Oregon Statutes 419B.015 – Report form and content; notice
(1)(a) A person making a voluntary report of child abuse shall make an oral report to the Department of Human Services by telephone to the child abuse reporting hotline described in ORS § 418.190 or to a law enforcement agency within the county where the person making the report is located at the time of the contact. A person making a report of child abuse that is required by ORS § 419B.010 shall make the report to the department through the centralized child abuse reporting system described in ORS § 418.190 or to a law enforcement agency within the county where the person making the report is located at the time of the contact. The report must contain, if known, the names and addresses of the child and the parents of the child or other persons responsible for care of the child, the child’s age, the nature and extent of the abuse, including any evidence of previous abuse, the explanation given for the abuse and any other information that the person making the report believes might be helpful in establishing the cause of the abuse and the identity of the perpetrator.
Terms Used In Oregon Statutes 419B.015
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- Person: includes individuals, corporations, associations, firms, partnerships, limited liability companies and joint stock companies. See Oregon Statutes 174.100
- Reporter: Makes a record of court proceedings and prepares a transcript, and also publishes the court's opinions or decisions (in the courts of appeals).
(b)(A) When a report of alleged child abuse is received by the department, the department shall notify a law enforcement agency within the county where the alleged abuse occurred or, if that county is unknown, the county where the child resides or, if that county is unknown, the county where the reporter came into contact with the child or the alleged perpetrator of the abuse.
(B) When a report of alleged child abuse is received by a law enforcement agency, the agency shall notify the department by making a report of the alleged child abuse to the centralized child abuse reporting system described in ORS § 418.190.
(c) When a report of alleged child abuse is received by the department or by a law enforcement agency, the department or law enforcement agency, or both, may collect information concerning the military status of the parent or guardian of the child who is the subject of the report and may share the information with the appropriate military authorities. Disclosure of information under this paragraph is subject to ORS § 419B.035 (7).
(2) When a report of alleged child abuse is received under subsection (1)(a) of this section, the entity receiving the report shall make the notification required by subsection (1)(b) of this section according to rules adopted by the department under ORS § 419B.017.
(3)(a) When a report alleging that a child or ward in substitute care may have been subjected to abuse is received by the department, the department shall notify the attorney for the child or ward, the child’s or ward’s court appointed special advocate, the parents of the child or ward and any attorney representing a parent of the child or ward that a report has been received.
(b) The name and address of and other identifying information about the person who made the report may not be disclosed under this subsection. Any person or entity to whom notification is made under this subsection may not release any information not authorized by this subsection.
(c) The department shall make the notification required by this subsection within three business days of receiving the report of alleged child abuse.
(d) Notwithstanding the obligation imposed by this subsection, the department is not required under this subsection to notify the parent or parent’s attorney that a report of alleged child abuse has been received if the notification may interfere with an investigation or assessment or jeopardize the child’s or ward’s safety. [1993 c.546 § 15; 1993 c.734 § 1a; 2005 c.250 § 1; 2007 c.237 § 1; 2017 c.210 § 1; 2019 c.181 § 1; 2023 c.132 § 2]