Assigned to HHS                                                                                                 AS PASSED BY COMMITTEE

ARIZONA STATE SENATE

Fifty-Seventh Legislature, Second Regular Session

AMENDED

FACT SHEET FOR S.B. 1174

DCS; intake hotline: case history

Purpose

Effective January 1, 2027, requires the Department of Child Safety (DCS) central intake hotline to generate a single report, including the entire history of a child and the child's siblings who have been the subject of prior hotline calls or DCS investigations, and directs hotline workers to review calls that were received in the previous 90 days that did not meet the criteria for a DCS report for use in determining if a new allegation meets the criteria.

Background

DCS is responsible for investigating reports of abuse and neglect relating to children and coordinating services to maintain permanency on behalf of the child, strengthening the family and providing prevention, intervention and treatment services. DCS must operate a 24/7 centralized intake hotline that receives communications concerning suspected child abuse or neglect. The hotline must be operated to record communications, identify prior reports related to the current communication, provide information to a law enforcement agency if necessary, create DCS reports and determine priority level of investigation (A.R.S. §§ 8-451 and 8-455).

There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.

Provisions

1. Requires the DCS central intake hotline to quickly and efficiently show, in a single report, the entire history of a child and the child's siblings who have been the subject of prior hotline calls or DCS investigations.

2. Requires hotline workers, upon receipt of a call, to review the narrative of every call received for that child in the prior 90 days.

3. Requires hotline workers to review calls from the hotline that were received in the previous 90 days that did not meet the criteria for a DCS report and allows the information to be used when determining if a new allegation meets the criteria.

4. Makes technical and conforming changes.

5. Becomes effective on January 1, 2027.

Amendments Adopted by Committee

1. Extends the period for review of a child's prior hotline call history from 60 to 90 days.

2. Allows hotline workers to use information from calls received in the previous 90 days, rather than three months, when determining if an allegation meets the criteria for a DCS report.

Senate Action

HHS    1/28/26            DPA    5-2-0

Prepared by Senate Research

January 29, 2026

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