Legislative findings purpose and policy

Children in this state are in urgent need of protection from abuse. It is the purpose and policy of subchapter III to provide the greatest possible protection to victims or potential victims of abuse through encouraging the increased reporting of suspected cases of abuse, ensuring the thorough and prompt assessment of these reports, and providing rehabilitative services, where appropriate and whenever possible to abused children and their families which will stabilize the home environment so that the family can remain intact without further danger to the child. The state recognizes removing a child from the child’s family will cause the child harm and that the harm caused by a child’s removal must be weighed against the potential harm in allowing a child to remain with the child’s family.