Florida Senate - 2013                                    SB 1162
       
       
       
       By Senator Bradley
       
       
       
       
       7-01105A-13                                           20131162__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to mandatory reports of child abuse;
    3         amending s. 39.201, F.S.; limiting the duty of an
    4         officer or employee of a law enforcement agency to
    5         provide notice to the Department of Children and
    6         Families of reasonable cause to suspect child abuse
    7         under certain circumstances; limiting the duty of the
    8         Central Abuse Hotline to electronically transfer
    9         certain calls and reports to the county sheriff’s
   10         office under certain circumstances; providing
   11         applicability; providing an effective date.
   12  
   13  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   14  
   15         Section 1. Paragraph (h) is added to subsection (1) of
   16  section 39.201, Florida Statutes, to read:
   17         39.201 Mandatory reports of child abuse, abandonment, or
   18  neglect; mandatory reports of death; central abuse hotline.—
   19         (1)
   20         (h) An officer or employee of a law enforcement agency is
   21  not required to provide notice to the department of reasonable
   22  cause to suspect child abuse by an adult other than a parent,
   23  legal custodian, caregiver, or other person responsible for the
   24  child’s welfare when the incident under investigation by the law
   25  enforcement agency was reported to law enforcement by the
   26  Central Abuse Hotline through the electronic transfer of the
   27  report or call. The department’s Central Abuse Hotline is not
   28  required to electronically transfer calls and reports received
   29  pursuant to paragraph (2)(b) to the county sheriff’s office if
   30  the matter was initially reported to the department by the
   31  county sheriff’s office or another law enforcement agency. This
   32  paragraph applies only when the information related to the
   33  alleged child abuse has been provided to the officer or employee
   34  of a law enforcement agency or Central Abuse Hotline employee in
   35  the course of carrying out his or her official duties.
   36         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2013.