State Statutes for Definitions of Child Abuse and Neglect

Relevant sections of state statutes are provided for those who are interested in statutory language regarding states’ definitions of child abuse and neglect in 2021. Information in the database about states’ definitions for abuse and neglect were obtained from multiple sources, including statutes, policy documentation, and state child welfare agency staff. It is important to note that the text in the state statutes may not reflect the full scope of information collected for all variables in the definitions of child abuse and neglect domain in the 2021 data. All sources used to code variables for each state are noted in Appendix D of the 2021 codebook.