement of a dependent child is an issue. Substance abuse must 32
be a risk factor. 33
(20) Upon receipt of a report of alleged abuse or neglect the law 34
enforcement agency may arrange to interview the person making the 35
report and any collateral sources to determine if any malice is 36
involved in the reporting. 37
(21) Upon receiving a report of alleged abuse or neglect 38
involving a child under the court's jurisdiction under chapter 13.34 39
RCW, the department shall promptly notify the child's guardian ad 40
p. 10 HB 1171
litem of the report's contents. The department shall also notify the 1
guardian ad litem of the disposition of the report. For purposes of 2
this subsection, "guardian ad litem" has the meaning provided in RCW 3
13.34.030. 4
(22) The department shall make efforts as soon as practicable to 5
determine the military status of parents whose children are subject 6
to abuse or neglect allegations. If the department determines that a 7
parent or guardian is in the military, the department shall notify a 8
department of defense family advocacy program that there is an 9
allegation of abuse and neglect that is screened in and open for 10
investigation that relates to that military parent or guardian.11
(23) The department shall make available on its public website a 12
downloadable and printable poster that includes the reporting 13
requirements included in this section. The poster must be no smaller 14
than eight and one-half by eleven inches with all information on one 15
side. The poster must be made available in both the English and 16
Spanish languages. Organizations that include employees or volunteers 17
subject to the reporting requirements of this section must clearly 18
display this poster in a common area. At a minimum, this poster must 19
include the following: 20
(a) Who is required to report child abuse and neglect;21
(b) The standard of knowledge to justify a report;22
(c) The definition of reportable crimes; 23
(d) Where to report suspected child abuse and neglect; and24
(e) What should be included in a report and the appropriate 25
timing. 26
--- END ---
p. 11 HB 1171