Children's Justice and Assistance Act of 1986
PL 99-401 (S.140), enacted 08/27/1986

PUBLIC LAW 99-401—AUG. 27, 1986 
100 STAT. 903 
Public Law 99-401 
99th Congress 
An Act 
Aug. 27, 1986 
[S. 140] 
Children's 
Justice and 
Assistance Act of 
1986. 
State and local 
governments. 
42 u s e 5101 
note. 
Children's 
Justice 
Act. 
42 u s e 5101 
note. 
Health and 
medical care. 
To amend the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act to establish a program to 
encourage States to enact child protection reforms which are designed to improve 
legal and administrative proceedings regarding the investigation and prosecution 
of child abuse cases, particularly child sexual abuse cases, and to establish demon-
stration programs of temporary child care for handicapped children and crisis 
nurseries. 
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 "Children's Justice and Assistance 
Act of 1986". 
- 
TITLE I—CHILDREN'S JUSTICE 
SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE. 
This title may be cited as the "Children's Justice Act". 
SEC. 102. CHILDREN'S JUSTICE GRANT. 
(a) GRANT AUTHORIZATION.—Section 4 of the Child Abuse Preven-
tion and Treatment Act (hereinafter in this title referred to as "the 
42 USC 5103 
Act") is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsections (d), (e), (f), and (f) (the second 
time such designation appears), as subsections (e), (f), (g), and 
(h), respectively; and 
(2) by inserting after subsection (c) the following new subsec-
tion: 
"(d)(1) The Secretary (acting through the Center and in consulta-
tion with the Attorney General) is authorized to make grants to the 
States for the purpose of assisting States in developing, establishing, 
and operating programs designed to improve (A) the handling of 
child abuse cases, particularly cases of child sexual abuse, in a 
manner which limits additional trauma to the child victim, and (B) 
the investigation and prosecution of cases of child abuse, particu-
larly child sexual abuse. 
"(2) In order for a State to qualify for assistance under this 
subsection, such State shall— 
"(A) fulfill the requirements of subsections (b) (2) and (4) or 
j^ 
receive a waiver of such requirements under subsection (b)(3); 
"(B) establish a task force as provided in paragraph (3); 
"(C) fulfill the requirements of paragraph (4); and 
"(D) submit an application to the Secretary at such time and 
containing such information and assurances as the Secretary 
' 
considers necessary, including an assurance that the State will 
1 
make such reports to the Secretary as may reasonably be 
required and will maintain and provide access to records relat-
1 
ing to activities under this subsection. 
Reports. 
Records. 
,i8«Fi 
100 STAT. 904 
PUBLIC LAW 99-401—AUG. 27, 1986 
"(3)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), a State requesting 
assistance under this subsection shall establish or designate a multi-
disciplinary task force on children's justice (hereinafter referred to 
as "the task force") composed of professionals with knowledge and 
experience related to the criminal justice system and issues of child 
abuse. The task force shall include individuals representing the law 
enforcement community, judicial and legal officers (including 
individuals involved with the defense as well as the prosecution of 
such cases), child advocates, health and mental health professionals, 
individuals representing child protective service agencies, individ-
uals experienced in working with handicapped children, parents, 
and parents' groups. 
"(B) As determined by the Secretary, a commission or task force 
established after January 1, 1983, with substantially comparable 
membership and functions, may be considered the task force for the 
purposes of this subsection. 
"(C) Before a State receives assistance under this subsection, the 
task force shall (i) review and evaluate State investigative, adminis-
trative, and judicial handling of CEises of child abuse, particularly 
child sexual abuse, and (ii) make recommendations in each of the 
categories described in paragraph (4). The task force may make such 
other comments and recommendations as are considered relevant 
and useful. 
"(4)(A) Subject to the provisions of subparagraph (B), the State 
shall adopt recommendations of the task force in each of the follow-
ing categories: 
"(i) investigative, administrative, and judicial handling of 
cases of child abuse, particularly child sexual abuse cases, in a 
manner which reduces the additional trauma to the child victim 
and which also ensures procedural fairness to the accused; 
"(ii) experimental, model, and demonstration programs for 
testing innovative approaches and techniques which may im-
prove the rate of successful prosecution or enhance the 
effectiveness of judicial and administrative action in child abuse 
cases, particularly child sexual abuse cases, and which also 
ensure procedural fairness to the accused; and 
"(iii) reform of State laws, ordinances, regulations, and proce-
dures to provide comprehensive protection for children from 
abuse, particularly sexual abuse, while ensuring fairness to all 
affected persons. 
"(B) As determined by the Secretary, a State shall be considered 
to be in fulfillment of the requirements of this paragraph if— 
"(i) the State adopts an alternative to the recommendations of 
the task force, which carries out the purposes of this subsection, 
in each of the categories under subparagraph (A) for which the 
task force's recommendations are not adopted; or 
"(ii) the State is making substantial progress toward adopt-
ing the recommendations of the task force or a comparable 
alternative to such recommendations. 
"(5) For grants under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall use the 
amount authorized by section 1404A of the Victims of Crime Act of 
Post, p. 905. 
1984.". 
(b) CRIME VICTIMS FUND.—(1) Section 1402(c)(1) of the Victims of 
Crime Act of 1984 (42 U.S.C. 10601(c)(1)) is amended by striking out 
"$100 million" and inserting in lieu thereof "$110 million". 
(2) Section 1402(d)(2) of such Act is amended to read as follows: 
"(2) The Fund shall be available as follows: 
PUBLIC LAW 99-401—AUG. 27, 1986 
100 STAT. 905 
42 u s e 10602. 
Infra. 
"(A) Of the first $100,000,000 deposited in the Fund in a 
particular fiscal year— 
"(i) 49.5 percent shall be available for grants under sec-
tion 1403; 
"(ii) 45 percent shall be available for grants under section 
1404(a); 
' 
"(iii) 1 percent shall be available for grants under section 
1404(c); and 
!' 
"(iv) 4.5 percent shall be available for grants as provided 
' 
in section 1404A. 
"(B) The next $5,500,000 deposited in the Fund in a particular 
fiscal year shall be available for grants as provided in section 
1404A. 
"(C) Any deposits in the Fund in a particular fiscal year in 
excess of $105,500,000 shall be available for grants under section 
1404(a).". 
(3) The Victims of Crime Act of 1984 is amended by inserting after 
42 use 10601 
section 1404 the following new section: 
"°*®' 
42 u s e 10603. 
CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT GRANTS 
"SEC. 1404A. Amounts made available by section 1402(d)(2) for the 
42 use I0603a. 
purposes of this section shall be obligated and expended by the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services for grants under section 
4(d) of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act. Any portion 
Ante, p. 903. 
of an amount which is not obligated by the Secretary by the end of 
the fiscal year in which funds are made available for allocation, 
shall be reallocated for award under section 1404(a), except that 
with respect to funds deposited during fiscal year 1986 and made 
available for obligation during fiscal year 1987, any unobligated 
,^^.,p, 
portion of such amount shall remain available for obligation until 
September 30,1988.". 
(4) Section 1404(c) of the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 is amended 42 use 10603. 
by striking out "(c)" and all that follows through "The Federal 
Administrator shall—" in paragraph (3) and inserting in lieu 
thereof the following: "(cXD The Attorney General, acting through 
the Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs, 
shall make grants— 
i» 
"(A) for training and technical assistance services to eligible 
crime victim assistance programs; and 
"(B) for the financial support of services to victims of Federal 
crime by eligible crime victim assistance programs. 
"(2) Of the amount available for grants under this subsection— 
"(A) not less than 50 percent shall be used for grants under 
paragraph (IXA); and 
- ' ""' 
"(B) not more than 50 percent shall be used for grants under 
paragraph (IXB). 
"(3) The Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice 
Programs shall—". 
(5) Section 1404(aXl) of the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 is 
amended by striking out "not used for grants under section 1403" 
and all that follows through "subsection (c)" and inserting in lieu 
thereof "made available by section 1402(dX2) for the purpose of 
grants under this subsection, or for the purpose of grants under 
section 1403 but not used for that purpose". 
42 use 10602. 
100 STAT. 906 
PUBLIC LAW 99-401—AUG. 27, 1986 
Health and 
medical care. 
42 use 5101. 
Ante, p. 903. 
Research and 
development. 
Ante, p. 905. 
Reports. 
42 use 5101 
note. 
42 use 5105. 
42 use 5101 
note. 
SEC. 103. THE NATIONAL CENTER ON CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT. 
(a) STUDIES AND REPORTS.—Section 2(b) of the Act is amended— 
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), and (7) as 
paragraphs (3), (4), (6), (7), (8), and (9), respectively; 
(2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following new para-
graph: 
"(2) compile, evaluate, publish, and disseminate to each State 
such materials and information as may assist the States in 
achieving the objectives of section 4(d), including an evaluation 
of various methods and procedures for the investigation and 
prosecution of child physical and sexual abuse cases and result-
ant psychological trauma of the child victim;"; 
(3) by inserting after paragraph (4) (as so redesignated) the 
following new paragraph: 
"(5) develop and disseminate, to appropriate State and local 
officials, model training materials to assist in training law 
enforcement, legal, judicial, medical, mental health, and child 
welfare personnel in appropriate methods of interacting during 
investigative, administrative, and judicial proceedings with chil-
dren subjected to child abuse;"; 
(4) by amending paragraph (7) (as so redesignated) to read as 
follows: 
"(7) conduct research on the causes, prevention, identifica-
tion, and treatment of child abuse and neglect, and on appro-
priate and effective investigative, administrative, and judicial 
procedures in cases of child abuse;"; and 
(5) by inserting after paragraph (9) (as so redesignated) the 
following new paragraph: 
"(10) not later than two years after the first fiscal year for 
which funds are obligated under section 1404A of the Victims of 
Crime Act of 1984, the Secretary shall— 
"(A) evaluate the effectiveness of assisted programs in 
achieving the objectives of section 4(d); and 
"(B) submit a report to the appropriate committees of the 
Congress of such evaluation and of technical assistance in 
achieving the objectives of such section provided to the 
States through the National Center on Child Abuse and 
Neglect.". 
(b) DISSEMINATION REQUIREMENT.—Information and materials 
under sections 2(b)(2) and 2(b)(5) of the Act shall be made available 
to appropriate State officials not later than 180 days after the date 
of enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 104. COORDINATION OF FEDERAL PROGRAMS CONCERNING CHILD 
ABUSE. 
Section 6(a) of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act is 
amended— 
(1) by inserting after the first sentence "The Advisory Board 
shall meet at least every six months."; and 
(2) in the second sentence by inserting "in order to prevent 
unnecessary duplication of such programs, to ensure efficient 
allocation of resources, and to assure that programs effectively 
address all aspects of the child abuse problem" after "Board . 
SEC. 105. ACQUISITION OF STATISTICAL DATA. 
(a) DATA ACQUISITION FOR 1987 AND 1988.—The Attorney General 
shall acquire from criminal justice agencies statistical data, for the 
PUBLIC LAW 99-401—AUG. 27, 1986 
100 STAT. 907 
calendar years 1987 and 1988, about the incidence of child abuse, 
including child sexual abuse, and shall publish annually a summary 
of such data. 
(b) MODIFICATION OF UNIFORM CRIME REPORTING PROGRAM.—(1) As 
soon as practicable, but in no case later than January 1, 1989, the 
Attorney General shall modify the uniform crime reporting pro-
gram in the Federal Bureau of Investigation to include data on the 
age of the victim of the offense and the relationship, if any, of the 
victim to the offender, for types of offenses that may involve child 
abuse, including child sexual abuse. 
(2) The modification, once made, shall remain in effect until the 
later o
f
— 
(A) 10 years after the date it is made; or 
(B) such ending date as may be set by the Attorney General. 
SEC. 106. AMENDMENT TO PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE ACT. 
(a) SECTION 523.—Section 523(e) of the Public Health Service Act 
(42 U.S.C. 290dd-3(e)) is amended by adding after and below para-
graph (2) the following: "The prohibitions of this section do not 
apply to the reporting under State law of incidents of suspected 
child abuse and neglect to the appropriate State or local authori-
ties.". 
(b) SECTION 527.—Section 527(e) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 290ee-(3)) is 
amended by adding after and below paragraph (2) the following: 
"The prohibitions of this section do not apply to the reporting under 
State law of incidents of suspected child abuse and neglect to the 
appropriate State or local authorities.". 
TITLE II—TEMPORARY CHILD CARE FOR HANDICAPPED 
CHILDREN AND CRISIS NURSERIES 
SEC. 201 SHORT TITLE. 
This title may be cited as the "Temporary Child Care for Handi-
capped Children and Crisis Nurseries Act of 1986". 
SEC. 202. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds that it is necessary to establish demonstration 
programs of grants to the States to assist private and public agencies 
and organizations to provide: (A) temporary non-medical child care 
for children with special needs to alleviate social, emotional, and 
financial stress among children and families of such children, and 
(B) crisis nurseries for children who are abused and neglected, at 
risk of abuse or neglect, or who are in families receiving child 
protective services. 
SEC. 203. TEMPORARY CHILD CARE FOR HANDICAPPED AND CHRON-
ICALLY ILL CHILDREN. 
The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall establish a 
demonstration program of grants to States to assist private and 
public agencies and organizations to provide in-home or out-of-home 
temporary non-medical child care for handicapped children, and 
children with chronic or terminal illnesses. Such care shall be 
provided on a sliding fee scale with hourly and daily rates. 
SEC. 204. CRISIS NURSERIES. 
The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall establish a 
demonstration program of grants to States to assist private and 
42 use 
290ee-3. 
Temporary Child 
Care for 
Handicapped 
Children and 
Crisis 
Nurseries Act of 
1986. 
42 u s e 5117 
note. 
Health and 
medical care. 
42 u s e 5117. 
Health and 
medical care. 
42 u s e 5117a. 
42 u s e 5117b. 
100 STAT. 908 
PUBLIC LAW 99-401—AUG. 27, 1986 
public agencies and organizations to provide crisis nurseries for 
children who are abused and neglected, are at high risk of abuse and 
neglect, or who are in families receiving child protective services. 
Such service shall be provided without fee for a maximum of 30 days 
in any year. Crisis nurseries shall also provide referral to support 
services. 
Grants. 
SEC. 205. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS. 
42 u s e 5117c. 
(a)ApPUCATIONS.-
(1) Any State which desires to receive a grant under section 
203 or 204 shall submit an application to the Secretary in such 
form and at such times as the Secretary may require. Such 
application shall— 
(A) describe the proposed State program, including the 
services to be provided, the agencies and organizations that 
will provide the services, and the criteria for selection of 
children and families for participation in projects under the 
program; 
(B) contain an estimate of the cost of developing, im-
plementing, and evaluating the State program; 
(C) set forth the plan for dissemination of the results of 
the projects; and 
(D) specify the State agency designated to administer 
programs and activities assisted under this title and the 
plans for coordinating interagency support of the program. 
(2) Such application shall contain assurances that— 
(A) not more than 5 percent of funds made available 
under this title will be used for State administrative costs; 
(B) projects will be of sufficient size, scope, and quality to 
achieve the objectives of the program; 
(C) in the distribution of funds made available under 
section 203, a State will give priority consideration to agen-
cies and organizations with experience in working with 
handicapped and chronically ill children and their families 
and which serve communities with the greatest need for 
such services; 
(D) in the distribution of funds made available under 
section 204, the State will give priority consideration to 
agencies and organizations with experience in working with 
abused or neglected children and their families, and with 
children at high risk of abuse and neglect and their fami-
lies, and which serve communities which demonstrate the 
greatest need for such services; and 
(E) Federal funds made available under this title will be 
so used as to supplement and, to the extent practicable, 
increase the amount of State and local funds that would in 
the absence of such Federal funds be made available for the 
uses specified in this title, and in no case supplant such 
State or local funds. 
0)) AWARD OF GRANTS.— 
(1) In reviewing applications for grants under this title, the 
Secretary shall consider, among other factors, the equitable 
geographical distribution of grants. 
(2) In the award of temporary non-medical child care dem-
onstration grants under section 203, the Secretary shall give a 
preference to States in which such care is unavailable. 
PUBLIC LAW 99-401—AUG. 27, 1986 
100 STAT. 909 
(3) Of the funds appropriated under section 206, one-half shall 
be available for grants under section 203 and one-half shall be 
available for grants under section 204. 
(c) EVALUATIONS.—States receiving grants under this title, shall Reports, 
annually submit a report to the Secretary evaluating funded pro-
grams. Such report shall include information concerning costs, the 
number of participants, impact on family stability, the incidence of 
abuse and neglect, and such other information as the Secretary may 
require. 
(d) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this title— 
(1) the term "Secretary" means the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services; 
(2) the term "handicapped children" has the meaning given 
such term in section 602(aXl) of the Education of the Handi-
capped Act; 
20 use 1401. 
(3) the term "crisis nursery" means a center providing tem-
porary emergency services and care for children; and 
(4) the term "non-medical child care" means the provision of 
care to provide temporary relief for the primary caregiver. 
SEC. 206. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There are authorized to be appropriated for the purposes of this 
title such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 1987 
and 1988. Such sums shall remain available until expended. 
SEC. 207. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
This title shall take effect October 1,1986. 
Approved August 27, 1986. 
42 u s e 5117d. 
42 u s e 5117 
note. 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—S. 140: 
SENATE REPORTS: No. 99-123 (Comm. on Labor and Human Resources). 
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD: 
Vol. 131 (1985): Aug. 4, considered and passed Senate. 
Vol. 132 (1986): Aug. 4, considered and passed House, amended. 
Aug. 12, Senate concurred in House amendments.