Starting after December 31, 2026, Arizona's child abuse hotline must pull together a child's and siblings' full history of prior calls and investigations and review recent calls, and repeat reports about the same caregiver and calls about children in dependency cases get added handling.
Official title: DCS; intake hotline; case history
- From and after December 31, 2026
What changes
BeforeThe hotline had to identify and locate prior communications and DCS reports related to the current call.
NowThe hotline must also quickly show, in a single report, the entire history of a child and the child's siblings who were the subject of prior hotline calls or department investigations. The hotline worker shall review the narrative of every call received for that child in the previous 90 days.
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NowA hotline worker shall review hotline calls from the previous 90 days that did not meet the criteria for a DCS report, and may use information from those prior calls when deciding whether a new allegation meets the criteria for a DCS report.
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NowIf the department receives 4 or more reports of abuse or neglect in less than 12 months about the same caregiver, the office receiving the report for investigation shall assign it to a child safety specialist with at least 2 years' experience or, if available, a child safety specialist with advanced forensic training.
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NowIf the hotline receives a call alleging abuse or neglect of a child who is the subject of a dependency case (a court case over whether a child needs state protection), the department shall disclose those calls to the court handling that case.
Who it affects
- Children and families who are the subject of calls to the DCS hotline
- Caregivers who are the subject of 4 or more abuse or neglect reports in less than 12 months
- Children in dependency court cases and their families
- Department of Child Safety hotline workers and child safety specialists
- Juvenile courts handling dependency cases
What you need to do
Nothing.
What the law doesn't answer
- What counts as "advanced forensic training"
- What happens if no child safety specialist with at least 2 years' experience is available
- How and when the department must disclose hotline calls to the dependency court
- Whether the 4 or more reports must be formal DCS reports or any hotline calls
- Whether any added funding or staff is provided to carry out these duties
This summary describes the law as enacted. Later laws, court rulings or referendum petitions can change the picture. Check the official text for the current wording.