The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part of the
legislative instrument, were prepared by Senate Legislative Services. The keyword,
summary, and digest do not constitute part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative
intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
DIGEST
SB 41 Original 2025 Regular Session Barrow
School Employee Background Checks - State Central Registry
Present law prohibits any person convicted of or who has pled guilty or nolo contendere to certain
crimes from owning, operating, or participating in the governance of an early learning center,
residential home, or a residence where in-home child care is provided.
Proposed law extends the prohibition to any person who has been placed on the Dept. of Children
and Family Services' state central registry.
Present law prohibits BESE from issuing an educator credential or teaching authorization to any
person who has been convicted of or pled nolo contendere to certain crimes and requires the Dept.
of Education to publish on its website the name of any person whose teaching certification or
authorization has been revoked due to certain offense.
Proposed law additionally prohibits BESE from issuing an educator credential or teaching
authorization to any person who has been placed on the Dept. of Children and Family Services' state
central registry and requires the Dept. of Education to publish on its website the name of any person
whose teaching certification or authorization has been revoked due to placement on the registry.
Present law prohibits schools from employing individuals that have been convicted of or pled nolo
contendere to certain crimes.
Proposed law additionally prohibits schools from employing individuals that have been placed on
the Dept. of Children and Family Services' state central registry.
Present law lists murder, manslaughter, feticide, rape, sexual battery, female genital mutilation,
intentional exposure to HIV, kidnapping, crimes involving juveniles, crimes involving a child sex
doll, prostitution, crimes against nature, cruelty to persons with infirmities, crimes of violence, and
other sex offenses as offenses that would prohibit employment at a school, early learning center, or
other positions that include supervision of children.
Proposed law adds additional human trafficking offenses and sexual battery of persons with
infirmities to the list of offenses that would prohibit employment at a school, early learning center,
or other positions that include supervision of children.
Proposed law requires the Dept. of Education to maintain a list on its website of all school employees who have been convicted of a crime listed in R.S. 15:587.1 or who have been placed on
the Dept. of Children and Family Services' state central registry.
Early Learning Centers
Present law defines "early learning center" as any child day care center, Early Head Start Center,
Head Start Center, or stand-alone prekindergarten program not attached to a school.
Proposed law removes the exemption for nonpublic prekindergarten programs that are attached to
a school and requires all nonpublic prekindergarten programs to be licensed by the Dept. of
Education.
Proposed law establishes child safety and welfare minimum standards and requires all public,
nonpublic, and charter school prekindergarten programs to comply with the minimum standards.
Present law provides for penalties for early learning center violations regarding supervision, criminal
history record checks, the state central registry disclosure form, staff-to-child ratios, motor vehicle
checks, and failure to report critical incidents.
Proposed law requires the Dept. of Education to publish those violations on its website.
Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting and Investigations
Present law requires teaching or child care providers to complete an annual online mandatory
reporter training course and send a record of completion to the school or early learning center at
which the teaching or child care provider is employed.
Proposed law requires all schools and early learning centers to annually report all employees that
have and have not completed mandatory reporter training to the Dept. of Education and requires the
department to post each entity's completion rates, beginning with the 2026-2027 school year.
Proposed law adds certain Dept. of Children and Family Services and office of juvenile justice
employees to the list of mandatory reporters.
Proposed law amends the definitions of "caretaker", "mandatory reporter", "teaching or child care
provider" and "neglect" in the Children's Code.
Proposed law provides for agency responsibility for responding to reports of child abuse and neglect.
Proposed law provides for agency responsibility for cases in which the perpetrator is a child.
Provides that the Dept. of Children and Family Services is responsible for cases where the
perpetrator child lives with the victim child and law enforcement is responsible for all other cases
involving a child perpetrator.
Proposed law establishes requirements for reporting cases between the Dept. of Children and Family Services and law enforcement.
Proposed law establishes requirements for law enforcement to respond to reports of child sexual
abuse in a school setting and to refer certain cases to the Dept. of Children and Family Services.
Dept. of Children and Family Services Determinations
Present law requires the Dept. of Children and Family Services to make a determination following
an investigation of a report of child abuse or neglect of whether the report was justified,
inconclusive, not justified, or false.
Proposed law changes the determination language from "justified" or "unjustified" to "substantiated"
or "unsubstantiated".
Present law uses the terms "valid" and "invalid" when referring to justified and unjustified
determinations of the Dept. of Children and Family Services.
Proposed law changes the terms "valid" and "invalid" to "substantiated" and "unsubstantiated".
Liability for Sexual Abuse in a School Setting
Proposed law provides that a parent of guardian of a child who is the victim of sexual abuse in a
school setting may be awarded damages including medical and behavioral health expenses and
reimbursement of tuition paid for attendance at the school if the child is removed from the school.
Effective August 1, 2025.
(Amends R.S. 14:91.3(A), R.S. 15:587.1(C)(intro para), 587.1(C)(1) and 1110.3(H), R.S. 17:8.7(A),
8.7(B)(intro para), and 8.7(B)(1), 8.9(A)(5), (C), (D)(1), (2), and (3), and (E)(2) and (3), 15(A)(1)(a),
(b)(i)(bb) and (cc), and (b)(ii) and (2)(a)(ii)-(v), (D), (E), and (F), 16(A), 24.8(A) and (B)(2),
407.33(5), 407.35(A), 407.42(A)(2) and (B)(1)(b), 407.46(A)(1), 407.71(A), 443(B)(1), 493(C)(1),
and 3996(B)(28), R.S. 40:2008.10(A)(3) and 2019(F) (3)(b), R.S. 46:51.2(A)(1)(b), 56(F)(1), (4)(c),
(10)(b)(i), and (11), and 1414.1(A), Ch.C. Art. 603(4)(a), (17)(d), and (18), 603.1(B), 610(A), (E)(1)
and (2), and (H), 612(A)(3), 615(B)(2), (3), and (5), 615(E)(intro para) and 615(E)(1) and (4)(a) and
(F), 616(B), 616(D)(intro para), 616(E) and (H), and 616.1.1(A); adds R.S. 17:8.9(A)(2)(c) and
(3)(c) and (E)(4), 15(A)(1)(b)(i)(dd) and (2)(a)(vi) and (G), 407.41, and 3996(B)(82), Ch.C. Art.
603(17)(l)-(o) and 610(I) and C.C. Art. 2315.8)