I began my legal internship at Advocates for Children of New Jersey just five months after the New Jersey Task Force on Child Abuse and Neglect, Subcommittee on Poverty, Neglect, and Community Outcomes (the Subcommittee) released its report on Reformed Mandated Reporting in New Jersey. Shortly after, ACNJ welcomed Dashaan Jennings and Kayann Foster, chairs of the Subcommittee to discuss the mission of Powerful Families, Powerful Communities NJ (PFPC)[1] and screen their film, Truth to Transformation.

Truth to Transformation --Helping to Reduce Systemic Impact on Families
The lived experiences of the presenters in the film displayed a clear reality—that while the child protection system is responsible for ensuring children’s’ safety, it also can inflict deep trauma and damage on impacted families. Though temporary system intervention is necessary for some, far too many children are needlessly separated from their families because systemic realities of poverty are routinely mistaken for actionable neglect, underscoring the importance of the Subcommittee’s report on Mandated Reporting in New Jersey.

From an emotionally powerful anecdotal lens, Truth to Transformation tells the story of three individuals, including Mr. Jennings and Ms. Foster, who were involved in the child welfare system as children and have since had to navigate their own roles as parents while working to end the cycle of generational trauma. The film also features Christine Norbut Beyer, the Commissioner of the Department of Children and Families (DCF), who recognized the issues within the child welfare system and the severe impacts that it has on families. Commissioner Beyer works closely with PFPC to mitigate these harms, ensure the safety of families, and work to place children with family members if the need arises rather than placing them in non-kin care. Playing a direct role in the efficacy of the child welfare system is the mandated reporter system, which requires individuals to report suspected child abuse and neglect.

New Jersey is one of 17 states which require all citizens to report suspected instances of child abuse or neglect, regardless of their profession (NJTFCAN, 2026). Nevertheless, almost two-thirds of child abuse and neglect reports were made by law enforcement, education and healthcare professionals (NJTFCAN, 2026). Statutorily, however, a uniform or profession-specific training in New Jersey is non-existent. This often results in gross over-reporting out of fear, since a failure to report could result in them being held liable. It also makes reporters more likely to mistake signs of poverty as signs of neglect. This leads reporters to report a child to the system rather than provide families with the resources to meaningfully care for their children. It also directs the attention and resources at the Department of Child Protection and Permanency (DCPP) and the DCF away from cases in which their involvement is truly needed. Involving a family in the system can have detrimental impacts on their well-being, making them a target for future investigations and cause trauma to both children and parents, harming their mental health.

Communities of Color, Disproportionately Impacted
Last year, 88,762 reports of neglect were reported to the Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline.  This is a significant decrease from years prior, which saw reports in the mid to high 90,000s. These reports made up made up 68% of those made to the Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline. A look at data by demographics showed that 65% of these reports were made against Black and Hispanic communities. Most concerning is the extremely low substantiation rate of reports. In 2024 and 2025, only 2% of neglect reports were substantiated and established, similar to 2023,  which saw only 3% of reports substantiated and established. While the number of reports is declining, their accuracy has remained dangerously low. There is evidently a dire need for systemic reform to ensure safety and security for families and the preservation of DCF and DCPP resources for cases in which they are truly needed. (DCPP Stats).

In 2023, the Subcommittee was formed by The New Jersey Task Force on Child Abuse and Neglect (NJTFCAN) (NJTFCAN, 2026). The Subcommittee utilized focus groups and surveys to investigate the correlation between poverty and neglect in the child welfare system, and further developed three Workgroups composed of both families with experience in the welfare system as well as professionals. The Subcommittee then developed nine recommendations to reform the current mandated reporter system to ensure the protection of children and families. These recommendations are (NJTFCAN, 2026):

1. Establish a statutory Gold Standard mandated reporter training
2. Require training to be completed by the professions which are the top reporters
3. Create a learning management system, certified trainers, and a website
4. Creates profession-specific modules trainings in addition to making them Gold Standard
5. Places oversight bodies in charge of enforcement and compliance monitoring for education, healthcare, child care, and law enforcement professionals
6. Shifts the responsibility of universal mandated reporting to those who are professionally trained
7. End anonymous reporting to eliminate misuse and retaliatory reporting
8. Increase penalties for false reports
9. Introduce a decision-making tool with liability protections to allow reporters to take time and support families when a report is not needed and prevent unwarranted reports

How Other States are Reforming Mandated Reporting
When considering these recommendations, it is imperative to also look to the mandated reporter regulations in other states to determine their impacts and potential benefits of similar legislation in New Jersey. This analysis focuses on amendments and newly implemented laws throughout the United States from 2021-2026.

One important trend in nationwide state legislation is a push to eliminate anonymous reporting of child abuse and neglect. New York State Bill S550A (2025) and Texas House Bill 63 (2023) ban anonymous reporting, and Washington State (Rev. Code Ann. § 26.44.030) has required that the department make a greater effort to gather reporters’ identifying information while assuring confidentiality. This allows for follow-up in these cases and mitigates the number of baseless, retaliatory reports. Because retaliatory reports are typically anonymous, accountability is almost impossible. The elimination of anonymous reporting in New Jersey would eliminate intentionally baseless accusations against families. This will protect the safety of families and ensure that resources are not stretched thin by false accusations.

Improved Training
Another notable trend is the updated approaches to mandated reporter training. While New Jersey mandates everyone to report suspected abuse and neglect, almost two-thirds of all reports in New Jersey are made by law enforcement, education, and healthcare professionals. Regardless, there is no statutory requirement for mandated reporter training. New York (NJTFCAN, 2026) and Illinois (325 ILCS § 5/4) have recently expanded trainings to include the influence of bias on reports and its impacts on minority communities, especially Communities of Color. There are mixed opinions on the efficacy of implicit bias trainings. While some argue that implicit bias training prevents people from reporting genuine cases of abuse and increases the risk of harm to the child, (Cohen, 2025) others argue that these trainings are needed to ensure the accuracy of reports (New York State Office of Children and Family Services [NYS OCFS], n.d.). However, the Subcommittee emphasizes the need for a mandated reporter training requirement by statute.

Other states have also recently made changes to their legislation restricting or expanding responsibilities based on the trainings provided. For example, New Mexico (§ 32A-4-3) has placed the responsibility for investigations of child abuse to police officers who have undergone child abuse investigation training. Additionally, Virginia (§63.2-1509) expanded its list of mandated reporters to include anyone older than 18 years who received the Department of Social Services-approved training. Training is the basis of these eligibility requirements for investigation and reporting, playing a major role in the adequacy of the mandated reporter system. Adequate training increases the likelihood of fairness and substantiation in reports and investigations to protect families.

Improving Reporting and Investigation Practices
One last major trend in the child welfare and reporting system is more closely associated with the investigation process. States across the nation have imposed a separate approach to concerns deemed low-risk. Maryland (§5-706), Washington (Rev. Code Ann. § 26.44.030), and Wisconsin (§ 48.981) have created alternate investigation methods for reports based upon their assessed risk level.[2] New Hampshire (§ 169-C:34) has also implemented methods for less intrusive interventions and methods to direct families to the resources they need. For reporters, Louisiana (Child Code § 610) implemented an online hotline in 2018 that would allow for different reporting methods based on the level of urgency. While reports can still be made through the traditional hotline, the online hotline was designed for cases when a reporter suspects abuse or neglect but does not think the child faces imminent danger. California also passed a bill in 2020 allowing counties to opt-in to an online reporting system after a trial run in Los Angeles County proved it successful in ensuring efficiency and maintaining resources (Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, n.d.). Online reporting databases do not replace the hotline, but mitigate the harms that arise from an overwhelmed system. The California online reporting system asks reporters questions to measure the weight of the situation and directs them to the hotline if it is likely needed (Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, n.d.). By separating the reports, the system ensures efficiency and the ability to address situations appropriately while treating families with dignity and keeping children safe.

It is evident that the child welfare system is in great need of reform. Implicit bias and the lack of uniform training throughout the state lead to extremely high rates of unsubstantiated reports caused by mistaking poverty for neglect. This disproportionately impacts Families of Color. To make the greatest impact and ensure that as many families are kept as safe as possible, it is important to understand not only the statistics, but the stories behind them. Each number is a person, a family, deserving of dignity and respect. System reforms based on research, nationwide efforts, and lived experience allow New Jersey to work toward a brighter future for the child welfare system and for children and families throughout the state.

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References

New Jersey Task Force on Child Abuse and Neglect, Subcommittee on Poverty, Neglect, and Community Outcomes. (2026, January). Reforming mandated reporting in New Jersey: Moving from reporting to supporting families. New Jersey Department of Children and Families. https://www.nj.gov/dcf/documents/news/reportsnewsletters/taskforce/Mandated-Reporting-Reform_Final-Report_NJ-Subcommitte-PNCO_1.26.pdf

Rutgers University. (n.d.). Child abuse and neglect data portal. https://njchilddata.rutgers.edu/portal/child-abuse-neglect

National Center for Biotechnology Information. (n.d.). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK603840/

Mandated Reporter Training. (n.d.). How implicit bias influences mandated reporters. https://mandatedreportertraining.com/blog/how-implicit-bias-influences-mandated-reporters/

Child Welfare Monitor. (2025, March 16). A fundamental conflict: Addressing implicit bias in mandatory reporter training. https://childwelfaremonitor.org/2025/03/16/a-fundamental-conflict-addressing-implicit-bias-in-mandatory-reporter-training/

Children's Rights. (n.d.). Help, not hotlines. https://www.childrensrights.org/news-voices/help-not-hotlines-replacing-mandated-reporting-for-neglect-with-a-new-framework-for-family-support

South Carolina Department of Social Services. (n.d.). Mandated reporter implicit bias decision making. https://dss.sc.gov/media/qjzbcl2u/mr_implicit_bias_decision_making.pdf

Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services. (n.d.). Success of Los Angeles County's online child abuse reporting system leads to changes statewide. https://dcfs.lacounty.gov/success-of-los-angeles-countys-online-child-abuse-reporting-system-leads-to-changes-statewide/

[1] New Jersey Task Force on Child Abuse and Neglect, Subcommittee on Poverty, Neglect, and Community Outcomes. (2026, January). Reforming mandated reporting in New Jersey: Moving from reporting to supporting families. New Jersey Department of Children and Families. https://www.nj.gov/dcf/documents/news/reportsnewsletters/taskforce/Mandated-Reporting-Reform_Final-Report_NJ-Subcommitte-PNCO_1.26.pdf

[2] Maryland’s risk assessment program will implement a revised version of the statute in 2027. Wisconsin’s risk assessment program is a pilot instituted by statute.