Senate Bill No. 2083 - Summary

• Amends North Dakota Century Code sections relating to child abuse and neglect by updating definitions, assessment procedures, and reporting requirements for the Department of Human Services.

• Revises assessment decision terminology from "services required" to "confirmed," "confirmed with unknown subject," "unconfirmed," or "unable to determine" to clarify abuse and neglect findings.

• Expands the definition of "abused child" to explicitly include minors subjected to sexual abuse violations and adds "institutional child abuse or neglect" involving schools and residential facilities.

• Requires child fatality review panel to meet quarterly instead of semiannually and adds parent with lived experience to state child protection team membership.

• Increases penalties for false reporting of child abuse to law enforcement (Class A misdemeanor) and maintains Class B misdemeanor penalty for other false reports under the chapter.