Designation of Agencies To Receive and Investigate Reports Required Under the Victims of Child Abuse Act

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Office of the Attorney General

28 CFR Part 81

[AG Order No. 1833-93]

Designation of Agencies To Receive and Investigate Reports

Required Under the Victims of Child Abuse Act

AGENCY: Department of justice.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: This proposed rule is intended to carry out the Attorney

General's responsibilities under the child abuse reporting provisions

of the Victims of Child Abuse Act of 1990 (VCAA). The VCAA requires

persons engaged in certain specified professions and activities on

Federal lands or facilities to report incidents of child abuse to the

appropriate Federal, State, or local agency designated by the Attorney

General. In order to facilitate effective reporting, the VCAA requires

the Attorney General to ``designate an agency'' to receive and

investigate such reports to child abuse. This proposed rule sets forth

the Attorney General's proposed designations and certain other matters

covered by the VCAA's reporting requirements.

DATES: Comments must be received by February 2, 1994.

ADDRESSES: All comments on this proposed rule should be sent to: George

C. Burgasser, Acting Chief, Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section,

Criminal Division, Department of Justice, Washington, DC 20530.

Comments received will be available for public inspection at Washington

Center Building, 1001 G Street, NW, suite 310, Washington, DC, between

the hours of 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. No oral

hearings are contemplated.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: George C. Burgasser, Acting Chief,

CEOS, Criminal Division, Washington, DC 20530, (202) 514-5780.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The child abuse reporting provisions of the

Victims of Child Abuse Act (VCAA) were enacted as section 226 of the

Crime Control Act of 1990, Public Law 101-647, 104 Stat. 4806, codified

at 42 U.S.C. 13001-13031, 3796aa-3796aa-8, and 18 U.S.C. 403, 2258, and

3509. As set forth at 42 U.S.C. 13031, the VCAA requires persons

engaged in certain professional capacities or activities on Federal

lands or on federally operated facilities (as well as certain

facilities covered by Federal contracts) to report incidents of child

abuse occurring on such lands or facilities to an agency designated by

the Attorney General to receive and investigate such reports. Set forth

below for public comment is the proposed rule promulgating the Attorney

General's designation of the agencies to receive and investigate these

reports of child abuse. Under the provisions of 42 U.S.C. 13031(d), the

Attorney General may designate non-Federal agencies to receive and

investigate the child abuse reports, provided that the designations is

formalized by a written agreement. Under the proposed rule, reports of

child abuse made pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 13031 are to be submitted to the

Federal State, or local law enforcement or child protective services

agency that currently has jurisdiction to investigate reports of child

abuse or protect child abuse victims in the Federal land area or

facility in question. Where no agency currently qualifies for

designation under the rule, the rule designates the Federal Bureau of

Investigation to receive and investigate the reports of child abuse

until another agency qualifies for such designation.

In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 605(b), the Attorney General certifies

that this rule will not have a significant adverse economic impact on a

substantial number of small entities. This rule has not been reviewed

by the Office of Management and Budget pursuant to Executive Order

12286. This rule does not have federalism implications warranting the

preparation of a Federalism Assessment in accordance with Executive

Order 12612. This rule meets the applicable standards provided in

sections 2(a) and 2(b) of Executive Order 12778.

List of Subjects in 28 CFR Part 81

Child abuse, Federal buildings and facilities.

By virtue of the authority vested in me as Attorney General,

including 28 U.S.C. 509 and 510, 5 U.S.C. 301, 42 U.S.C. 13031, and

Public Law 101-647 (104 Stat. 4806), part 81 of Chapter I of Title 28

of the Code of Federal Regulations is proposed to be added as follows:

PART 81--CHILD ABUSE REPORTING DESIGNATIONS AND PROCEDURES

Sec.

81.1 Purpose.

81.2 Submission of reports; designation of agencies to receive

reports of child abuse.

81.3 Designation of FBI in absence of other agreement.

81.4 Referral of reports.

81.5 Definitions.

Authority: 28 U.S.C. 509, 510; 42 U.S.C. 13031.

Sec. 81.1 Purpose.

The regulations in this part designate the agencies that are

authorized to receive and investigate reports of child abuse under the

provisions of 42 U.S.C. 13031.

Sec. 81.2 Submission of reports; designation of agencies to receive

reports of child abuse.

Reports of child abuse required by 42 U.S.C. 13031 shall be made to

the local law enforcement agency or local child protective services

agency that has jurisdiction to investigate reports of child abuse or

to protect child abuse victims in the land area or facility in

question. Such agencies are hereby respectively designated as the

agencies to receive and investigate such reports, pursuant to 42 U.S.C.

13031(d), with respect to Federal lands and federally operated or

contracted facilities within their respective jurisdictions, provided

that such agencies, if non-Federal, enter into formal written

agreements to do so with the Attorney General, her delegate, or a

Federal agency with jurisdiction for the area or facility in question.

Sec. 81.3 Designation of FBI.

For Federal lands, federally operated facilities, or federally

contracted facilities where no agency qualifies for designation under

Sec. 81.2 of this part, the Federal Bureau of Investigation is hereby

designated as the agency to receive and investigate reports of child

abuse made pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 13031 until such time as another

agency qualifies as a designated agency under Sec. 81.2.

Sec. 81.4 Referral of reports.

Where a report of child abuse received by a designated agency that

is not a law enforcement agency involves allegations of sexual abuse,

serious physical injury, or life-threatening neglect of a child, that

agency shall immediately report such occurrence to a law enforcement

agency with authority to take emergency action to protect the child.

Sec. 81.5 Definitions.

Local child protective services agency means that agency of the

Federal Government, of a State, or of a local government that has the

primary responsibility for child protection within a particular portion

of the Federal lands, a particular federally operated facility, or a

particular federally contracted facility in which children are cared

for or reside.

Local law enforcement agency means that Federal, State, or local

law enforcement agency that has the primary responsibility for the

investigation of an instance of alleged child abuse occurring within a

particular portion of the Federal lands, a particular federally

operated facility, or a particular federally contracted facility in

which children are cared for or reside.

Dated: December 23, 1993.

Janet Reno,

Attorney General.

[FR Doc. 93-32086 Filed 12-30-93; 8:45 am]

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