authority

Attachment I-A

Relevant Excerpts from the Child Abuse and Prevention Treatment Act (CAPTA) 41 U.S.C. 5102 et seq

NATIONAL CLEARINGHOUSE FOR INFORMATION RELATING TO CHILD ABUSE
Sec. 103. [42 U.S.C. 5104]

1. ESTABLISHMENT.--The Secretary shall through the Department, or by one or more contracts of not less than 3 years duration let through a competition, establish a national clearinghouse for information relating to child abuse.

2. FUNCTIONS.--The Secretary shall, through the clearinghouse established by subsection (a)--

   1. maintain, coordinate, and disseminate information on all programs, including private programs, that show promise of success with respect to the prevention, assessment, identification, and treatment of child abuse and neglect; and

   2. maintain and disseminate information relating to--

      1. the incidence of cases of child abuse and neglect in the United States;

      2. the incidence of such cases in populations determined by the Secretary under section 105(a)(1) of the Child Abuse Prevention, Adoption, and Family Services Act of 1988; and

      3. the incidence of any such cases related to alcohol or drug abuse.

3. COORDINATION WITH AVAILABLE RESOURCES.--

   1. IN GENERAL.--In establishing a national clearinghouse as required by subsection (a), the Secretary shall--

      1. consult with other Federal agencies that operate similar clearinghouses;

      2. consult with the head of each agency involved with child abuse and neglect and mechanisms for the sharing of such information among other Federal agencies and clearinghouses on the development of the components for information collection and management of such clearinghouse;

      3. develop a Federal data system involving the elements under subsection (b) which, to the extent practicable, coordinates existing Federal, State, regional, and local child welfare data systems which shall include--

         1. standardized data on false, unfounded, unsubstantiated, and substantiated reports; and

         2. information on the number of deaths due to child abuse and neglect;

      4. through a national data collection and analysis program and in consultation with appropriate State and local agencies and experts in the field, collect, compile, and make available State child abuse and neglect reporting information which, to the extent practical, shall be universal and case specific and integrated with other case-based foster care and adoption data collected by the Secretary;

      5. compile, analyze, and publish a summary of the research conducted under section 105(a)¹; and

      6. solicit public comment on the components of such clearinghouse.

Sec.106. [42 U.S. C. 51061a]

4. ANNUAL STATE DATA REPORTS.--Each State to which a grant is made under this section shall annually work with the Secretary to provide, to the maximum extent practicable, a report that includes the following:

   1. The number of children who were reported to the State during the year as abused or neglected.

   2. Of the number of children described in paragraph (1), the number with respect to whom such reports were--

      1. substantiated;

      2. unsubstantiated; or

      3. determined to be false.

   3. Of the number of children described in paragraph (2)--

      1. the number that did not receive services during the year under the State program funded under this section or an equivalent State program;

      2. the number that received services during the year under the State program funded under this section or an equivalent State program; and

      3. the number that were removed from their families during the year by disposition of the case.

   4. The number of families that received preventive services from the State during the year.

   5. The number of deaths in the State during the year resulting from child abuse or neglect.

   6. Of the number of children described in paragraph (5), the number of such children who were in foster care.

   7. The number of child protective services workers responsible for the intake and screening of reports filed in the previous year.

   8. The agency response time with respect to each such report with respect to initial investigation of reports of child abuse or neglect.

   9. The response time with respect to the provision of services to families and children where an allegation of abuse or neglect has been made.

   10. The number of child protective services workers responsible for intake, assessment, and investigation of child abuse and neglect reports relative to the number of reports investigated in the previous year.

   11. The number of children reunited with their families or receiving family preservation services that, within five years, result in subsequent substantiated reports of child abuse and neglect, including the death of the child.

   12. The number of children for whom individuals were appointed by the court to represent the best interests of such children and the average number of out of court contacts between such individuals and children.

   13. The annual report containing the summary of activities of the citizen review panels of the State required by subsection (c) (6).

   14. The number of children under the care of the State child protection system who are transferred into the custody of the State juvenile justice system.

5. ANNUAL REPORT BY THE SECRETARY.--Within 6 months after receiving the State reports under subsection (d), the Secretary shall prepare a report based on information provided by the States for the fiscal year under such subsection and shall make the report and such information available to the Congress and the national clearinghouse for information relating to child abuse.

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