34 U.S.C. § 20331 - U.S. Code - Unannotated Title 34. Crime Control and Law Enforcement § 20331. Findings and purpose

(1) a large number of juvenile and family courts are inundated with increasing numbers of cases due to increased reports of abuse and neglect, increasing drug-related maltreatment, and insufficient court resources;

(2) the amendments made to the Social Security Act by the Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980 make substantial demands on the courts handling abuse and neglect cases, but provide no assistance to the courts to meet those demands;

(3) the Adoption  1 and Child Welfare Act of 1980 requires courts to--

(4) social welfare agencies press the courts to meet such requirements, yet scarce resources often dictate that courts comply pro forma without undertaking the meaningful judicial inquiry contemplated by Congress in the Adoption  1 and Child Welfare Act of 1980;

(5) compliance with the Adoption  1 and Child Welfare Act of 1980 and overall improvements in the judicial response to abuse and neglect cases can best come about through action by top level court administrators and judges with administrative functions who understand the unique aspects of decisions required in child abuse and neglect cases; and

(6) the Adoption  1 and Child Welfare Act of 1980 provides financial incentives to train welfare agency staff to meet the requirements, but provides no resources to train judges.