Chapter 063

2016 -- S 2368 AS AMENDED Enacted 06/13/2016

A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- HEALTH AND SAFETY OF PUPILS -- CHILD ABUSE HOTLINE

Introduced By: Senators Doyle, Gallo, Satchell, Nesselbush, and DiPalma

Date Introduced: February 10, 2016

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

SECTION 1. Chapter 16-21 of the General Laws entitled "Health and Safety of Pupils" is

hereby amended by adding thereto the following section:

16-21-36. Duty to report - Posting child abuse hotline telephone number. – Each

public or private school in the state shall post a notice that contains the statewide, toll-free

telephone number, established and implemented by the department of children, youth and

families pursuant to § 40-11-3 for the receipt of reports concerning the suspicion of child abuse

and neglect or that a child has been a victim of sexual abuse by another child, in a conspicuous,

high-traffic area accessed and widely used by the students in each school.

SECTION 2. Section 40-11-3 of the General Laws in Chapter 40-11 entitled "Abused and

Neglected Children" is hereby amended to read as follows:

40-11-3. Duty to report -- Deprivation of nutrition or medical treatment. -- (a) Any

person who has reasonable cause to know or suspect that any child has been abused or neglected

as defined in section § 40-11-2, or has been a victim of sexual abuse by another child, shall,

within twenty-four (24) hours, transfer that information to the department of children, youth and

families, or its agent, who shall cause the report to be investigated immediately. As a result of

those reports and referrals, protective social services shall be made available to those children in

an effort to safeguard and enhance the welfare of those children and to provide a means to

prevent further abuse or neglect. The department shall establish and implement a single,

statewide, toll-free telephone to operate twenty-four (24) hours per day, seven (7) days per week

for the receipt of reports concerning child abuse and neglect, which reports shall be electronically

recorded and placed in the central registry established by section § 42-72-7. The department shall

create a sign, using a format that is clear, simple, and understandable to students, that contains the

statewide toll-free telephone number for posting in all public and private schools in languages

predominately spoken in the state, containing pertinent information relating to reporting the

suspicion of child abuse, neglect and sexual abuse. This sign shall be available to the school

districts electronically. The electronically recorded records, properly indexed by date and other

essential, identifying data, shall be maintained for a minimum of three (3) years; provided,

however, any person who has been reported for child abuse and/or neglect, and who has been

determined not to have neglected and/or abused a child, shall have his or her record expunged as

to that incident three (3) years after that determination. The department shall continuously

maintain a management-information database which that includes all of the information required

to implement this section, including the number of cases reported by hospitals, health-care

centers, emergency rooms, and other appropriate health-care facilities.

(b) The reporting shall include immediate notification of the department of any instance

where parents of an infant have requested deprivation of nutrition that is necessary to sustain life

and/or who have requested deprivation of medical or surgical intervention that is necessary to

remedy or ameliorate a life-threatening medical condition, if the nutrition or medical or surgical

intervention is generally provided to similar nutritional, medical, or surgical conditioned infants,

whether disabled or not.

(c) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted to prevent a child's parents and physician

from discontinuing the use of life-support systems or nonpalliative treatment for a child who is

terminally ill where, in the opinion of the child's physician exercising competent medical

judgment, the child has no reasonable chance of recovery from the terminal illness despite every,

appropriate medical treatment to correct the condition.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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LC003890

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