Arkansas Child Abuse Hotline Portal for Mandated Reporters

Arkansas mandated reporters file suspected child abuse and neglect reports online through the Arkansas child abuse hotline portal for mandated reporters at mandatedreporter.arkansas.gov. The portal accepts detailed written reports, lets you attach photos and records, and gives you a case number to track the submission. If you are not a mandated reporter, call the Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-482-5964 instead; the portal is built for professionals with reporting duties.¹

Who Is Required to Use the Portal

Arkansas law names dozens of professions as mandated reporters, including teachers, school counselors, principals, daycare workers, doctors, nurses, dentists, mental health professionals, law enforcement officers, judges, prosecutors, foster parents, domestic violence shelter workers, court-appointed special advocates, and clergy.² If you hold one of these roles, you must report whenever you have reasonable suspicion that a child has been maltreated. You do not need proof, and you do not need to investigate.

Clergy carry one narrow exception. A minister, priest, rabbi, or similar religious leader is not required to report information learned through a confidential communication required by their religious discipline, or knowledge received directly from the alleged offender during a statement of admission.² In every other situation, clergy report like anyone else on the list.

How to File a Report Through the Portal

Go to mandatedreporter.arkansas.gov and create an account, or log in if you already have one.³ Having an account lets you track your submissions and add information later if new facts come in.

The portal walks you through a structured form. You will enter the child’s name, age, and address if you know them, and the alleged offender’s identity when you have it. The core of the report is your description of what you observed: injuries, behavioral changes, statements the child made, or conditions in the home. Be specific. “Bruising on both forearms in different stages of healing, child said father grabbed her” gives an investigator far more to work with than “possible abuse.”

You can attach supporting evidence. Photographs, medical records, and written statements from other witnesses upload directly through the form, which is one reason the portal works well for healthcare providers and school staff who already have documentation in hand. Reports that lack enough detail for investigators to assess urgency can be screened out before an investigator ever sees them, so put the concrete facts in.

You do not need to classify the type of maltreatment. Arkansas defines child maltreatment to cover abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, sexual exploitation, and abandonment, and the statute reaches conduct by parents, guardians, foster parents, household members age 18 or older, and anyone entrusted with a child’s care.⁴ Categorizing the conduct is the investigator’s job; describing what you saw is yours.

Review the form for accuracy before you submit. Once you confirm, the report goes to the Division of Children and Family Services (DCFS) inside the Department of Human Services, and you receive a confirmation receipt with a case number for follow-up.

What Happens After You Submit

A DCFS screening team reviews your report to decide whether the allegations meet the legal definition of child maltreatment and fall within DHS jurisdiction. Reports that do not meet the threshold, or that describe situations outside DHS authority, may be screened out.⁵

Reports that pass screening go to a field investigator. Severity drives the clock. Cases involving severe maltreatment, a child’s sudden unexplained death, or certain neglect situations must begin within 24 hours. All other investigations must start within 72 hours.⁶ An investigation counts as started when the investigator interviews or observes the alleged victim outside the presence of the alleged offender.

Investigators have up to 30 days to finish, with the possibility of a 15-day extension approved by a supervisor or assistant director.⁵ During that window caseworkers interview the child, parents, teachers, medical professionals, and other people with relevant knowledge, and they review medical records, school records, and any evidence you attached to the portal.

Each investigation ends with one of three findings:

True: the evidence supports that maltreatment occurred. The offender’s name is placed on the state’s Child Maltreatment Central Registry, and DCFS may provide family services, create a safety plan, or pursue removal of the child from the home.
Unsubstantiated: the investigation did not produce enough evidence to confirm maltreatment. The case closes, but the report may be kept on file if new allegations arise later.
Exempt: the report was screened and determined not to meet the criteria for investigation.

When a child is in immediate danger, law enforcement can intervene alongside DCFS to remove the child before the investigation concludes. You can check your report’s status through the portal, though confidentiality rules prevent DCFS from sharing specific investigative details with you.

Your Identity Is Kept Confidential

Arkansas law shields the reporter’s identity. All records created or collected during a child maltreatment investigation, including the report itself, are exempt from disclosure under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act.⁷ Employers, neighbors, the media, and the general public cannot pull these records through a public records request.

When DHS shares records with law enforcement or prosecutors, those materials stay confidential and must be sealed. They cannot be re-disclosed without a protective order, though the Arkansas Rules of Criminal Procedure on discovery still apply.⁷ Standard communications track your report by case number rather than by your name. If you are later called to testify, courts can seal records or restrict public access to protect your identity.

These state protections match federal requirements under the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, which conditions federal funding on states keeping child abuse records confidential.⁸ The main federal exception is that states must allow public disclosure of findings when a child dies or nearly dies from maltreatment.

Immunity and Workplace Protections for Filing

Anyone who reports suspected child maltreatment in good faith is immune from civil lawsuits and from criminal prosecution in Arkansas.⁹ That covers mandated reporters and voluntary reporters. Even if the investigation finds no maltreatment, you cannot be sued for filing as long as you acted in good faith, meaning you genuinely believed the child was being harmed based on what you observed.

The immunity reaches related good-faith actions too. Taking photographs of injuries, requesting radiological tests, and holding a child for up to 72 hours in an emergency are all protected under the same statute.⁹

Workplace retaliation is separately prohibited. An employer or supervisor who fires, disciplines, or retaliates against a mandated reporter for filing commits the offense of unlawful restriction of child abuse reporting, a Class A misdemeanor. The same penalty applies to an employer who requires a mandated reporter to get permission before contacting the hotline or who prohibits the reporter from filing at all. Your employer can require you to tell a supervisor that you filed a report after the fact, but cannot make prior approval a condition of reporting.

Penalties for Not Reporting, and for Knowingly False Reports

A mandated reporter who fails to notify the hotline of suspected child maltreatment commits a Class A misdemeanor, carrying up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $2,500.²¹⁰ Criminal charges are not the only exposure. Licensed professionals such as teachers, nurses, and social workers can also face disciplinary action from their licensing boards, ranging from reprimand and probation to suspension or revocation of a professional license. Losing a license is often the more immediate career threat and the consequence most professionals do not see coming.

Filing a report you know to be false is also a crime. A first offense is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $2,500.¹¹¹⁰ A second or subsequent offense is a Class D felony, carrying up to six years in prison. The statute requires that the reporter act purposely. An honest report that turns out to be wrong is a good-faith report protected by immunity, not a false report. The dividing line is intent: whether you believed the child was being harmed, or fabricated the allegation to hurt someone in a custody dispute or personal conflict. Someone who files a fabricated report can also face a civil defamation suit from the falsely accused party.

1
Arkansas Department of Human Services. Hotlines
2
Justia. Arkansas Code 12-18-402 – Mandated Reporters
3
Arkansas Mandated Reporter Portal. Arkansas Mandated Reporter Portal
4
Justia. Arkansas Code 12-18-103 – Definitions
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Arkansas Department of Human Services. DCFS Investigations Process
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Arkansas Department of Human Services. Final Filing Updates to Child Maltreatment Investigation Policies and Procedures
7
Justia. Arkansas Code 12-18-104
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 5106a – Grants to States for Child Abuse or Neglect Prevention and Treatment Programs
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Justia. Arkansas Code 12-18-107 – Liability
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Justia. Arkansas Code 5-4-401 – Sentence
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Justia. Arkansas Code 12-18-203 – Making a False Report Under This Chapter