Senators propose support for child abuse hotline

BANGOR, Maine (AP) — A pair of senators wants to provide federal support to a national hotline that handles calls about child abuse.

Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine and Democratic Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona have proposed a bill that would allow the federal Administration for Children and Families to award $2 million annually to a nonprofit group to support the hotline. The senators said the National Child Abuse Hotline is the only major national hotline without dedicated federal funding.

The hotline is operated by Childhelp, a nonprofit group based in Phoenix. The senators said the hotline received more than 100,000 calls in fiscal 2020.

Collins said federal support the hotline would “improve our ability to reach children of all ages, as well as parents or caregivers, during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.”