HB430

Dear Members of the House Children and Family Law Committee, I write to you as a resident of the town of Bow, but also as a former teacher and current school psychologist. In my years of supporting student and families through challenging situations, I have been very grateful to the department of children, youth, and families (dcyf) for their expertise and ability to support families using the information retained within their records. When I have made a report of suspected abuse and neglect, I have been so impressed with the professionalism of each intake worker and how protected a family's information is kept. As an individual supporting students within the school setting, my only role is to make reports and then enable professionals from dcyf and other organizations (if applicable) to make decisions in the best interest of children and families. Retention of these records is essential for these professionals to support our children and families and keep them safe. In listening to this morning's hearing - listening to Ms. Sanchez from the OCA - I was reminded of families I have supported where they had previously received support, but new concerns had arisen with a younger sibling. If this law was changed to 3 years, dcyf would not have been able to optimally support the family - seeing the previous interventions and resources a family has benefited from, which may have included this younger child. Hearing the timelines for which nearby states keep their records increases my opposition. Given my experiences, I wish, instead, that our law required records to be kept until after the 18th birthday of the youngest child in the family. Please oppose this bill for the safety of our children and families. Thank you for your consideration, Kristina

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These records absolutely should be retained just in case. If several reports come in and then they eventually find that the claims were substantiated, the past reports should be on file.