WE CAN Act

Working to End Child Abuse and Neglect Act or the WE CAN Act

This bill requires the Office on Child Abuse and Neglect to study and report on state laws that require certain individuals to report child abuse and neglect. The required analysis must include trends based on a state's inclusion under such laws of health care workers, teachers, law enforcement personnel, clergy, childcare workers, and social services workers.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1666 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1666

  To amend the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act to require a 
          study and report on State mandatory reporting laws.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 8, 2021

Ms. Wild (for herself and Mr. Thompson of Pennsylvania) introduced the 
 following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and 
                                 Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act to require a 
          study and report on State mandatory reporting laws.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Working to End Child Abuse and 
Neglect Act'' or the ``WE CAN Act''.

SEC. 2. STUDY AND REPORT ON STATE MANDATORY REPORTING LAWS.

    Section 110 of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 
U.S.C. 5106f) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(e) Study and Report on State Mandatory Reporting Laws.--
            ``(1) Study.--The Secretary shall collect information on, 
        and otherwise study, State laws for mandatory reporting of 
        incidents of child abuse or neglect. Such study shall examine 
        trends in referrals and investigations of child abuse and 
        neglect due to differences in such State laws with respect to 
        the inclusion, as mandatory reporters, of the following 
        individuals:
                    ``(A) Individuals licensed or certified to practice 
                in any health-related field licensed by the State, 
                employees of health care facilities or providers 
                licensed by the State, who are engaged in the 
                admission, examination, care or treatment of 
                individuals, including mental health and emergency 
                medical service providers.
                    ``(B) Individuals employed by a school who have 
                direct contact with children, including teachers, 
                administrators, and independent contractors.
                    ``(C) Peace officers and law enforcement personnel.
                    ``(D) Clergy, including Christian Science 
                practitioners, except where prohibited on account of 
                clergy-penitent privilege.
                    ``(E) Day care and child care operators and 
                employees.
                    ``(F) Employees of social services agencies who 
                have direct contact with children in the course of 
                employment.
                    ``(G) Foster parents.
                    ``(H) Court appointed special advocates (employees 
                and volunteers).
                    ``(I) Camp and after-school employees.
                    ``(J) An individual, paid or unpaid, who, on the 
                basis of the individual's role as an integral part of a 
                regularly scheduled program, activity, or service, 
                accepts responsibility for a child.
            ``(2) Report.--Not later than 4 years after the date of 
        enactment of the Working to End Child Abuse and Neglect Act, 
        the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Health, 
        Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee 
        on Education and Labor of the House of Representatives a report 
        containing the findings of the study required by this 
        subsection, including any best practices related to the 
        inclusion, as mandatory reporters, of individuals described in 
        paragraph (1).''.
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