Sec. 2. FINDINGS

361 words·~2 min read·/statute-compilations/comps-10397/sec-2

A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

## SEC. 2 FINDINGS Congress finds that— ####

(1)deaths from child abuse and neglect are preventable; ####

(2)deaths from child abuse and neglect are significantly underreported and there is no national standard for reporting such deaths; ####

(3)according to the Child Maltreatment Report of 2011, in fiscal year 2011, 1,545 children in the United States are reported to have died from child abuse and neglect, and many experts believe that the actual number may be significantly more; ####

(4)over 42 percent of the number of children in the United States who die from abuse are under the age of 1, and almost 82 percent are under the age of 4; ####

(5)of the children who died in fiscal year 2011, 70 percent suffered neglect either exclusively or in combination with another maltreatment type and 48 percent suffered physical abuse either exclusively or in combination; ####

(6)increased understanding of deaths from child abuse and neglect can lead to improvement in agency systems and practices to protect children and prevent child abuse and neglect; and ####

(7)Congress in recent years has taken a number of steps to reduce child fatalities from abuse and neglect, such as— #####

(A)providing States with flexibility through the Child and Family Services Improvement and Innovation Act of 2011 to operate child welfare demonstration projects to test services focused on preventing abuse and neglect and ensuring that children remain safely in their own homes; #####

(B)providing funding through the Child and Family Services Improvement Act of 2006 for services and activities to enhance the safety of children who are at risk of being placed in foster care as a result of a parent’s substance abuse; #####

(C)providing funding through the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 for grants to facilitate activities such as family group decisionmaking meetings and residential family treatment programs to support parents in caring for their children; and #####

(D)requiring States through the Child and Family Services Improvement and Innovation Act of 2011 to describe how they will improve the quality of data collected on fatalities from child abuse and neglect.