0990-ChildMaltreatment I_Study intro letter

Appendix I

Letter of Study Introduction to States

Attachment I

	DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES	Office of the Secretary
		Washington, D.C. 20201

Dear xxxx,

The Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in cooperation with the Department’s Administration for Children and Families, is conducting a study to assess the feasibility of developing and maintaining a National Registry of Child Maltreatment Perpetrators as mandated under the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006. Walter R. McDonald & Associates, Inc. (WRMA) has been contracted to conduct this study which will take place between October 1, 2010 to February 26, 2011. This study will help determine the utility of such a registry as well as inform its content, structure and functioning, should it be established. We are asking that your state participate in this effort so that your state’s experiences and the opinions of key staff may be reflected in the study’s conclusions and recommendations. Participation is voluntary.

The study has two parts: a Prevalence Study and a Key Informants Survey. The Prevalence Study asks States to provide date of birth and encoded (and therefore not identifiable) names for all substantiated perpetrators reported for the last five years of NCANDS submissions. This information will be used to estimate how frequently perpetrators appear in multiple states’ registries. The Key Informants Survey is a set of three questionnaires addressing legal, practice, and data repository issues as well as questions related to the likelihood of states’ future participation in a voluntary national registry. Accompanying materials (Instructions for Key Informant Survey and Registry Data Files Guidelines) describe each of these in more detail, suggest the staff needed to respond, and provide a rough estimate of the amount of staff time required to complete each part of the study.

In advance, thank you for your efforts. The accompanying materials identify a contact person at WRMA, or you may contact Laura Radel on my staff at 202-690-5938 or via email at [email protected]. WRMA staff will be in touch with you by telephone within the next seven days.

Sincerely,

Laura Radel

Senior Social Science Analyst

Division of Children and Youth Policy

Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation