Why we must end mandatory reporting laws

Recent policy shifts in the US targeting families with transgender and gender-nonconforming children have highlighted how mandatory reporting laws can be weaponized by the state to harm those it deems undesirable. Yet, the harms that result from mandatory reporting laws, particularly to racialized children and families, have been documented for decades. Since their origins, mandatory reporting laws have been deemed an ineffective policy solution for addressing child maltreatment, which, along with the harms they cause, has resulted in calls for their elimination. This article will review the history of mandatory reporting laws in the US and the outcomes that have resulted and offer a new path forward that offers support rather than surveillance and punishment.