Amendment No. 1053

Senate Amendment to Assembly Bill No. 158 Third Reprint (BDR 11-475)

Proposed by: Committee on Judiciary

Amendment Box: Conflicts with Amendment No. 1045. Resolves conflict with S.B. No. 148.

Resolves Conflicts with: SB148

Amends: Summary: Title: Preamble: Joint Sponsorship:

ASSEMBLY ACTION Initial and Date | SENATE ACTION Initial and Date

Adopted Lost | Adopted Lost

Concurred In Not | Concurred In Not

Receded Not | Receded Not

Amend sec. 21, page 13, line 42, by deleting the italicized semicolon and inserting:

"or pursuant to section 3 of Senate Bill No. 148 of this session in making a general investigation and report;".

Amend sec. 21, page 14, line 32, by deleting "176.135," and inserting:

"176.135 [,] or making a general investigation and report pursuant to section 3 of Senate Bill No. 148 of this session,".

Amend sec. 21, page 14, line 34, after "report" by inserting "and".

Amend the bill as a whole by adding new sections designated sections 29.5 and 29.6, following sec. 29, to read as follows:

"Sec. 29.5. Section 11 of Senate Bill No. 148 of this session is hereby amended to read as follows:

Sec. 11. NRS 432B.290 is hereby amended to read as follows:

432B.290 1. Except as otherwise provided in subsections 2, 5 and 6, data or information concerning reports and investigations thereof made pursuant to this chapter may be made available only to:

(a) A physician who has before him a child who he reasonably believes may have been abused or neglected;

(b) A person authorized to place a child in protective custody, if he has before him a child who he reasonably believes may have been abused or neglected and he requires the information to determine whether to place the child in protective custody;

(c) An agency, including, without limitation, an agency in another jurisdiction, responsible for or authorized to undertake the care, treatment or supervision of:

(1) The child; or

(2) The person responsible for the welfare of the child;

(d) A district attorney or other law enforcement officer who requires the information in connection with an investigation or prosecution of the abuse or neglect of a child;

(e) A court, for in camera inspection only, unless the court determines that public disclosure of the information is necessary for the determination of an issue before it;

(f) A person engaged in bona fide research or an audit, but information identifying the subjects of a report must not be made available to him;

(g) The attorney and the guardian ad litem of the child;

(h) A grand jury upon its determination that access to these records is necessary in the conduct of its official business;

(i) A federal, state or local governmental entity, or an agency of such an entity, that needs access to the information to carry out its legal responsibilities to protect children from abuse and neglect;

(j) A person or an organization that has entered into a written agreement with an agency which provides protective services to provide assessments or services and that has been trained to make such assessments or provide such services;

(k) A team organized pursuant to NRS 432B.350 for the protection of a child;

(l) A team organized pursuant to NRS 432B.405 to review the death of a child;

(m) A parent or legal guardian of the child, if the identity of the person responsible for reporting the alleged abuse or neglect of the child to a public agency is kept confidential;

(n) The persons who are the subject of a report;

(o) An agency that is authorized by law to license foster homes or facilities for children or to investigate persons applying for approval to adopt a child, if the agency has before it an application for that license or is investigating an applicant to adopt a child;

(p) Upon written consent of the parent, any officer of this state or a city or county thereof or legislator authorized by the agency or department having jurisdiction or by the legislature, acting within its jurisdiction, to investigate the activities or programs of an agency that provides protective services if:

(1) The identity of the person making the report is kept confidential; and

(2) The officer, legislator or a member of his family is not the person alleged to have committed the abuse or neglect;

(q) The division of parole and probation of the department of motor vehicles and public safety for use pursuant to NRS 176.135 in making a presentence investigation and report to the district court [;] or pursuant to section 3 of this act in making a general investigation and report;

(r) Any person who is required pursuant to NRS 432B.220 to make a report to an agency which provides protective services or to a law enforcement agency;

(s) The rural advisory board to expedite proceedings for the placement of children created pursuant to section 13 of Assembly Bill No. 158 of this [act] session or a local advisory board to expedite proceedings for the placement of children created pursuant to section 14 of Assembly Bill No. 158 of this [act;] session; or

(t) The panel established pursuant to section 17 of Assembly Bill No. 158 of this [act] session to evaluate agencies which provide protective services.

2. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 3, data or information concerning reports and investigations thereof made pursuant to this chapter may be made available to any member of the general public if the child who is the subject of a report dies or is critically injured as a result of alleged abuse or neglect, except that the data or information which may be disclosed is limited to:

(a) The fact that a report of abuse or neglect has been made and, if appropriate, a factual description of the contents of the report;

(b) Whether an investigation has been initiated pursuant to NRS 432B.260, and the result of a completed investigation; and

(c) Such other information as is authorized for disclosure by a court pursuant to subsection 4.

3. An agency which provides protective services shall not disclose data or information pursuant to subsection 2 if the agency determines that the disclosure is not in the best interests of the child or if disclosure of the information would adversely affect any pending investigation concerning a report.

4. Upon petition, a court of competent jurisdiction may authorize the disclosure of additional information to the public pursuant to subsection 2 if good cause is shown by the petitioner for the disclosure of the additional information.

5. An agency investigating a report of the abuse or neglect of a child shall, upon request, provide to a person named in the report as allegedly causing the abuse or neglect of the child:

(a) A copy of:

(1) Any statement made in writing to an investigator for the agency by the person named in the report as allegedly causing the abuse or neglect of the child; or

(2) Any recording made by the agency of any statement made orally to an investigator for the agency by the person named in the report as allegedly causing the abuse or neglect of the child; or

(b) A written summary of the allegations made against the person who is named in the report as allegedly causing the abuse or neglect of the child. The summary must not identify the person responsible for reporting the alleged abuse or neglect.

6. An agency which provides protective services shall disclose the identity of a person who makes a report or otherwise initiates an investigation pursuant to this chapter if a court, after reviewing the record in camera and determining that there is reason to believe that the person knowingly made a false report, orders the disclosure.

7. Any person, except for:

(a) The subject of a report;

(b) A district attorney or other law enforcement officer initiating legal proceedings; or

(c) An employee of the division of parole and probation of the department of motor vehicles and public safety making a presentence investigation and report to the district court pursuant to NRS 176.135 [,] or making a general investigation and report pursuant to section 3 of this act,

who is given access, pursuant to subsection 1 or 2, to information identifying the subjects of a report and who makes this information public is guilty of a misdemeanor.

8. The division of child and family services shall adopt regulations to carry out the provisions of this section.

Sec. 29.6. Section 15 of Senate Bill No. 148 of this session is hereby amended to read as follows:

Sec. 15. 1. This section and sections 1 to 11, inclusive, and 13 and 14 of this act become effective on October 1, 1999.

2. Section 11 of this act expires by limitation on June 30, 2001.

[3. Section 12 of this act becomes effective on July 1, 2001.]".

Amend sec. 30, page 21, line 6, by deleting "Sections" and inserting:

"Section 12 of Senate Bill No. 148 of this session and sections".

Amend sec. 31, page 21, by deleting line 15 and inserting:

"3. Sections 20 and 29.5 of this act expire by limitation on June 30, 2001.".

Amend the text of repealed sections by adding the text of section 12 of Senate Bill No. 148 of this session.