Relating to the definitions of child abuse and neglect.

Contracts

• Employment Agreements: Review "Termination for Cause" clauses. If "Cause" is defined by statutory abuse standards, you can no longer terminate an employee for "abuse" solely based on their refusal to affirm a child's gender identity.
• Vendor MSAs: Update agreements with third-party counselors or therapists. You cannot contractually obligate vendors to report non-affirmation as abuse, as this now violates state law.

Hiring/Training

• Mandatory Reporter Training: You must revise training modules immediately. Staff must be instructed that a parent or guardian’s refusal to use preferred pronouns or affirm sexual orientation is no longer a reportable offense.
• HR Policy: Distinguish between state law and company policy. If your organization requires affirmation as a condition of employment, this must be codified as a violation of "internal code of conduct," not "violation of state abuse statutes."

Reporting & Record-Keeping

• Incident Reporting Logs: Update internal intake forms. If a child reports distress regarding non-affirmation, staff must document the disclosure but explicitly note that the incident was screened out of DFPS reporting pursuant to HB1106.
• Liability Documentation: Maintain records demonstrating that your organization evaluated the complaint and declined to report based on statutory compliance, mitigating risk of litigation from parents claiming harassment.

Fees & Costs

• Budget Impact: Negligible direct costs.
• Administrative Costs: Allocation of legal counsel hours for handbook review and staff retraining time.