[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 161 (Thursday, September 17, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5716-S5717]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              SUPPORTING FAMILY MENTAL HEALTH IN CAPTA ACT

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions be discharged from 
further consideration of S. 1160 and the Senate proceed to its 
immediate consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 1160) to amend the Child Abuse Prevention and 
     Treatment Act to increase support for mental health.

  There being no objection, the committee was discharged, and the 
Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. McCONNELL. I further ask unanimous consent that the Smith 
substitute amendment at the desk be considered and agreed to; that the 
bill, as amended, be read a third time and passed; and that the motion 
to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no 
intervening action or debate.

[[Page S5717]]

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 2659), in the nature of a substitute, was agreed 
to as follows

                (Purpose: In the nature of a substitute)

        Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
     following:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Supporting Family Mental 
     Health in CAPTA Act''.

     SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO THE CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION AND 
                   TREATMENT ACT.

       (a) National Clearinghouse.--Section 103(b) of the Child 
     Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5104(b)) is 
     amended--
       (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``effective programs,'' 
     and inserting ``evidence-based and evidence-informed 
     programs,'';
       (2) by redesignating paragraphs (5) through (9) as 
     paragraphs (6) through (10), respectively; and
       (3) by inserting after paragraph (4), the following:
       ``(5) maintain and disseminate, as appropriate, information 
     that describes best practices for making appropriate 
     referrals related to, and addressing, the health, mental 
     health, and developmental needs of victims of child abuse or 
     neglect;''.
       (b) Research and Assistance Activities.--Section 104 of the 
     Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5105) is 
     amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) by striking subparagraph (F) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(F) effective approaches to interagency collaboration 
     between the child welfare protection system, the juvenile 
     justice system, and other relevant agencies engaged with 
     children and families that improve the delivery of services 
     and treatment (including related to domestic violence, mental 
     health, or substance use disorders) for continuity of 
     treatment plan and services as children transition between 
     systems;'';
       (ii) by redesignating subparagraphs (N) and (O) as 
     subparagraphs (P) and (Q), respectively;
       (iii) by inserting after subparagraph (M) the following:
       ``(N) methods to address geographic, racial, and cultural 
     disparities in the child welfare system, including a focus on 
     access to services;
       ``(O) evidence-based and evidence-informed programs to 
     prevent child abuse and neglect in families that have not had 
     contact with the child welfare system;''; and
       (iv) in subparagraph (P), as redesignated by clause (ii), 
     by striking ``subparagraph (O)'' and inserting ``subparagraph 
     (Q)''; and
       (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ``paragraph (1)(O)'' and 
     inserting ``paragraph (1)(Q)''; and
       (2) in subsection (b)--
       (A) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as paragraphs 
     (3) and (4), respectively;
       (B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
       ``(2) Content.--The technical assistance under paragraph 
     (1) shall be designed to, as applicable, promote best 
     practices for addressing child abuse and neglect in families 
     with complex needs, such as families who have experienced 
     domestic violence, substance use disorders, and adverse 
     childhood experiences.''; and
       (C) in paragraph (3), as so redesignated--
       (i) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon;
       (ii) in subparagraph (D), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; and''; and
       (iii) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(E) ways to reduce geographic, racial, and cultural 
     disparities in the child protection system, which may include 
     engaging law enforcement, education, health, and other 
     relevant systems in such efforts.''.
       (c) Grants to States.--Section 106 of the Child Abuse 
     Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5106a) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in paragraph (6)--
       (i) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon; and
       (ii) by striking subparagraph (D) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(D) training in early childhood, child, and adolescent 
     development and the impact of child abuse and neglect, and 
     the long-term impacts of adverse childhood experiences; and
       ``(E) training to improve coordination among child 
     protective service agencies, entities providing health care 
     services (including mental health and substance use disorder 
     services), and community resources, for purposes of 
     conducting evaluations related to substantiated cases of 
     child abuse or neglect; and
       ``(F) training regarding the links between child abuse and 
     neglect and domestic violence, and approaches to working with 
     families with mental health needs or substance use 
     disorder;''.
       (d) Application.--Section 204(7) of the Child Abuse 
     Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5116d(7)) is amended 
     to read as follows:
       ``(7) a description of the criteria that the entity will 
     use to--
       ``(A) select and fund local programs, and how the lead 
     entity will take into consideration the local program's 
     ability to--
       ``(i) collaborate with other community-based organizations 
     and service providers and engage in long-term and strategic 
     planning with respect to community-based and prevention-
     focused programs and activities designed to strengthen and 
     support families to prevent child abuse and neglect;
       ``(ii) meaningfully partner with parents in the 
     development, implementation, oversight, and evaluation of 
     services;
       ``(iii) reduce barriers to access to community-based and 
     prevention-focused programs and activities designed to 
     strengthen and support families to prevent child abuse and 
     neglect, including for diverse, underserved, and at-risk 
     populations; or
       ``(B) develop or provide community-based and prevention-
     focused programs and activities designed to strengthen and 
     support families to prevent child abuse and neglect, and 
     provide a description of how such activities are evidence-
     based or evidence-informed;''.

     SEC. 3. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.

       The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 
     5101 et seq.) is amended--
       (1) in section 3, by amending paragraph (5) to read as 
     follows:
       ``(5) the terms `Indian', `Indian Tribe', and `Tribal 
     organization' have the meanings given the terms `Indian', 
     `Indian tribe', and `tribal organization', respectively, in 
     section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education 
     Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b);'';
       (2) by striking ``tribe'' each place such term appears 
     (other than in section 3(5)) and inserting ``Tribe''; and
       (3) by striking ``tribal'' each place such term appears 
     (other than in section 3(5)) and inserting ``Tribal''.

  The bill (S. 1160), as amended, was ordered to be engrossed for a 
third reading, was read the third time, and passed.

                          ____________________