00Enrolled HCR 21                                                                                                         
01 Proclaiming April 2014 as Child Abuse Prevention Month.                                                                 
02                                        _______________                                                                  
03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                             
04      WHEREAS, in fiscal year 2013, the Department of Health and Social Services,                                      
05 Office of Children's Services, received more than 40,000 reports of harm involving tens of                              
06 thousands of children; and                                                                                              
07      WHEREAS, of the 40,000 reports of harm received in 2013, 5,000 were substantiated                              
08 reports of child abuse or neglect equating to an average of 13 children a day who were abused                           
09 or neglected in the state in 2013; and                                                                                  
10      WHEREAS more than 2,000 children in the state reside in foster homes; and                                        
11      WHEREAS child abuse and neglect leave cross-generational damage resulting in                                     
12 approximately 30 percent of abused or neglected children who will grow up to abuse or                                   
13 neglect their children; and                                                                                             
14      WHEREAS 37 percent of all women in prison and 14 percent of all men in prison                                    
15 were abused or neglected as children; and                                                                               
16      WHEREAS the long-term effects of child abuse include improper brain formation, an                                
17 inability to trust, low self-esteem, and an increased vulnerability to post-traumatic stress                            

01 disorder, sexually transmitted diseases, heart disease, cancer, and depression; and                                     
02      WHEREAS every child deserves a loving family, a safe home, and the opportunity to                                
03 grow into an upstanding and responsible member of society; and                                                          
04      WHEREAS we must work together to support the efforts of all those who take                                       
05 children into their homes and hearts because the community as a whole suffers in every case                             
06 of child abuse and neglect;                                                                                             
07      BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature proclaims April 2014 to be                                      
08 Child Abuse Prevention Month in the state; and be it                                                                    
09      FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature supports and encourages                                       
10 the residents of the state to support child abuse prevention and education efforts.