TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - A child protection bill filed in
response to the death of an 11-year-old girl after chronic abuse
has cleared the Florida House.
      The bill (HB 803) passed unanimously Thursday. It now goes to
the Senate where a similar measure (SB 2044) is awaiting a final
committee hearing.
      The Department of Children and Families proposed the legislation
following the death of Nubia Barahona. Her decomposing body was
found in her father's truck along an interstate in South Florida a
year ago.
      The bills include changes in abuse hotline procedures and
training and higher pay for child abuse investigators.
      There's also a requirement to fingerprint and conduct background
checks on all over-18 members of households where children are
placed and the creation of a central database for child abuse
reports.
     

     
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