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Committee reviews Act 154 changes to substantiation standard, registry rules and expungement process
Summary
Legislative counsel walked the House Human Services Committee through Act 154 (2024), highlighting a move toward a preponderance-of-the-evidence standard for substantiations, extended timelines for administrative review and appeal, new registry rulemaking, and processes for expungement and automatic expungement for juvenile cases.
The House Human Services Committee received a detailed briefing on Act 154, the 2024 law that amended the state’s child protection statute and DCF procedures. Legislative counsel Michelle Miles walked members through how Act 154 changes definitions, investigation procedures, appeal timelines, and registry management.
Miles explained that Act 154 refines the legal standard used when the department substantiates allegations of child abuse or neglect, clarifying language toward a preponderance-of-the-evidence standard (described in discussion as the ‘‘more likely than not’’ standard) in several places. She emphasized this does not shift the burden to the person alleged to have abused or neglected a child; the department retains the burden to prove substantiation by that preponderance standard.
Act 154 also changed procedural timelines: individuals now have more time to request administrative review (the transcript notes a change from 14 to 30 days), and the department must hold administrative-review conferences within a longer window (changed from 35 to 60 days in the act). The administrative reviewer must accept, reject, or place a substantiation on hold and may direct further investigation. If the administrative reviewer accepts the department’s substantiation, the registry record is created immediately; if not, no registry record is made.
Miles described registry changes and expungement processes: rulemaking will define when and how names are placed on the child protection registry, designate child-protection levels tied to substantiation types, and set standards and timelines for petitions to expunge records. The law includes an automatic-expungement provision for substantiations arising from conduct occurring before age 10; such records are to be expunged when the person reaches 18, provided there are no later substantiations. For voluntary expungement petitions, the transcript notes the petitioner bears the burden to show they no longer present a risk to children; the department must provide guidance on preparing future petitions if denied, and petitioners may apply only once every 36 months.
Act 154 also addresses operational matters: investigators are instructed to use best efforts to identify alleged perpetrators and gather contact information, notice requirements (mail/email) were strengthened to support due process, and reviewers are to disclose information obtained outside the review meeting that is relevant to the case. The law requires DCF to report on storage and confidentiality of recorded interviews (due to Human Services Committee by Nov. 15) and to report progress on creating a centralized internal substantiation determination process, with a report due on or after Jan. 15, 2026.
Committee members asked clarifying questions about how Act 154 interacts with S239’s front-end focus, and whether changes to definitions or registry procedures might affect the working group’s charge. Counsel offered to provide statutory links and DCF flowcharts to committee members and to schedule DCF testimony on Act 154 implementation. No formal action or votes were recorded in the transcript excerpt.
