By Jeff Wentworth
Guest Commentary

Horrific stories of child abuse all too often lead the evening news. 

Child abuse is a devastating problem that leaves a traumatic legacy, which is often passed from generation to generation.

The problem of child abuse is so prevalent in this country, more than three million reports each year, that, in 1985, President Ronald Reagan declared April Child Abuse Prevention Month.   Since then, organizations dedicated to protecting children use the month of April to raise awareness about child abuse and ways to recognize and prevent it.

In many instances, teachers are the first people outside of family members  to encounter children who are victims of abuse.  Although teachers are doing an excellent job in recognizing and reporting child abuse, they can always use more help.  To that end, in 2007, the Texas Legislature passed Senate Bill 1456.

This bill requires the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to create a Web site that will provide information regarding the prevention of child abuse.  Senate Bill 1456 also requires TEA to develop a training program related to the prevention of child abuse that a school district may use for staff development.

Child Protective Services (CPS) is the state’s first line of defense against child abuse.  Often underfunded and understaffed, CPS received a 21 percent increase, or $38 million, in the 2008-2009 appropriations bill bringing the total appropriation to $2.16 billion.

We also appropriated a $3.18 million increase for prevention and early intervention programs, such as services for at-risk youth, child abuse prevention grants and community youth development.  The total appropriation for both  prevention and early intervention programs is $128.4 million.

While most abused children are victimized by someone they know, the Internet is being used by predators to search for their victims.  Senate Bill 136 directs the Texas School Safety Center to develop Internet safety curriculum in cooperation with the Office of the Attorney General.  The curriculum will be available to school districts.

According to information provided by the Center for Missing and Exploited Children, more than 2,600 incidents have been reported that involved the enticement of children by predators using the Internet.

Many children are placed in foster care when they are removed from homes where they are being abused.  Recent deaths of children in the state’s foster care system revealed problems within the system that were not solved by the legislation we passed in 2005.  As a result, we passed Senate Bill 758 to strengthen the oversight of the foster care system.

Although we passed bills and established programs to help protect children from child abuse, individual Texans must step forward and report any incidents of real or suspected child abuse by calling toll free: (800) 252-5400 or by accessing www.txabusehotline.org.

Reporting suspected child abuse is not just the law, it is the right thing to do.  It makes it possible for a family to get help, and it could save a child’s life.

Texas State Sen. Jeff Wentworth (R-San Antonio) represents District 25, which includes part of Bexar County. He can be reached via e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it