REGISTRY OF CHILDREN'S DEATHS
House Bill 4384
Sponsor: Rep. Kenneth Kurtz
Committee: Families, Children, and Seniors
Complete to 5-6-11
A SUMMARY OF HOUSE BILL 4384 AS INTRODUCED 3-3-11
The bill would amend the Child Protection Law to require the Department of Human Services to establish and maintain a central registry of statistical information regarding children's deaths that is accessible to the public.
The registry could not disclose any identifying information regarding a child or adult involved in the investigation or incident and could only include statistical information covering all of the following:
· The number of children who died while in foster care.
· The number of children who died while under court jurisdiction for child abuse or neglect.
· The number of children who died after having involvement with Child Protective Services.
· The total number of children who died under the above conditions in the preceding year.
· A narrative of the circumstances, manner, and cause of death. The narrative included in the registry could not disclose or include any confidential information.
· The number and nature of child abuse or neglect referrals against parents before the child's death and the CPS category given to each investigated complaint.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Department has noted that data are already collected by the child fatality review teams. The bill would likely lead to a small, indeterminate increase in administrative cost to the Department of Human Services associated with modifying information for use in a central registry.
Fiscal Analyst: Kevin Koorstra
■ This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan House staff for use by House members in their deliberations, and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.