130th Ohio General Assembly
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Sub. S. B. No. 66  As Reported by the House Juvenile and Family Law Committee
As Reported by the House Juvenile and Family Law Committee

125th General Assembly
Regular Session
2003-2004
Sub. S. B. No. 66


Senators Schuring, Stivers, Jacobson, Dann, Fedor, Miller, Brady, Armbruster, Carey, Mumper, Prentiss, Roberts, Spada, Zurz 

Representatives Gilb, Walcher, DeGeeter, Harwood, Hollister, Reidelbach, Skindell, Slaby, Widowfield, Willamowski 



A BILL
To amend sections 2151.421, 3109.17, and 3109.18 and to enact sections 2151.425, 2151.426, 2151.427, 2151.428, 3109.171, and 3109.172 of the Revised Code to permit counties to establish Children's Advocacy Centers to perform and provide certain functions, activities, and services relative to reports of child sexual abuse or other types of abuse of a child over which the document creating the center gives it jurisdiction; to require the Children's Trust Fund Board to develop and provide to certain entities and persons a list of funding sources for establishing or operating a Children's Advocacy Center; to permit child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory boards to request up to $5,000 per county out of Children's Trust Fund Board funds as one-time, start-up costs for a Children's Advocacy Center; to permit children's advocacy centers to annually request funds from the Children's Trust Fund Board to conduct primary prevention strategies; and to provide the Children's Trust Fund Board with more authority and flexibility to approve, revise, or deny a child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board's local plan.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 2151.421, 3109.17, and 3109.18 be amended and sections 2151.425, 2151.426, 2151.427, 2151.428, 3109.171, and 3109.172 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:
Sec. 2151.421.  (A)(1)(a) No person described in division (A)(1)(b) of this section who is acting in an official or professional capacity and knows or suspects that a child under eighteen years of age or a mentally retarded, developmentally disabled, or physically impaired child under twenty-one years of age has suffered or faces a threat of suffering any physical or mental wound, injury, disability, or condition of a nature that reasonably indicates abuse or neglect of the child, shall fail to immediately report that knowledge or suspicion to the entity or persons specified in this division. Except as provided in section 5120.173 of the Revised Code, the person making the report shall make it to the public children services agency or a municipal or county peace officer in the county in which the child resides or in which the abuse or neglect is occurring or has occurred. In the circumstances described in section 5120.173 of the Revised Code, the person making the report shall make it to the entity specified in that section.
(b) Division (A)(1)(a) of this section applies to any person who is an attorney; physician, including a hospital intern or resident; dentist; podiatrist; practitioner of a limited branch of medicine as specified in section 4731.15 of the Revised Code; registered nurse; licensed practical nurse; visiting nurse; other health care professional; licensed psychologist; licensed school psychologist; independent marriage and family therapist or marriage and family therapist; speech pathologist or audiologist; coroner; administrator or employee of a child day-care center; administrator or employee of a residential camp or child day camp; administrator or employee of a certified child care agency or other public or private children services agency; school teacher; school employee; school authority; person engaged in social work or the practice of professional counseling; agent of a county humane society; person rendering spiritual treatment through prayer in accordance with the tenets of a well-recognized religion; superintendent, board member, or employee of a county board of mental retardation; investigative agent contracted with by a county board of mental retardation; or employee of the department of mental retardation and developmental disabilities.
(2) An attorney or a physician is not required to make a report pursuant to division (A)(1) of this section concerning any communication the attorney or physician receives from a client or patient in an attorney-client or physician-patient relationship, if, in accordance with division (A) or (B) of section 2317.02 of the Revised Code, the attorney or physician could not testify with respect to that communication in a civil or criminal proceeding, except that the client or patient is deemed to have waived any testimonial privilege under division (A) or (B) of section 2317.02 of the Revised Code with respect to that communication and the attorney or physician shall make a report pursuant to division (A)(1) of this section with respect to that communication, if all of the following apply:
(a) The client or patient, at the time of the communication, is either a child under eighteen years of age or a mentally retarded, developmentally disabled, or physically impaired person under twenty-one years of age.
(b) The attorney or physician knows or suspects, as a result of the communication or any observations made during that communication, that the client or patient has suffered or faces a threat of suffering any physical or mental wound, injury, disability, or condition of a nature that reasonably indicates abuse or neglect of the client or patient.
(c) The attorney-client or physician-patient relationship does not arise out of the client's or patient's attempt to have an abortion without the notification of her parents, guardian, or custodian in accordance with section 2151.85 of the Revised Code.
(B) Anyone, who knows or suspects that a child under eighteen years of age or a mentally retarded, developmentally disabled, or physically impaired person under twenty-one years of age has suffered or faces a threat of suffering any physical or mental wound, injury, disability, or other condition of a nature that reasonably indicates abuse or neglect of the child may report or cause reports to be made of that knowledge or suspicion to the entity or persons specified in this division. Except as provided in section 5120.173 of the Revised Code, a person making a report or causing a report to be made under this division shall make it or cause it to be made to the public children services agency or to a municipal or county peace officer. In the circumstances described in section 5120.173 of the Revised Code, a person making a report or causing a report to be made under this division shall make it or cause it to be made to the entity specified in that section.
(C) Any report made pursuant to division (A) or (B) of this section shall be made forthwith either by telephone or in person and shall be followed by a written report, if requested by the receiving agency or officer. The written report shall contain:
(1) The names and addresses of the child and the child's parents or the person or persons having custody of the child, if known;
(2) The child's age and the nature and extent of the child's known or suspected injuries, abuse, or neglect or of the known or suspected threat of injury, abuse, or neglect, including any evidence of previous injuries, abuse, or neglect;
(3) Any other information that might be helpful in establishing the cause of the known or suspected injury, abuse, or neglect or of the known or suspected threat of injury, abuse, or neglect.
Any person, who is required by division (A) of this section to report known or suspected child abuse or child neglect, may take or cause to be taken color photographs of areas of trauma visible on a child and, if medically indicated, cause to be performed radiological examinations of the child.
(D)(1) As used in this division, "children's advocacy center" and "sexual abuse of a child" have the same meanings as in section 2151.425 of the Revised Code.
(1) When a municipal or county peace officer receives a report concerning the possible abuse or neglect of a child or the possible threat of abuse or neglect of a child, upon receipt of the report, the municipal or county peace officer who receives the report shall refer the report to the appropriate public children services agency.
(2) When a public children services agency receives a report pursuant to this division or division (A) or (B) of this section, upon receipt of the report, the public children services agency shall comply do both of the following:
(a) Comply with section 2151.422 of the Revised Code;
(b) If the county served by the agency is also served by a children's advocacy center and the report alleges sexual abuse of a child or another type of abuse of a child that is specified in the memorandum of understanding that creates the center as being within the center's jurisdiction, comply regarding the report with the protocol and procedures for referrals and investigations, with the coordinating activities, and with the authority or responsibility for performing or providing functions, activities, and services stipulated in the interagency agreement entered into under section 2151.428 of the Revised Code relative to that center.
(E) No township, municipal, or county peace officer shall remove a child about whom a report is made pursuant to this section from the child's parents, stepparents, or guardian or any other persons having custody of the child without consultation with the public children services agency, unless, in the judgment of the officer, and, if the report was made by physician, the physician, immediate removal is considered essential to protect the child from further abuse or neglect. The agency that must be consulted shall be the agency conducting the investigation of the report as determined pursuant to section 2151.422 of the Revised Code.
(F)(1) Except as provided in section 2151.422 of the Revised Code or in an interagency agreement entered into under section 2151.428 of the Revised Code that applies to the particular report, the public children services agency shall investigate, within twenty-four hours, each report of known or suspected child abuse or child neglect and of a known or suspected threat of child abuse or child neglect that is referred to it under this section to determine the circumstances surrounding the injuries, abuse, or neglect or the threat of injury, abuse, or neglect, the cause of the injuries, abuse, neglect, or threat, and the person or persons responsible. The investigation shall be made in cooperation with the law enforcement agency and in accordance with the memorandum of understanding prepared under division (J) of this section. A failure to make the investigation in accordance with the memorandum is not grounds for, and shall not result in, the dismissal of any charges or complaint arising from the report or the suppression of any evidence obtained as a result of the report and does not give, and shall not be construed as giving, any rights or any grounds for appeal or post-conviction relief to any person. The public children services agency shall report each case to a central registry which the department of job and family services shall maintain in order to determine whether prior reports have been made in other counties concerning the child or other principals in the case. The public children services agency shall submit a report of its investigation, in writing, to the law enforcement agency.
(2) The public children services agency shall make any recommendations to the county prosecuting attorney or city director of law that it considers necessary to protect any children that are brought to its attention.
(G)(1)(a) Except as provided in division (H)(3) of this section, anyone or any hospital, institution, school, health department, or agency participating in the making of reports under division (A) of this section, anyone or any hospital, institution, school, health department, or agency participating in good faith in the making of reports under division (B) of this section, and anyone participating in good faith in a judicial proceeding resulting from the reports, shall be immune from any civil or criminal liability for injury, death, or loss to person or property that otherwise might be incurred or imposed as a result of the making of the reports or the participation in the judicial proceeding.
(b) Notwithstanding section 4731.22 of the Revised Code, the physician-patient privilege shall not be a ground for excluding evidence regarding a child's injuries, abuse, or neglect, or the cause of the injuries, abuse, or neglect in any judicial proceeding resulting from a report submitted pursuant to this section.
(2) In any civil or criminal action or proceeding in which it is alleged and proved that participation in the making of a report under this section was not in good faith or participation in a judicial proceeding resulting from a report made under this section was not in good faith, the court shall award the prevailing party reasonable attorney's fees and costs and, if a civil action or proceeding is voluntarily dismissed, may award reasonable attorney's fees and costs to the party against whom the civil action or proceeding is brought.
(H)(1) Except as provided in divisions (H)(4) and (M) of this section, a report made under this section is confidential. The information provided in a report made pursuant to this section and the name of the person who made the report shall not be released for use, and shall not be used, as evidence in any civil action or proceeding brought against the person who made the report. In a criminal proceeding, the report is admissible in evidence in accordance with the Rules of Evidence and is subject to discovery in accordance with the Rules of Criminal Procedure.
(2) No person shall permit or encourage the unauthorized dissemination of the contents of any report made under this section.
(3) A person who knowingly makes or causes another person to make a false report under division (B) of this section that alleges that any person has committed an act or omission that resulted in a child being an abused child or a neglected child is guilty of a violation of section 2921.14 of the Revised Code.
(4) If a report is made pursuant to division (A) or (B) of this section and the child who is the subject of the report dies for any reason at any time after the report is made, but before the child attains eighteen years of age, the public children services agency or municipal or county peace officer to which the report was made or referred, on the request of the child fatality review board, shall submit a summary sheet of information providing a summary of the report to the review board of the county in which the deceased child resided at the time of death. On the request of the review board, the agency or peace officer may, at its discretion, make the report available to the review board. If the county served by the public children services agency is also served by a children's advocacy center and the report of alleged sexual abuse of a child or another type of abuse of a child is specified in the memorandum of understanding that creates the center as being within the center's jurisdiction, the agency or center shall perform the duties and functions specified in this division in accordance with the interagency agreement entered into under section 2151.428 of the Revised Code relative to that advocacy center.
(5) A public children services agency shall advise a person alleged to have inflicted abuse or neglect on a child who is the subject of a report made pursuant to this section, including a report alleging sexual abuse of a child or another type of abuse of a child referred to a children's advocacy center pursuant to an interagency agreement entered into under section 2151.428 of the Revised Code, in writing of the disposition of the investigation. The agency shall not provide to the person any information that identifies the person who made the report, statements of witnesses, or police or other investigative reports.
(I) Any report that is required by this section, other than a report that is made to the state highway patrol as described in section 5120.173 of the Revised Code, shall result in protective services and emergency supportive services being made available by the public children services agency on behalf of the children about whom the report is made, in an effort to prevent further neglect or abuse, to enhance their welfare, and, whenever possible, to preserve the family unit intact. The agency required to provide the services shall be the agency conducting the investigation of the report pursuant to section 2151.422 of the Revised Code.
(J)(1) Each public children services agency shall prepare a memorandum of understanding that is signed by all of the following:
(a) If there is only one juvenile judge in the county, the juvenile judge of the county or the juvenile judge's representative;
(b) If there is more than one juvenile judge in the county, a juvenile judge or the juvenile judges' representative selected by the juvenile judges or, if they are unable to do so for any reason, the juvenile judge who is senior in point of service or the senior juvenile judge's representative;
(c) The county peace officer;
(d) All chief municipal peace officers within the county;
(e) Other law enforcement officers handling child abuse and neglect cases in the county;
(f) The prosecuting attorney of the county;
(g) If the public children services agency is not the county department of job and family services, the county department of job and family services;
(h) The county humane society;
(i) If the public children services agency participated in the execution of a memorandum of understanding under section 2151.426 of the Revised Code establishing a children's advocacy center, each participating member of the children's advocacy center established by the memorandum.
(2) A memorandum of understanding shall set forth the normal operating procedure to be employed by all concerned officials in the execution of their respective responsibilities under this section and division (C) of section 2919.21, division (B)(1) of section 2919.22, division (B) of section 2919.23, and section 2919.24 of the Revised Code and shall have as two of its primary goals the elimination of all unnecessary interviews of children who are the subject of reports made pursuant to division (A) or (B) of this section and, when feasible, providing for only one interview of a child who is the subject of any report made pursuant to division (A) or (B) of this section. A failure to follow the procedure set forth in the memorandum by the concerned officials is not grounds for, and shall not result in, the dismissal of any charges or complaint arising from any reported case of abuse or neglect or the suppression of any evidence obtained as a result of any reported child abuse or child neglect and does not give, and shall not be construed as giving, any rights or any grounds for appeal or post-conviction relief to any person.
(3) A memorandum of understanding shall include all of the following:
(a) The roles and responsibilities for handling emergency and nonemergency cases of abuse and neglect;
(b) Standards and procedures to be used in handling and coordinating investigations of reported cases of child abuse and reported cases of child neglect, methods to be used in interviewing the child who is the subject of the report and who allegedly was abused or neglected, and standards and procedures addressing the categories of persons who may interview the child who is the subject of the report and who allegedly was abused or neglected.
(4) If a public children services agency participated in the execution of a memorandum of understanding under section 2151.426 of the Revised Code establishing a children's advocacy center, the agency shall incorporate the contents of that memorandum in the memorandum prepared pursuant to this section.
(K)(1) Except as provided in division (K)(4) of this section, a person who is required to make a report pursuant to division (A) of this section may make a reasonable number of requests of the public children services agency that receives or is referred the report, or of the children's advocacy center that is referred the report if the report is referred to a children's advocacy center pursuant to an interagency agreement entered into under section 2151.428 of the Revised Code, to be provided with the following information:
(a) Whether the agency or center has initiated an investigation of the report;
(b) Whether the agency or center is continuing to investigate the report;
(c) Whether the agency or center is otherwise involved with the child who is the subject of the report;
(d) The general status of the health and safety of the child who is the subject of the report;
(e) Whether the report has resulted in the filing of a complaint in juvenile court or of criminal charges in another court.
(2) A person may request the information specified in division (K)(1) of this section only if, at the time the report is made, the person's name, address, and telephone number are provided to the person who receives the report.
When a municipal or county peace officer or employee of a public children services agency receives a report pursuant to division (A) or (B) of this section the recipient of the report shall inform the person of the right to request the information described in division (K)(1) of this section. The recipient of the report shall include in the initial child abuse or child neglect report that the person making the report was so informed and, if provided at the time of the making of the report, shall include the person's name, address, and telephone number in the report.
Each request is subject to verification of the identity of the person making the report. If that person's identity is verified, the agency shall provide the person with the information described in division (K)(1) of this section a reasonable number of times, except that the agency shall not disclose any confidential information regarding the child who is the subject of the report other than the information described in those divisions.
(3) A request made pursuant to division (K)(1) of this section is not a substitute for any report required to be made pursuant to division (A) of this section.
(4) If an agency other than the agency that received or was referred the report is conducting the investigation of the report pursuant to section 2151.422 of the Revised Code, the agency conducting the investigation shall comply with the requirements of division (K) of this section.
(L) The director of job and family services shall adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to implement this section. The department of job and family services may enter into a plan of cooperation with any other governmental entity to aid in ensuring that children are protected from abuse and neglect. The department shall make recommendations to the attorney general that the department determines are necessary to protect children from child abuse and child neglect.
(M)(1) As used in this division:
(a) "Out-of-home care" includes a nonchartered nonpublic school if the alleged child abuse or child neglect, or alleged threat of child abuse or child neglect, described in a report received by a public children services agency allegedly occurred in or involved the nonchartered nonpublic school and the alleged perpetrator named in the report holds a certificate, permit, or license issued by the state board of education under section 3301.071 or Chapter 3319. of the Revised Code.
(b) "Administrator, director, or other chief administrative officer" means the superintendent of the school district if the out-of-home care entity subject to a report made pursuant to this section is a school operated by the district.
(2) No later than the end of the day following the day on which a public children services agency receives a report of alleged child abuse or child neglect, or a report of an alleged threat of child abuse or child neglect, that allegedly occurred in or involved an out-of-home care entity, the agency shall provide written notice of the allegations contained in and the person named as the alleged perpetrator in the report to the administrator, director, or other chief administrative officer of the out-of-home care entity that is the subject of the report unless the administrator, director, or other chief administrative officer is named as an alleged perpetrator in the report. If the administrator, director, or other chief administrative officer of an out-of-home care entity is named as an alleged perpetrator in a report of alleged child abuse or child neglect, or a report of an alleged threat of child abuse or child neglect, that allegedly occurred in or involved the out-of-home care entity, the agency shall provide the written notice to the owner or governing board of the out-of-home care entity that is the subject of the report. The agency shall not provide witness statements or police or other investigative reports.
(3) No later than three days after the day on which a public children services agency that conducted the investigation as determined pursuant to section 2151.422 of the Revised Code makes a disposition of an investigation involving a report of alleged child abuse or child neglect, or a report of an alleged threat of child abuse or child neglect, that allegedly occurred in or involved an out-of-home care entity, the agency shall send written notice of the disposition of the investigation to the administrator, director, or other chief administrative officer and the owner or governing board of the out-of-home care entity. The agency shall not provide witness statements or police or other investigative reports.
Sec. 2151.425. As used in sections 2151.426 to 2151.428 of the Revised Code:
(A) "Children's advocacy center" means a center operated by participating entities within a county or two or more contiguous counties to perform functions and activities and provide services, in accordance with the interagency agreement entered into under section 2151.428 of the Revised Code, regarding reports received under section 2151.421 of the Revised Code of alleged sexual abuse of a child or another type of abuse of a child that is specified in the memorandum of understanding that creates the center as being within the center's jurisdiction and regarding the children who are the subjects of the report.
(B) "Sexual abuse of a child" means unlawful sexual conduct or sexual contact, as those terms are defined in section 2907.01 of the Revised Code, with a person under eighteen years of age or a mentally retarded, developmentally disabled, or physically impaired person under twenty-one years of age.
Sec. 2151.426. (A)(1) A children's advocacy center may be established to serve a single county by execution of a memorandum of understanding regarding the participation in the operation of the center by any of the following entities in the county to be served by the center:
(a) The public children services agency;
(b) Representatives of any county or municipal law enforcement agencies serving the county that investigate any of the types of abuse specified in the memorandum of understanding creating the center as being within the center's jurisdiction;
(c) The prosecuting attorney of the county or a village solicitor, city director of law, or similar chief legal officer of a municipal corporation in the county who prosecutes any of the types of abuse specified in the memorandum of understanding creating the center as being within the center's jurisdiction in the area to be served by the center;
(d) Any other entity considered appropriate by all of the other entities executing the memorandum.
(2) A children's advocacy center may be established to serve two or more contiguous counties if a memorandum of understanding regarding the participation in the operation of the center is executed by any of the entities described in division (A)(1) of this section in each county to be served by the center.
(3) Any memorandum of understanding executed under this section may include a provision that specifies types of abuse of a child, in addition to sexual abuse of a child, that are to be within the jurisdiction of the children's advocacy center created as a result of the execution of the memorandum. If a memorandum of understanding executed under this section does not include any provision of that nature, the children's advocacy center created as a result of the execution of the memorandum has jurisdiction only in relation to reports of alleged sexual abuse of a child.
(B) Each entity that participates in the execution of a memorandum of understanding under this section shall cooperate in all of the following:
(1) Developing a multidisciplinary team pursuant to section 2151.427 of the Revised Code to perform the functions and activities and provide the services specified in the interagency agreement entered into under section 2151.428 of the Revised Code, regarding reports received under section 2151.421 of the Revised Code of alleged sexual abuse of a child and reports of allegations of another type of abuse of a child that is specified in the memorandum of understanding that creates the center as being within the center's jurisdiction, and regarding the children who are the subjects of the reports;
(2) Participating in the operation of the center in compliance with standards for full membership established by the national children's alliance;
(3) Employing the center's staff.
(C) A center shall do both of the following:
(1) Operate in accordance with sections 2151.427 and 2151.428 of the Revised Code, the interagency agreement entered into under section 2151.428 of the Revised Code relative to the center, and the standards for full membership established by the national children's alliance;
(2) Register annually with the attorney general.
Sec. 2151.427.  (A) The entities that participate in a memorandum of understanding executed under section 2151.426 of the Revised Code establishing a children's advocacy center shall assemble the center's multidisciplinary team.
(B)(1) The multidisciplinary team for a single county center shall consist of the following members who serve the county:
(a) Any county or municipal law enforcement officer;
(b) The executive director of the public children services agency or a designee of the executive director;
(c) The prosecuting attorney of the county or the prosecuting attorney's designee;
(d) A mental health professional;
(e) A medical health professional;
(f) A victim advocate;
(g) A center staff member;
(h) Any other person considered appropriate by all of the entities that executed the memorandum.
(2) If the center serves two or more contiguous counties, the multidisciplinary team shall consist of the members described in division (B)(1) of this section from the counties to be served by the center, with each county to be served by the center being represented on the multidisciplinary team by at least one member described in that division.
(C) The multidisciplinary team shall perform the functions and activities and provide the services specified in the interagency agreement entered into under section 2151.428 of the Revised Code, regarding reports received under section 2151.421 of the Revised Code of alleged sexual abuse of a child and reports of allegations of another type of abuse of a child that is specified in the memorandum of understanding that creates the center as being within the center's jurisdiction and regarding the children who are the subjects of the reports.
Sec. 2151.428. (A) If a children's advocacy center is established under section 2151.426 of the Revised Code, in addition to the memorandum of understanding executed under that section, each public children services agency that participates in the execution of the memorandum of understanding, the children's advocacy center, and the children's advocacy center's multidisciplinary team assembled under section 2151.427 of the Revised Code shall enter into an interagency agreement that stipulates all of the following regarding reports received under section 2151.421 of the Revised Code of alleged sexual abuse of a child and reports of allegations of another type of abuse of a child that is specified in the memorandum of understanding that creates the center as being within the center's jurisdiction:
(1) The protocol and procedures for any and all referrals and investigations of the reports;
(2) Any and all coordinating activities between the parties that enter into the agreement;
(3) The authority or responsibility for performing any and all functions and activities, and providing any and all services, regarding the reports and the children who are the subjects of the reports.
(B) The parties that enter into an interagency agreement under division (A) of this section shall comply with the agreement in referring the reports, investigating the reports, coordinating the activities between the parties, and performing and providing the functions, activities, and services relative to the reports and the children who are the subjects of the reports.
(C) Nothing in this section, section 2151.421, or sections 2151.425 to 2151.427 of the Revised Code pertaining to the operation of a children's advocacy center shall relieve any public official or agency from any legal obligation or responsibility.
Sec. 3109.17.  (A) For each fiscal biennium, the children's trust fund board shall establish a biennial state plan for comprehensive child abuse and child neglect prevention. The plan shall be transmitted to the governor, the president and minority leader of the senate, and the speaker and minority leader of the house of representatives and shall be made available to the general public. The board may define in the state plan the term "effective public notice." If the board does not define that term in the state plan, the board shall include in the state plan the definition of "effective public notice" specified in rules adopted by the department of job and family services.
(B) In developing and carrying out the state plan, the children's trust fund board shall, in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, do all of the following:
(1) Ensure that an opportunity exists for assistance through child abuse and child neglect prevention programs to persons throughout the state of various social and economic backgrounds;
(2) Before the thirtieth day of October of each year, notify each child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board of the amount estimated to be allocated to that advisory board for the following fiscal year.;
(3) Develop criteria for county or district comprehensive local allocation plans, including criteria for determining the plans' effectiveness;
(4) Review, and approve or disapprove, county or district comprehensive local allocation plans, as described in section 3109.171 of the Revised Code;
(5) Allocate funds to each child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board for the purpose of funding child abuse and child neglect prevention programs. Funds shall be allocated among advisory boards according to a formula based on the ratio of the number of children under age eighteen in the county or multicounty district to the number of children under age eighteen in the state, as shown in the most recent federal decennial census of population. Subject to the availability of funds and except as provided in section 3109.171 of the Revised Code, each advisory board shall receive a minimum of ten thousand dollars per fiscal year. In the case of an advisory board that serves a multicounty district, the advisory board shall receive, subject to available funds and except as provided in section 3109.171 of the Revised Code, a minimum of ten thousand dollars per fiscal year for each county in the district. Funds shall be disbursed to the advisory boards twice annually. At least fifty per cent of the funds allocated to an advisory board for a fiscal year shall be disbursed to the advisory board not later than the thirtieth day of September. The remainder of the funds allocated to the advisory board for that fiscal year shall be disbursed before the thirty-first day of March.
If the children's trust fund board determines, based on county or district performance or on the annual report submitted by an advisory board, that the advisory board is not operating in accordance with the criteria established in division (B)(3) of this section, it may revise the allocation of funds that the advisory board receives.
The board shall specify the criteria child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory boards are to use in reviewing applications under division (F)(3) of section 3109.18 of the Revised Code.
(6) Allocate funds to entities other than child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory boards for the purpose of funding child abuse and child neglect prevention programs that have statewide significance and that have been approved in the state plan by the children's trust fund board;
(7) Provide for the monitoring of expenditures from the children's trust fund and of programs that receive money from the children's trust fund;
(8) Establish reporting requirements for advisory boards;
(9) Collaborate with appropriate persons and government entities and facilitate the exchange of information among those persons and entities for the purpose of child abuse and child neglect prevention;
(10) Provide for the education of the public and professionals for the purpose of child abuse and child neglect prevention;
(11) Create and provide to each advisory board a children's trust fund grant application form;
(12) Specify the information to be included in a semi-annual and an annual report completed by a children's advocacy center for which a child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board uses funds allocated to the advisory board under section 3109.172 of the Revised Code, and each other person or entity that is a recipient of a children's trust fund grant under division (K)(1) of section 3109.18 of the Revised Code.
(C) The children's trust fund board shall prepare a report for each fiscal biennium that delineates the expenditure of money from the children's trust fund. On or before January 1, 2002, and on or before the first day of January of a year that follows the end of a fiscal biennium of this state, the board shall file a copy of the report with the governor, the president and minority leader of the senate, and the speaker and minority leader of the house of representatives.
(D) The children's trust fund board shall develop a list of all state and federal sources of funding that might be available for establishing, operating, or establishing and operating a children's advocacy center under sections 2151.425 to 2151.428 of the Revised Code. The board periodically shall update the list as necessary. The board shall maintain, or provide for the maintenance of, the list at an appropriate location. That location may be the offices of the department of job and family services. The board shall provide the list upon request to any children's advocacy center or to any person or entity identified in section 2151.426 of the Revised Code as a person or entity that may participate in the establishment of a children's advocacy center.
Sec. 3109.171.  (A) On receipt of a local allocation plan from a child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board submitted pursuant to division (F)(1) of section 3109.18 of the Revised Code, the children's trust fund board may do either of the following:
(1) Approve the plan;
(2) Require that the advisory board make changes to the plan and submit an amended plan to the board.
(B) If an advisory board fails to submit to the children's trust fund board a local allocation plan pursuant to division (F)(1) of section 3109.18 of the Revised Code that is postmarked on or before the first day of April preceding the fiscal year for which the plan is developed, if an advisory board fails to submit an amended plan pursuant to division (A)(2) of this section, or if a plan or an amended plan submitted by an advisory board is not approved by the children's trust fund board, the children's trust fund board may do either of the following for the fiscal year for which the plan was to have been developed:
(1) Deny funding to the advisory board;
(2) Allocate a reduced amount of funds to the advisory board, on a pro-rata daily basis.
(C) If an advisory board fails to submit to the children's trust fund board an annual report pursuant to division (K)(2) of section 3109.18 of the Revised Code not later than the fifteenth day of August following the year for which the report is written, the board, for the following fiscal year, may allocate a reduced amount of funds to the advisory board on a pro-rata daily basis.
Sec. 3109.172. (A)(1) Each child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board may request from the children's trust fund board funds in addition to the funds allocated to the advisory board under section 3109.17 of the Revised Code to be used as one-time, start-up costs for the establishment and operation of a children's advocacy center as follows:
(a) If the advisory board serves a single county, the board may request an amount not to exceed five thousand dollars as one-time, start-up costs for the establishment and operation of a children's advocacy center that serves the county.
(b) If the advisory board serves a multicounty district, for each county within the district, the advisory board may request an amount not to exceed five thousand dollars as one-time, start-up costs for the establishment and operation of a children's advocacy center that serves the county in relation to which the use is being made.
(2) Expenditures may be made under division (A)(1) of this section for a children's advocacy center that is established to serve a single county or that is established to serve two or more contiguous counties, provided that the county in relation to which the expenditure is made is served by the center for which the advisory board uses the amount as one-time, start-up costs.
(B) Each children's advocacy center may annually request from the children's trust fund board funds in addition to the funds allocated to the advisory board under section 3109.17 of the Revised Code to conduct primary prevention strategies.
(C) On receipt of a request made pursuant to this section, the children's trust fund board shall review and approve or disapprove the request. If the board disapproves the request, the board shall send to the requestor written notice of the disapproval that states the reasons for the disapproval.
(D) No funds allocated to a child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board under this section may be used as start-up costs for any children's advocacy center unless the center has as a component a primary prevention strategy.
No child abuse and child neglect advisory board that serves a single county and that, in any fiscal year, uses funds allocated under this section as start-up costs for a children's advocacy center may use any amount out of any funds so allocated to the advisory board for the same center in a different fiscal year or for a different center in any fiscal year. No child abuse and child neglect advisory board that serves a multicounty district and that, in any fiscal year, uses funds so allocated to the advisory board as start-up costs of a children's advocacy center in relation to a particular county within the district may use any amount out of any funds so allocated to the advisory board, in relation to the same county, for the same center in a different fiscal year or for a different center in any fiscal year.
Sec. 3109.18.  (A)(1) A board of county commissioners may establish a child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board or may designate the county family and children first council to serve as the child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board. The boards of county commissioners of two or more contiguous counties may instead form a multicounty district to be served by a child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board or may designate a regional family and children first council to serve as the district child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board. Each advisory board shall meet at least twice a year.
(2) The county auditor is hereby designated as the auditor and fiscal officer of the advisory board. In the case of a multicounty district, the boards of county commissioners that formed the district shall designate the auditor of one of the counties as the auditor and fiscal officer of the advisory board.
(B) Each county that establishes an advisory board or, in a multicounty district, the county the auditor of which who has been designated as the auditor and fiscal officer of the advisory board, shall establish a fund in the county treasury known as the county or district children's trust fund. The advisory board auditor shall deposit all funds received from the children's trust fund board into that fund, and the auditor shall distribute money from the fund at the request of the advisory board.
(C) Each January, the board of county commissioners of a county that has established an advisory board or, in a multicounty district, the board of county commissioners of the county served by the auditor of which who has been designated as the auditor and fiscal officer for the advisory board, shall appropriate the amount described in division (B)(2) of section 3109.17 of the Revised Code for distribution by the advisory board to child abuse and child neglect prevention programs.
(D)(1) Except in the case of a county or regional family and children first council that is designated to serve as a child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board, each advisory board shall consist of an odd number of members from both the public and private sectors, including all of the following:
(a) A representative of an agency responsible for the administration of children's services in the county or district;
(b) A provider of alcohol or drug addiction services or a representative of a board of alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health services that serves the county or district;
(c) A provider of mental health services or a representative of a board of alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health services that serves the county or district;
(d) A representative of a board of mental retardation and developmental disabilities that serves the county or district;
(e) A representative of the educational community appointed by the superintendent of the school district with largest enrollment in the county or multicounty district.
(2) The following groups and entities may be represented on the advisory board:
(a) Parent groups;
(b) Juvenile justice officials;
(c) Pediatricians, health department nurses, and other representatives of the medical community;
(d) School personnel;
(e) Counselors and social workers;
(f) Head start agencies;
(g) Child day-care providers;
(h) Other persons with demonstrated knowledge in programs for children.
(3) Of the members first appointed, at least one shall serve for a term of three years, at least one for a term of two years, and at least one for a term of one year. Thereafter, each member shall serve a term of three years. Each member shall serve until the member's successor is appointed. All vacancies on the board shall be filled for the balance of the unexpired term in the same manner as the original appointment.
(E) Each child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board of county commissioners may incur reasonable costs not to exceed five per cent of the funds allocated to the county or district under section 3109.17 of the Revised Code, for the purpose of carrying out the functions of the advisory board.
(F) Each child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board shall do all of the following:
(1) Develop For each fiscal biennium, develop a comprehensive local allocation plan for the purpose of preventing child abuse and child neglect and submit the plan to the children's trust fund board on or before the first day of April preceding the fiscal year for which the plan is developed;
(2) Provide effective public notice, as defined by the children's trust fund board in the state plan or, if the board does not define the term in the state plan, as defined in rules adopted by the department of job and family services, to potential applicants about the availability of funds from the children's trust fund, including an estimate of the amount of money available for grants within each county or district, the date of at least one public hearing, information on obtaining a copy of the grant application form, and the deadline for submitting grant applications;
(3) Review all applications received using criteria specified in the state plan adopted by the board under section 3109.17 of the Revised Code;
(4) Consistent with the local allocation plan developed pursuant to division (F)(1) of this section, make grants to child abuse and child neglect prevention programs. In making grants to child abuse and child neglect prevention programs, the advisory board may consider factors such as need, geographic location, diversity, coordination with or improvement of existing services, maintenance of local funding efforts, and extensive use of volunteers.
(5) Establish any reporting requirements for grant recipients, in addition to those specified by the children's trust fund board, and for children's advocacy centers for which funds are used in accordance with section 3109.172 of the Revised Code.
(G) A member of a child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board shall not participate in the development of a comprehensive local allocation plan under division (F)(1) of this section if it is reasonable to expect that the member's judgment could be affected by the member's own financial, business, property, or personal interest or other conflict of interest. For purposes of this division, "conflict of interest" means the taking of any action that violates any applicable provision of Chapter 102. or 2921. of the Revised Code. Questions relating to the existence of a conflict of interest pertaining to Chapter 2921. of the Revised Code shall be submitted by the advisory board to the local prosecuting attorney for resolution. Questions relating to the existence of a conflict of interest pertaining to Chapter 102. of the Revised Code shall be submitted by the advisory board to the Ohio ethics commission for resolution.
(H) Each advisory board shall assist the children's trust fund board in monitoring programs that receive money from the children's trust fund and shall perform such other duties for the local administration of the children's trust fund as the children's trust fund board requires.
(I) A children's advocacy center for which a child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board uses any amount out of the funds allocated to the advisory board under section 3109.172 of the Revised Code, as start-up costs for the establishment and operation of the center, shall use the moneys so received only for establishment and operation of the center in accordance with sections 2151.425 to 2151.428 of the Revised Code. Any other person or entity that is a recipient of a grant from the children's trust fund shall use the grant funds only to fund primary and secondary child abuse and child neglect prevention programs. Any grant funds that are not spent by the recipient of the funds within the time specified by the terms of the grant shall be returned to the county treasurer. Any grant funds returned that are not redistributed by the advisory board within the state fiscal year in which they are received shall be returned to the treasurer of state. The treasurer of state shall deposit such unspent moneys into the children's trust fund to be spent for purposes consistent with the state plan adopted under section 3109.17 of the Revised Code.
(J) Applications for grants from the children's trust fund shall be made to the advisory board on forms prescribed by the children's trust fund board.
(K)(1) Each children's advocacy center for which a child abuse and child neglect prevention advisory board uses any amount out of the funds allocated to the advisory board under section 3109.172 of the Revised Code, as start-up costs for the establishment and operation of the center, and each other person or entity that is a recipient of a children's trust fund grant from an advisory board shall file with the advisory board a copy of a semi-annual and an annual report that includes the information required by the children's trust fund board.
(2) Each advisory board shall file with the children's trust fund board, not later than the fifteenth day of August following the year for which the report is written, a copy of an annual report regarding the county or district comprehensive local allocation plan that contains the information required by the children's trust fund board, and regarding the advisory board's use of any amount out of the funds allocated to the advisory board under section 3109.172 of the Revised Code as start-up costs for the establishment and operation of a children's advocacy center.
Section 2. That existing sections 2151.421, 3109.17, and 3109.18 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.
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