The Legislature finds that there is a substantial need to protect children and youth from abuse and neglect by persons entrusted with their physical custody, and from persons or organizations that advertise, hold themselves out, or lead others to believe that they will provide them with health, therapeutic, rehabilitative, or disciplinary services, and from persons employed or exercising authority over them, and who they depend upon to provide the basic necessities of life. The Legislature further finds that abuse and neglect often take the form of the withholding of the basic necessities of life, including food, water, shelter, clothing, and health care through an affirmative act or omission. It is the intent of the Legislature to implement a baseline of registration and regulation requirements for religious, faith-based, or church nonprofit, other nonprofit, and for profit affiliated youth residential facilities and institutions that have previously been exempt, and that criminal penalties be imposed on any individual guilty of the abuse or neglect of a child through an act or omission in association with services provided by such an institution. The Legislature further finds and declares the following:
(1) For several years, religious, faith-based, and church nonprofit, other nonprofit, and for profit residential affiliated facilities, institutions, and programs intended to be a less restrictive option for treatment of children and youth with substantial behavioral issues have been established nationwide, with numerous allegations of abuse and neglect, some resulting in death.
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Terms Used In Alabama Code 38-15-2
- Baseline: Projection of the receipts, outlays, and other budget amounts that would ensue in the future without any change in existing policy. Baseline projections are used to gauge the extent to which proposed legislation, if enacted into law, would alter current spending and revenue levels.
- following: means next after. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
- state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
