I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 764
To reduce the incidence of child abuse and neglect, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 12, 1999
Ms. PRYCE of Ohio (for herself, Mr. EWING, Mr. GREENWOOD, Mr. DELAY,
and Mrs. JONES of Ohio) introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To reduce the incidence of child abuse and neglect, and
for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Child Abuse Preven-
tion and Enforcement Act’’.
SEC. 2. IMPROVEMENT OF ACCESS TO CERTAIN COURT
AND LAW ENFORCEMENT RECORDS TO PRE-
VENT CHILD ABUSE.
(a) DESCRIPTION
OF GRANT PROGRAM.—Section
1402 of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act
of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796aa–1) is amended by adding be-
fore the period at the end the following: ‘‘or to provide
child protective workers and child welfare workers (in pub-
lic and private agencies, who, in the course of their official
duties, are engaged in the assessment of risk and other
actions related to the protection of children, including
placement of children in foster care) access to criminal
conviction information and orders of protection based on
a claim of domestic or child abuse, or to improve law en-
forcement access to judicial custody orders, visitation or-
ders, protection orders, guardianship orders, stay away or-
ders, or other similar judicial orders’’.
(b) APPLICATION TO RECEIVE GRANTS.—Section
1403 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 3796aa–2) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (1), by inserting before the
semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘or to provide
child protective workers and child welfare workers
(in public and private agencies, who, in the course
of their official duties, are engaged in the assess-
ment of risk and other actions related to the protec-
tion of children, including placement of children in
foster care) access to criminal conviction information
and orders of protection based on a claim of domes-
tic or child abuse, or to improve law enforcement ac-
cess to judicial custody orders, visitation orders, pro-
tection orders, guardianship orders, stay away or-
ders, or other similar judicial orders’’; and
(2) in paragraph (2), by inserting before the pe-
riod at the end the following: ‘‘or to provide child
protective workers and child welfare workers (in
public and private agencies, who, in the course of
their official duties, are engaged in the assessment
of risk and other actions related to the protection of
children, including placement of children in foster
care) access to criminal conviction information and
orders of protection based on a claim of domestic or
child abuse, or to improve law enforcement access to
judicial custody orders, visitation orders, protection
orders, guardianship orders, stay away orders, or
other similar judicial orders’’.
(c) REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS.—Section 1404(a) of
such Act (42 U.S.C. 3796aa–3(a)) is amended in the mat-
ter preceding paragraph (1) by inserting after ‘‘to receive
a grant’’ the following: ‘‘for closed circuit televising of tes-
timony of children who are victims of abuse’’.
(d) DEFINITIONS.—Section 1409(2) of such Act (42
U.S.C. 3796aa–8(2)) is amended by inserting before the
period at the end the following: ‘‘or the taking of a child
in violation of a court order’’.
(e) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Part N of title I of
such Act (42 U.S.C. 3796aa) is amended in the heading
to read as follows:
‘‘PART N—GRANTS FOR CLOSED-CIRCUIT TELE-
VISING OF TESTIMONY OF CHILDREN WHO
ARE VICTIMS OF ABUSE AND FOR IMPROV-
ING ACCESS TO COURT AND LAW ENFORCE-
MENT RECORDS FOR THE PURPOSE OF PRE-
VENTING CHILD ABUSE’’.
SEC. 3. USE OF FUNDS UNDER BYRNE GRANT PROGRAM
FOR CHILD PROTECTION.
Section 501(b) of title I of the Omnibus Crime Con-
trol and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3751) is
amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph
(25);
(2) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (26) and adding ‘‘; and’’; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(27) enforcing child abuse and neglect laws
and programs designed to prevent child abuse and
neglect.’’.
SEC. 4. INCREASE IN SET ASIDE FOR CHILD ABUSE VIC-
TIMS UNDER THE VICTIMS OF CRIME ACT OF
1984.
Section 1402(d)(2) of the Victims of Crime Act of
1984 is amended by striking ‘‘$10,000,000’’ and inserting
‘‘$20,000,000’’.
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