H-3809.1 _______________________________________________
HOUSE BILL 2890
_______________________________________________
State of Washington 53rd Legislature 1994 Regular Session
By Representatives Reams, Van Luven and Anderson
Read first time 01/28/94. Referred to Committee on Human Services.
AN ACT Relating to creating a family and child care safeguard task force; and creating a new section.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The family and child care safeguard task force is established for the purposes of determining methods for (a) evaluating the number and types of child abuse incidents occurring or claimed to be occurring in or by day care centers, day care homes, and other child care facilities; (b) evaluating the emotional, relational, and financial consequences of such abuse on families, children, and public and private service providers; (c) reducing the risks that such abuse will occur by decreasing the opportunities for abuse to occur; and (d) providing families and children with adequate procedural and substantive safeguards to prevent abuse and service providers with adequate protections to prevent harm from false or unsubstantiated claims of abuse.
(2) The task force shall be composed of the following thirteen members: The governor or the governor's designee; the secretary of the department of social and health services or the secretary's designee; two representatives from each caucus of the house of representatives to be appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives; two representatives from each caucus of the senate to be appointed by the president of the senate; a representative from a major children's welfare public policy organization; and two representatives from the general public. The task force shall select its chair from among the thirteen members. Staffing for the task force shall be provided by the office of financial management.
(3) The task force shall:
(a) Review the occurrences of alleged, admitted, or proven child abuse in or by day care centers, day care homes, and other child care facilities, and the concerns, needs, and conditions of families, children, and public and private service providers resulting from abuse;
(b) Analyze the psychological, social, and economic impacts of child abuse in or by day care centers, day care homes, and other child care facilities on families, children, and public and private service providers;
(c) Develop comprehensive policy guidelines and procedures for the implementation of procedural and substantive safeguards that (i) will reduce the risks that abuse will occur and decrease the opportunities for abuse to occur, including requiring that upon request the department of social and health services inform parents of children who are attending child care facilities or who are considering sending their children to child care facilities whether or not child abuse has occurred at the facility or has been alleged to have occurred at the facility, the current status of a complaint, and the resolution of the incidents; and (ii) will ensure service providers are provided appropriate protections against injuries caused by fraudulent, frivolous, or unfounded allegations of abuse;
(d) Research efforts made by other states to ensure appropriate and adequate measures are taken to reduce the incidence and chances of child abuse in or by day care centers, day care homes, and other child care facilities; and
(e) Report its final findings and recommendations to the legislature no later than December 15, 1994, including legislation the task force finds necessary for the implementation of the findings and recommendations.
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