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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 5243
February Session, 2022
AN ACT CONCERNING THE IDENTIFICATION AND PREVENTION OF
AND RESPONSE TO ADULT SEXUAL MISCONDUCT AGAINST
CHILDREN.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2022) (a) For the school year 1
commencing July 1, 2022, and biennially thereafter, the Department of 2
Public Health shall administer the Connecticut School Health Survey to 3
students in grades nine to twelve, inclusive, provided the department 4
receives funding from the federal Centers for Disease Control and 5
Prevention for such purpose. The survey shall be based on the Youth 6
Risk Behavior Survey developed by the federal Centers for Disease 7
Control and Prevention. The department shall provide guidelines to the 8
local or regional board of education regarding the administration of the 9
survey to those high schools selected at random by the federal Centers 10
for Disease Control and Prevention. Such local or regional board of 11
education shall administer the survey to each high school selected to 12
participate in the survey in accordance with the guidelines provided by 13
the department, including, but not limited to, (1) the survey protocol as 14
required by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, (2) 15
the requirement to provide parents the opportunity to exclude their 16
children from the survey by denying permission in writing, on a form 17
prescribed by the department, (3) the requirement for the survey to be 18 Substitute Bill No. 5243
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anonymous and administered in a manner designed to protect student 19
privacy, (4) the timeframe for completion of the survey, and (5) the 20
process by which the results of such survey are to be submitted to the 21
department. 22
(b) The department, in consultation with the Department of Mental 23
Health and Addiction Services, the Office of Early Childhood, the 24
Department of Children and Families, the Department of Education and 25
any other agency or public interest group the department deems 26
necessary, may develop additional survey questions to be included as 27
part of the Connecticut School Health Survey that are relevant to the 28
health concerns of high school students in the state. 29
Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2022) Not later than October 1, 2022, 30
the Child Advocate, in consultation with the Department of Public 31
Health and the Department of Children and Families, shall develop and 32
update, as necessary, questions designed to assess the risk of youths 33
becoming victims of sexual assault or misconduct by an adult. Such 34
questions shall be included as part of the Connecticut School Health 35
Survey administered pursuant to section 1 of this act. 36
Sec. 3. (NEW) (Effective from passage) Not later than January 1, 2023, 37
the Department of Education, in consultation with the Department of 38
Public Health, shall develop for use by a local or regional board of 39
education (1) a uniform policy concerning timely notification to the 40
parents or guardians of students in grades nine to twelve, inclusive, 41
about the Connecticut School Health Survey not later than twenty-one 42
calendar days prior to the date such board will be administering the 43
survey at a high school governed by such board, and (2) a form to be 44
distributed to parents or guardians for the purposes of the notification 45
required pursuant to subdivision (1) of this section that includes, but is 46
not limited to, (A) an explanation of the Connecticut School Health 47
Survey and how a parent or guardian may opt out of such survey being 48
administered to his or her child, and (B) the Internet link to the survey 49
that will be administered. 50 Substitute Bill No. 5243
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Sec. 4. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2022) For the school year commencing 51
July 1, 2022, and each school year thereafter, if the results of the 52
Connecticut School Health Survey, administered pursuant to section 1 53
of this act, reveal that a student in the school in which such survey was 54
administered has been the victim of a sexual assault or misconduct by 55
an adult, then the local or regional board of education for such school 56
shall request the Department of Children and Families and the 57
Department of Education to provide or facilitate (1) training for the 58
teachers, administrators and other staff of such school about how to 59
support students who have experienced abuse, (2) the provision of 60
counseling services for students by working with school-based mental 61
health personnel and administrators of such school, (3) the distribution 62
of materials relating to counseling services created or offered by victim 63
advocates groups and other state agencies, and (4) the bystander 64
training program and appropriate interaction with children training 65
program, developed or adopted pursuant to section 5 of this act, to all 66
teachers, administrators and other school staff of such school. 67
Sec. 5. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2022) (a) Not later than January 1, 2023, 68
the Department of Children and Families, in consultation with the 69
Department of Education, shall develop or adopt a bystander training 70
program and an appropriate interaction with children training 71
program. The department shall update as necessary such bystander 72
training and an appropriate interaction with children training program. 73
Such training programs shall be provided to any school employee who 74
has been hired by a local or regional board of education, in accordance 75
with the provisions of section 6 of this act, and included as part of a local 76
or regional board of education's in-service training program, pursuant 77
to section 10-220a of the general statutes, as amended by this act. 78
(b) The department may enter into a memorandum of understanding 79
with each regional educational service center for the bystander training 80
program and appropriate interaction with children training program to 81
be provided at or by such center to the teachers, administrators and 82
other staff of the local and regional boards of education that are 83 Substitute Bill No. 5243
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members of such center. 84
(c) The department may enter into a memorandum of understanding 85
with the governing authority for intramural and interscholastic athletics 86
for the bystander training program and the appropriate interaction with 87
children training program to be provided by such governing authority 88
to coaches who hold or are issued coaching permits by the State Board 89
of Education, in accordance with the provisions of section 6 of this act. 90
Sec. 6. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2022) For the school year commencing 91
July 1, 2023, and each school year thereafter, any school employee who 92
has been hired by a local or regional board of education shall complete 93
the bystander training program and the appropriate interaction with 94
children training, developed or adopted pursuant to section 5 of this act. 95
In the case of a school employee who is a coach of intramural or 96
interscholastic athletics, such training shall be completed prior to 97
commencing the coaching assignment for the season of such intramural 98
or interscholastic athletics. For purposes of this section, "school 99
employee" means a teacher, substitute teacher, school administrator, 100
school superintendent, guidance counselor, school counselor, 101
psychologist, social worker, nurse, physician, school paraprofessional 102
or coach employed by a local or regional board of education or working 103
in a public elementary, middle or high school. 104
Sec. 7. Subdivision (1) of subsection (b) of section 17a-101a of the 105
general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 106
thereof (Effective July 1, 2022): 107
(b) (1) Any person required to report under the provisions of this 108
section who fails to make such report or fails to make such report within 109
the time period prescribed in sections 17a-101b to 17a-101d, inclusive, 110
and section 17a-103 shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor, except that 111
such person shall be guilty of a class E felony if (A) such violation is a 112
subsequent violation, (B) such violation was wilful or intentional or due 113
to gross negligence, or (C) such person had actual knowledge that (i) a 114
child was abused or neglected, as described in section 46b-120, or (ii) a 115 Substitute Bill No. 5243
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person was a victim described in subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of this 116
section. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 54-193, no person 117
shall be prosecuted for a violation of the provisions of this section 118
committed on or after July 1, 2022, except within three years after such 119
violation has been committed. 120
Sec. 8. Subsection (b) of section 17a-101 of the general statutes is 121
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 122
1, 2022): 123
(b) The following persons shall be mandated reporters: (1) Any 124
physician or surgeon licensed under the provisions of chapter 370, (2) 125
any resident physician or intern in any hospital in this state, whether or 126
not so licensed, (3) any registered nurse, (4) any licensed practical nurse, 127
(5) any medical examiner, (6) any dentist, (7) any dental hygienist, (8) 128
any psychologist, (9) any school employee, as defined in section 53a-65, 129
(10) any social worker, (11) any person who holds or is issued a coaching 130
permit by the State Board of Education, is a coach of intramural or 131
interscholastic athletics and is eighteen years of age or older, (12) any 132
individual who is employed as a coach or director of youth athletics and 133
is eighteen years of age or older, (13) any individual who is employed 134
as a coach or director of a private youth sports organization, league or 135
team and is eighteen years of age or older, (14) any paid administrator, 136
faculty, staff, athletic director, athletic coach or athletic trainer employed 137
by a public or private institution of higher education who is eighteen 138
years of age or older, excluding student employees, (15) any police 139
officer, (16) any juvenile or adult probation officer, (17) any juvenile or 140
adult parole officer, (18) any member of the clergy, (19) any pharmacist, 141
(20) any physical therapist, (21) any optometrist, (22) any chiropractor, 142
(23) any podiatrist, (24) any mental health professional, (25) any 143
physician assistant, (26) any person who is a licensed or certified 144
emergency medical services provider, (27) any person who is a licensed 145
or certified alcohol and drug counselor, (28) any person who is a 146
licensed marital and family therapist, (29) any person who is a sexual 147
assault counselor or a domestic violence counselor, as defined in section 148 Substitute Bill No. 5243
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52-146k, (30) any person who is a licensed professional counselor, (31) 149
any person who is a licensed foster parent, (32) any person paid to care 150
for a child in any public or private facility, child care center, group child 151
care home or family child care home licensed by the state, (33) any 152
employee of the Department of Children and Families or any person 153
who, in the performance of such person's duties, has regular contact 154
with and provides services to or on behalf of children pursuant to a 155
contract with or credential issued by the Department of Children and 156
Families, (34) any employee of the Office of Early Childhood who is 157
responsible for the licensing of child care centers, group child care 158
homes, family child care homes or youth camps, (35) any paid or 159
volunteer youth camp director or assistant director and any paid or 160
volunteer staff member who is eighteen years of age or older, (36) the 161
Child Advocate and any employee of the Office of the Child Advocate, 162
(37) any person who is a licensed behavior analyst, (38) any family 163
relations counselor, family relations counselor trainee or family services 164
supervisor employed by the Judicial Department, (39) any victim 165
services advocate employed by the Office of Victim Services within the 166
Judicial Department, (40) any employee of a juvenile justice program 167
operated by or pursuant to a contract with the Court Support Services 168
Division of the Judicial Department, and (41) any person employed, 169
including any person employed under contract and any independent 170
ombudsperson, to work at a juvenile detention facility or any other 171
facility where children under eighteen years of age are detained and 172
who has direct contact with children as part of such employment. 173
Sec. 9. Subdivisions (1) and (2) of subsection (i) of section 10-145b of 174
the general statutes are repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 175
thereof (Effective July 1, 2022): 176
(i) (1) The State Board of Education may take one or more of the 177
following actions, in accordance with the provisions of subdivision (2) 178
of this subsection, against a person holding a certificate, permit or 179
authorization based on conduct that occurred prior or subsequent to the 180
issuance of such certificate, permit or authorization: (A) Revoke the 181 Substitute Bill No. 5243
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holder's certificate, permit or authorization; (B) suspend the holder's 182
certificate, permit or authorization; or (C) place the holder's certificate 183
on probation, subject to conditions determined by the Commissioner of 184
Education. 185
(2) The State Board of Education may take any of the actions 186
described in subparagraphs (A) to (C), inclusive, of subdivision (1) of 187
this subsection with respect to a holder's certificate, permit or 188
authorization issued pursuant to sections 10-144o to 10-149, inclusive, 189
for any of the following reasons: (A) The holder of the certificate, permit 190
or authorization obtained such certificate, permit or authorization 191
through fraud or misrepresentation of a material fact; (B) the holder has 192
persistently neglected to perform the duties for which the certificate, 193
permit or authorization was granted; (C) the holder is professionally 194
unfit to perform the duties for which the certificate, permit or 195
authorization was granted; (D) the holder is convicted in a court of law 196
of a crime involving moral turpitude or of any other crime of such 197
nature that in the opinion of the board continued holding of a certificate, 198
permit or authorization by the person would impair the standing of 199
certificates, permits or authorizations issued by the board; (E) the holder 200
has had a finding of abuse or neglect substantiated against the holder 201
pursuant to section 17a-101g and such finding has been upheld 202
following an appeal pursuant to section 17a-101k; or [(E)] (F) other due 203
and sufficient cause. The State Board of Education may revoke any 204
certificate, permit or authorization issued pursuant to said sections if the 205
holder is found to have intentionally disclosed specific questions or 206
answers to students or otherwise improperly breached the security of 207
any administration of a mastery examination, pursuant to section 10-208
14n. In any revocation proceeding pursuant to this section, the State 209
Board of Education shall have the burden of establishing the reason for 210
such revocation by a preponderance of the evidence. Revocation shall 211
be in accordance with procedures established by the State Board of 212
Education pursuant to chapter 54. 213
Sec. 10. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2022) Not later than January 1, 2023, 214 Substitute Bill No. 5243
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the Department of Children and Families, in collaboration with the 215
Department of Education and the Department of Emergency Services 216
and Public Protection, shall develop or adopt a victim sensitivity 217
training program for school social workers, mental health professionals 218
and school administrators. The department shall make such training 219
program available to local and regional boards of education. Such 220
training program shall be included as part of a local or regional board 221
of education's in-service training program, pursuant to section 10-220a 222
of the general statutes, as amended by this act. 223
Sec. 11. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2022) Not later than January 1, 2023, 224
the Department of Education, Office of Early Childhood, Department of 225
Children and Families and the Labor Department shall jointly develop 226
a checklist to be used by local and regional boards of education and 227
providers of child care services, as described in section 19a-77 of the 228
general statutes, during the hiring process for the purpose of screening 229
applicants and prospective employees. Any such checklist to be used by 230
child care providers shall include, but need not be limited to, 231
comprehensive background checks as described in section 10-530 of the 232
general statutes. 233
Sec. 12. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2022) On and after July 1, 2023, the 234
Department of Children and Families shall make available, upon 235
request of a youth-serving organization or religious organization, any 236
materials relating to the bystander training program and the 237
appropriate interaction with children training program developed or 238
adopted pursuant to section 5 of this act or the victim sensitivity training 239
program developed or adopted pursuant to section 10 of this act. 240
Sec. 13. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2022) Not later than July 1, 2023, the 241
Department of Children and Families, in consultation with the 242
Department of Education, shall develop a framework for addressing 243
adult sexual misconduct in schools. Such framework shall include, but 244
need not be limited to, (1) a definition of adult sexual misconduct, (2) 245
protocols and guidance that local and regional boards of education can 246
use to address adult sexual misconduct in schools that is consistent with 247 Substitute Bill No. 5243
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federal law and guidelines on sexual abuse prevention and 248
antidiscrimination, (3) guidance on the requirements and obligations of 249
mandated reporters, and (4) provisions addressing the heightened risk 250
of victimization for highly vulnerable students, such as students with 251
disabilities or who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and 252
other sexual orientations and gender identities. Such framework shall 253
require that any trainings provided by local and regional boards of 254
education regarding adult sexual misconduct or abuse prevention and 255
response be comprehensive, on-going and offered to all school 256
employees, as defined in section 6 of this act, members of the board of 257
education and parents and guardians of students. The department may 258
seek input and recommendations from stakeholders groups while 259
developing the framework. 260
Sec. 14. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2022) For the school year commencing 261
July 1, 2023, and each school year thereafter, each local and regional 262
board of education shall develop and implement a policy for addressing 263
adult sexual misconduct in the schools under the jurisdiction of the 264
board. Such policy shall be in accordance with the framework for 265
addressing adult sexual misconduct developed by the Department of 266
Education pursuant to section 13 of this act. The board shall annually 267
provide a copy of such policy to all school employees, as defined in 268
section 53a-65 of the general statutes, the members of the board of 269
education and the parents and guardians of students enrolled in the 270
schools under the jurisdiction of the board. 271
Sec. 15. Section 10-145a of the general statutes is amended by adding 272
subsection (k) as follows (Effective July 1, 2022): 273
(NEW) (k) On and after July 1, 2023, any program of teacher 274
preparation leading to professional certification shall include, as part of 275
the curriculum, instruction in adult sexual misconduct awareness and 276
prevention in schools. 277
Sec. 16. Subsection (a) of section 10-220a of the 2022 supplement to 278
the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 279 Substitute Bill No. 5243
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thereof (Effective July 1, 2023): 280
(a) Each local or regional board of education shall provide an in-281
service training program for its teachers, administrators and pupil 282
personnel who hold the initial educator, provisional educator or 283
professional educator certificate. Such program shall provide such 284
teachers, administrators and pupil personnel with information on (1) 285
the nature and the relationship of alcohol and drugs, as defined in 286
subdivision (17) of section 21a-240, to health and personality 287
development, and procedures for discouraging their abuse, (2) health 288
and mental health risk reduction education that includes, but need not 289
be limited to, the prevention of risk-taking behavior by children and the 290
relationship of such behavior to substance abuse, pregnancy, sexually 291
transmitted diseases, including HIV-infection and AIDS, as defined in 292
section 19a-581, violence, teen dating violence, domestic violence and 293
child abuse, the bystander training and an appropriate interaction with 294
children training program developed or adopted pursuant to section 5 295
of this act, and the victim sensitivity training program developed or 296
adopted pursuant to section 10 of this act, (3) school violence 297
prevention, conflict resolution, the prevention of and response to youth 298
suicide and the identification and prevention of and response to 299
bullying, as defined in subsection (a) of section 10-222d, except that 300
those boards of education that implement any evidence-based model 301
approach that is approved by the Department of Education and is 302
consistent with subsection (c) of section 10-145a, sections 10-222d, 10-303
222g and 10-222h, subsection (g) of section 10-233c and sections 1 and 3 304
of public act 08-160, shall not be required to provide in-service training 305
on the identification and prevention of and response to bullying, (4) 306
cardiopulmonary resuscitation and other emergency life saving 307
procedures, (5) the requirements and obligations of a mandated 308
reporter, (6) the detection and recognition of, and evidence-based 309
structured literacy interventions for, students with dyslexia, as defined 310
in section 10-3d, (7) culturally responsive pedagogy and practice, 311
including, but not limited to, the video training module relating to 312
implicit bias and anti-bias in the hiring process in accordance with the 313 Substitute Bill No. 5243
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provisions of section 10-156hh, [and] (8) the principles and practices of 314
social-emotional learning and restorative practices, and (9) adult sexual 315
misconduct awareness and prevention. Each local or regional board of 316
education may allow any paraprofessional or noncertified employee to 317
participate, on a voluntary basis, in any in-service training program 318
provided pursuant to this section. 319
Sec. 17. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2022) For the school year commencing 320
July 1, 2022, and each school year thereafter, each local and regional 321
board of education shall provide to all school employees, as defined in 322
section 53a-65 of the general statutes, the members of the board of 323
education and the parents and guardians of students enrolled in the 324
schools under the jurisdiction of the board, a copy of the guidelines 325
regarding child sexual abuse, developed pursuant to section 17a-101r of 326
the general statutes.327
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2022 New section
Sec. 2 July 1, 2022 New section
Sec. 3 from passage New section
Sec. 4 July 1, 2022 New section
Sec. 5 July 1, 2022 New section
Sec. 6 July 1, 2022 New section
Sec. 7 July 1, 2022 17a-101a(b)(1)
Sec. 8 October 1, 2022 17a-101(b)
Sec. 9 July 1, 2022 10-145b(i)(1) and (2)
Sec. 10 July 1, 2022 New section
Sec. 11 July 1, 2022 New section
Sec. 12 July 1, 2022 New section
Sec. 13 July 1, 2022 New section
Sec. 14 July 1, 2022 New section
Sec. 15 July 1, 2022 10-145a
Sec. 16 July 1, 2023 10-220a(a)
Sec. 17 July 1, 202 New section
Substitute Bill No. 5243
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Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
In Section 3, "(NEW)" was added in introductory language for
consistency with drafting conventions, in Section 8(b)(35), "any paid or
volunteer youth camp director, [or] assistant director or employee who
is eighteen years of age or older" was changed to "any paid or volunteer
youth camp director or assistant director and any paid or volunteer staff
member who is eighteen years of age or older", for clarity; in Section
9(i)(2)(E), "substantiated" was changed to "substantiated against the
holder" for clarity; in Sections 4, 6 and 12, "described in" was changed to
"developed or adopted pursuant to" for accuracy; and in Section
16(a)(2), "section 4" was changed to "section 5" and "described in" was
changed to "developed or adopted pursuant to" for accuracy.
KID Joint Favorable Subst.