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To understand the formation of
Children’s Trust Funds, one needs to start with the beginnings
of child abuse and neglect services. In the 1950's, child abuse
was not separated from other forms of assault, and child neglect
was not represented as a crime. Finally in 1960, juvenile court
statutes began to be changed and both child abuse and neglect
became violations of the law. This set the tone of America’s
response, i.e. after-the-fact reaction in a legalistic and
punitive matter.
The concept of the Children’s Trust
Fund originated with the late Ray E. Helfer, M.D., a nationally
recognized pediatrician in the field of child abuse and
prevention. Dr. Helfer saw that there were
trust funds to care for our nation’s highways – why not have a
trust fund to care for our nation’s children? Dr. Helfer’s
concept has been the catalyst for the nationwide network of
community based
programs that have been initiated by states with children’s
trust and prevention funds.
Kansas was the first state to
establish a special fund dedicated to the prevention of child
abuse and neglect. Today, all fifty states and the District of
Columbia have passed legislation to establish a
trust and prevention fund of their own.
Louisiana was the fifth state to establish a Children’s Trust
Fund. The Louisiana Children’s Trust Fund Act, forming a fund to
be dedicated solely for the prevention of child abuse and
neglect, was
passed into law by the 1983 Legislature. The legislation allows
funds to be generated for the Children’s Trust Fund by
“dedicated funds” in the form of an additional surcharge on
duplicate birth
certificates and by allowing individuals to voluntarily
designate refunds of their state income tax. The
Children’s Trust Fund also receives state general and federal
grant funds.
Nationwide, the different state Children’s Trust and Prevention
Funds receive revenue from a variety of sources. Some states
have placed a special check-off on state income tax returns
allowing taxpayers to designate a portion of their refunds to
the children’s trust fund. Other states benefit from surcharge
fees on marriage licenses, divorce decree filing, or vital
records. Many trust
funds also have an individual line item appropriation in the
state’s general revenue budget. States also receive federal
funding, based on a formula according to the child population in
each state and
the amount of state dollars dedicated for the prevention of
child abuse and neglect to fund local community based programs.
Others generate income through earned income or fundraising
activities.
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