Do different counties in Arizona have different rules on reporting abuse?
No. The Mandated Reporters Statute, ARS 13-3620, is a state law that defines who must report abuse or neglect of a child, but doesn’t offer very specific guidelines. DES offers the following guidelines: “A report should be made when any person, who reasonably believes that a child under 18 has been abused, neglected, exploited or abandoned. A report of suspected abuse, neglect, exploitation or abandonment is only a request for an investigation. The person making the report does not need to prove the abuse. Investigation and validation of child abuse reports are the responsibilities of child protective service workers. If additional incidents of abuse occur after the initial report has been made, a person should make another report.” All calls go to a statewide hotline, where screeners use evaluation tools to prioritize the calls. Being a statewide system, there is consistency for all counties.
