House Bill 243 will forbid people in New Hampshire from making false reports “maliciously or with the intent of harm” and allow them to face criminal charges or civil lawsuits for doing so. (Getty Images)
The New Hampshire House of Representatives approved a proposal through a voice vote on Thursday to punish people who file false reports of child abuse or neglect.
If also approved by the Senate and governor, House Bill 243 will forbid people in New Hampshire from making false reports “maliciously or with the intent of harm” and allow them to face criminal charges or civil lawsuits for doing so. It also specifies that reports “may” include the name, address, or phone number of whoever was making the report.
Thursday’s vote goes against the wishes of the majority in the House Children and Family Law Committee. That committee previously voted, 10-6, to recommend the full House reject the bill over concerns it would be ineffective and have a chilling effect.
Lawmakers opposed to the bill pointed out that by simply allowing the name and information of the reporter to be included and not requiring it, this bill still allows people intentionally filing false reports to remain anonymous, making it ineffective. They also said a provision in the bill that informs reporters they may be subject to criminal or civil penalties for malicious reports would have a chilling effect, possibly discouraging good-faith reporters and preventing real abuse from being addressed.
“If one child is put at risk, that is one child too many,” Rep. Peter Petrigno, a Milford Democrat, said Thursday on the House floor in opposition to the bill. “While the bill has good intentions, it’s impractical and potentially harmful.”
Deerfield Republican Rep. James Spillane, who sponsored the bill, previously told the Bulletin, “we’ve got a problem with people weaponizing the system.”
He said he’d heard from constituents stories of aggrieved ex-spouses or squabbling grandparents making false reports vindictively.
Another bill related to false reports of abuse and neglect, also sponsored by Spillane, is still being considered by the House. House Bill 430, if passed, would shorten the length of time the Department of Health and Human Services holds onto records regarding “unfounded” reports of child abuse or neglect. The department currently maintains records of unfounded abuse or neglect for 10 years from when it was deemed unfounded, unless it determines there is “reasonable concern” about the case, at which point the records are kept indefinitely. This legislation would shorten that period from 10 to three years. After that, the department destroys all electronic or paper records in the case. The Children and Family Law Committee will discuss that bill in closed session on March 4.