To provide for the establishment of a task force within the Bureau of Justice Statistics to gather information about, study, and report to the Congress regarding, incidents of abandonment of infant children.

January 7, 2003

Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

To provide for the establishment of a task force within the Bureau of Justice Statistics to gather information about, study, and report to the Congress regarding, incidents of abandonment of infant children.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Baby Abandonment Prevention Act of 2003'.

SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF TASK FORCE.

(a) IN GENERAL- The Attorney General, acting through the Director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics, shall establish a task force (to be known as the Task Force on Baby Abandonment) to carry out the following:

(1) Collecting information from State and local law enforcement agencies and child welfare agencies regarding incidents of abandonment of an infant child by a parent of that child.

(2) Maintaining that information in a comprehensive database.

(3) Studying that information and making findings, conclusions, and recommendations regarding that information.

(4) Submitting reports in accordance with this section.

(b) INFORMATION INCLUDED- The information referred to in subsection (a) shall include information with respect to the following:

(1) The prevalence of such incidents.

(2) The demographics of such children and such parents.

(3) The factors that influence the decision of such parents to abandon such children.

(4) The circumstances surrounding such abandonments, including the time, place, and manner of such abandonments.

(5) The outcomes for such children and such parents after such abandonments.

(6) Trends and variations in the matters set forth in paragraphs (1) through (5).

(c) DEFINITION- In this section, the term `infant child' means a child not more than 12 months of age.

(d) REPORTS- Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the task force shall submit a report to the Congress detailing its methodology, findings, conclusions, and recommendations.

END