Rep. Norm Thurston — Voting Record

Bill

Number

S.B. 94 (2020GS)

Sponsor

Sen. Fillmore, L.

Final action

Governor Signed 3/28/2020

Outcome

Became law — signed by Gov. Gary R. Herbert

Summary

What it does

• This bill:
• provides that the Division of Child and Family Services may share reports related to child abuse and neglect with a local education agency for certain purposes; and
• makes technical changes.

Every vote on this bill

Bill text

REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AMENDMENTS
GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Lincoln Fillmore
House Sponsor: 
Karianne Lisonbee
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill addresses the circumstances under which the Division of Child and Family
Services may share reports related to child abuse and neglect.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
▸ provides that the Division of Child and Family Services may share reports related to
child abuse and neglect with a local education agency for certain purposes; and
▸ makes technical changes.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Utah Code Sections Affected:
AMENDS:
62A-4a-412
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapter 335
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section 
62A-4a-412
 is amended to read:
62A-4a-412.
Reports and information confidential.
(1) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, reports made under this part, as well
as any other information in the possession of the division obtained as the result of a report are
private, protected, or controlled records under Title 63G, Chapter 2, Government Records
Access and Management Act, and may only be made available to:
(a) a police or law enforcement agency investigating a report of known or suspected
abuse or neglect, including members of a child protection unit;
(b) a physician who reasonably believes that a child may be the subject of abuse or
neglect;
(c) an agency that has responsibility or authority to care for, treat, or supervise a minor
who is the subject of a report;
(d) a contract provider that has a written contract with the division to render services to
a minor who is the subject of a report;
(e) except as provided in Subsection 
63G-2-202
(10), a subject of the report, the natural
parents of the child, and the guardian ad litem;
(f) a court, upon a finding that access to the records may be necessary for the
determination of an issue before the court, provided that in a divorce, custody, or related
proceeding between private parties, the record alone is:
(i) limited to objective or undisputed facts that were verified at the time of the
investigation; and
(ii) devoid of conclusions drawn by the division or any of the division's workers on the
ultimate issue of whether or not a person's acts or omissions constituted any level of abuse or
neglect of another person;
(g) an office of the public prosecutor or its deputies in performing an official duty;
(h) a person authorized by a Children's Justice Center, for the purposes described in
Section 
67-5b-102
;
(i) a person engaged in bona fide research, when approved by the director of the
division, if the information does not include names and addresses;
(j) the State Board of Education, acting on behalf of itself or on behalf of a [
school
district
] 
local education agency, as defined in Section 
63J-5-102
, for the purpose of evaluating
whether an individual should be permitted to obtain or retain a license as an educator or serve
as an employee or volunteer in a school, limited to information with substantiated or supported
findings involving an alleged sexual offense, an alleged felony or class A misdemeanor drug
offense, or any alleged offense against the person under Title 76, Chapter 5, Offenses Against
the Person, and with the understanding that the office must provide the subject of a report
received under Subsection (1)(k) with an opportunity to respond to the report before making a
decision concerning licensure or employment;
(k) any person identified in the report as a perpetrator or possible perpetrator of abuse
or neglect, after being advised of the screening prohibition in Subsection (2);
(l) except as provided in Subsection 
63G-2-202
(10), a person filing a petition for a
child protective order on behalf of a child who is the subject of the report;
(m) a licensed child-placing agency or person who is performing a preplacement
adoptive evaluation in accordance with the requirements of Sections 
78B-6-128
 and
78B-6-130
; or
(n) an Indian tribe to:
(i) certify or license a foster home;
(ii) render services to a subject of a report; or
(iii) investigate an allegation of abuse, neglect, or dependency.
(2) (a) A person, unless listed in Subsection (1), may not request another person to
obtain or release a report or any other information in the possession of the division obtained as
a result of the report that is available under Subsection (1)(k) to screen for potential
perpetrators of abuse or neglect.
(b) A person who requests information knowing that it is a violation of Subsection
(2)(a) to do so is subject to the criminal penalty in Subsection (4).
(3) (a) Except as provided in Section 
62A-4a-1007
 and Subsection (3)(b), the division
and law enforcement officials shall ensure the anonymity of the person or persons making the
initial report and any others involved in its subsequent investigation.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, excluding Section 
78A-6-317
, but
including this chapter and Title 63G, Chapter 2, Government Records Access and Management
Act, when the division makes a report or other information in its possession available under
Subsection (1)(e) to a subject of the report or a parent of a child, the division shall remove from
the report or other information only the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of
individuals or specific information that could:
(i) identify the referent;
(ii) impede a criminal investigation; or
(iii) endanger a person's safety.
(4) Any person who wilfully permits, or aides and abets the release of data or
information obtained as a result of this part, in the possession of the division or contained on
any part of the Management Information System, in violation of this part or Sections
62A-4a-1003
 through 
62A-4a-1007
, is guilty of a class C misdemeanor.
(5) The physician-patient privilege is not a ground for excluding evidence regarding a
child's injuries or the cause of those injuries, in any proceeding resulting from a report made in
good faith pursuant to this part.
(6) A child-placing agency or person who receives a report in connection with a
preplacement adoptive evaluation pursuant to Sections 
78B-6-128
 and 
78B-6-130
:
(a) may provide this report to the person who is the subject of the report; and
(b) may provide this report to a person who is performing a preplacement adoptive
evaluation in accordance with the requirement of Sections 
78B-6-128
 and 
78B-6-130
, or to a
licensed child-placing agency or to an attorney seeking to facilitate an adoption.