Los Angeles County agencies are beginning to train educators and other mandated reporters about a change in state law that has narrowed the definition of “general neglect.”
Mandated reporters are people who work closely with children and are required by state law to report suspected child abuse or neglect. There are 49 categories of people in California, including teachers, doctors and nurses.
The bill, which went into effect last year, excludes poverty alone as a reason to report child welfare cases under “general neglect.”
What is ‘neglect’?
Brandon Nichols, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, says the breadth of “general neglect” has led to a wide range of calls, like a child not having enough food.
“Is the kid hungry because the parent is on drugs and not functioning well enough … to go and get food and give the kid food. Or is the kid hungry because the parent just doesn’t have the money?” he said. “We’re trying to get more precise in those categories and look at the driver.”
In cases where it’s the latter, and a child is in a safe and loving family, the department wants the family to be referred to resources.
“There’s better ways to handle situations where families are struggling, [where] families don’t have access to economic supports,” he said.
The county now has a Mandated Supporting Initiative where the aim includes building out a system to instead connect families who need economic resources.
