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House advances S.239 to create child abuse and neglect reporting working group with set timeline
Summary
The Vermont House amended S.239 to form a working group to review mandated reporting statutes, citing high reporting rates and comparatively low referral-to-services rates; the bill sets membership, an interim report by April 1, 2027 and final recommendations by Oct. 1, 2027, and the House ordered third reading.
The Vermont House advanced S.239, which would establish a child abuse and neglect reporting working group charged with reviewing mandated reporting statutes and offering recommendations to a future legislature. A member from Hartford, speaking for the House Human Services Committee, outlined findings and the committee's recommended changes.
The member said Vermont's rate of reporting to the Department for Children and Families (DCF) "is three times higher than the national average," but that only 17% of those reports met criteria for further investigation compared with 54% nationally. The committee cited concerns that Vermont's high reporting rate has not consistently translated into referrals to supportive services; the committee noted that only 28% of impacted children and families were referred to services compared with a national average of 57%.
To address those gaps, the strike-all amendment the committee recommended creates a working group composed of up to 13 voting members and a list of consultants. The membership is to include two people with lived experience, representatives from child-serving agencies, law enforcement with special investigative experience, education representatives and advocates. The working group's interim report is due April 1, 2027, with final recommendations by Oct. 1, 2027; the first meeting must occur on or before Aug. 15. The bill directs the working group to analyze 33 V.S.A. §§ 4912 and 4913 and to recommend reforms covering reporting criteria, who should be mandated reporters, penalties for failure to report, alternatives to reporting when appropriate, and supports and training for mandated reporters.
Appropriations estimated minimal cost (the Joint Fiscal Office placed any expenditures below $10,000, primarily per diems). The Human Services Committee reported the bill favorably with a 9-0-2 vote and asked for the body's support; Appropriations recommended amending the report and the House approved the amendment by voice vote. The House then proposed to the Senate to amend the bill as recommended and ordered the bill read a third time.
If enacted, the working group would aim to clarify statutory language and propose changes intended to improve child safety while reducing unintended consequences of reporting practices.
