HB 2037 Summary

• Raises the age threshold for "caretaker" and "underaged juvenile offender" definitions from 13 to 14 years old, and for sexual abuse perpetrators from 13 to 14 years old

• Expands definitions of child abuse and neglect to include "significant other" (person sharing household or acting in loco parentis with parent's child) and clarifies supervision and school enrollment requirements

• Establishes confidentiality protections requiring sealing of child maltreatment records released to law enforcement/courts and prohibits re-disclosure without protective order

• Modifies administrative hearing procedures including 180-day completion deadline (with exceptions for ongoing criminal cases), automatic hearings for juveniles with true findings, and in-person hearing options

• Changes record-copying fees from "and" to "or" mailing records and expands reference to electronic media instead of just videotapes for reproductive costs