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REFERENCE TITLE: office; child welfare investigations; DES |
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State of Arizona House of Representatives Fiftieth Legislature Second Regular Session 2012
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HB 2721 |
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Introduced by Representative Farnsworth
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AN ACT
amending title 41, chapter 14, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding section 41-1969.01; relating to the department of economic security.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Title 41, chapter 14, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 41-1969.01, to read:
41-1969.01. Office of child welfare investigations; training; responsibilities; annual report
A. In addition to the powers and duties of the director pursuant to sections 41-1953 and 41-1954, the director shall establish the office of child welfare investigations within the department. The director is responsible for the direction, operation and control of the office.
B. The office shall employ child welfare investigators who have received training in social services and training by the department in coordination with the Arizona peace officer standards and training board pursuant to subsection C of this section. A child welfare investigator is an employee of the department and shall comply with the fingerprint requirements of section 41-1968.
C. The department, in coordination with the Arizona peace officer standards and training board, shall provide child welfare investigators with training. The training shall be, at a minimum, in the following areas:
1. First responder's training to reports of child abuse.
2. Forensic interviewing and processes.
3. Child physical and sexual abuse investigation training.
4. The protocols established pursuant to section 8-817.
5. Relevant law enforcement procedures, including the collection and preservation of evidence.
6. A child's constitutional rights as a victim of a crime pursuant to article II, section 2.1, Constitution of Arizona.
7. Any other training as directed by the director.
D. A child welfare investigator shall:
1. Protect children.
2. Respond to and investigate all allegations of criminal child abuse or neglect received by the department.
3. Receive from any source oral or written information regarding a child who may be in need of protective services because of criminal child abuse or neglect. An investigator shall not interview a child without the prior written consent of the parent, guardian or custodian of the child unless either:
(a) The child initiates contact with the investigator.
(b) The child who is interviewed is the subject of, is the sibling of or living with the child who is the subject of an abuse or abandonment investigation pursuant to paragraph 4, subdivision (b) of this subsection.
(c) The interview is conducted pursuant to the terms of the protocols established pursuant to section 8-817.
4. After the receipt of any report or information pursuant to paragraph 2 or 3 of this subsection, immediately do both of the following:
(a) Notify the appropriate municipal or county law enforcement agency.
(b) Make a prompt and thorough investigation of the nature, extent and cause of any condition that would tend to support or refute the allegation that the child should be adjudicated dependent and the name, age and condition of other children in the home. A criminal conduct allegation shall be investigated according to the protocols established pursuant to section 8‑817 with the appropriate municipal or county law enforcement agency as provided in section 8-817.
5. Take a child into temporary custody as provided in section 8-821. Law enforcement officers shall cooperate with the department to remove a child from the custody of the child's parents, guardian or custodian pursuant to section 8-821.
6. After investigation, evaluate conditions created by the parents, guardian or custodian that would support or refute the allegation that the child should be adjudicated dependent. The investigator shall then determine whether any child is in need of protective services.
7. Submit a written report of the investigation to:
(a) the department's case management information system within a reasonable time period that does not exceed forty-eight hours after receipt of the initial information except as provided in section 8-811. If the investigation involves allegations regarding a child who at the time of the alleged incident was in the custody of a child welfare agency licensed by the department under this title, a copy of the report and any additional investigative or other related reports shall be provided to the board of directors of the agency or to the administrative head of the agency unless the incident is alleged to have been committed by the person. The department shall excise all information with regard to the identity of the source of the reports.
(b) the appropriate court forty-eight hours before a dependency hearing pursuant to a petition of dependency or within twenty-one days after a petition of dependency is filed, whichever is earlier. On receipt of the report the court shall make the report available to all parties and counsel.
8. Identify, promptly obtain and abide by court orders that restrict or deny custody, visitation or contact by a parent or other person in the home with the child and notify appropriate personnel within the department to preclude violations of a court order in the provision of any services.
E. Unless a dependency petition is filed, a child shall not remain in temporary custody for a period exceeding seventy-two hours, excluding saturdays, sundays and holidays. If a petition is not filed and the child is released to the child's parent, guardian or custodian, the investigator shall file a report of removal with the central registry within seventy-two hours after the child's release. The report shall include:
1. The dates of previous referrals, investigations or temporary custody.
2. The dates on which other children in the family have been taken into temporary custody.
F. In conducting an investigation pursuant to this section, if the investigator is made aware that an allegation of abuse or neglect may also have been made in another state, the investigator shall contact the appropriate agency in that state to attempt to determine the outcome of any investigation of that allegation.
G. The office of child welfare investigations shall submit an annual report on joint investigations conducted during the year pursuant to section 8-817.