An effort to "balance" a system that its supporters say tramples parents' rights, House Bill 202 puts children unnecessarily at increased risk. Citing cases in which he said parents have been "falsely or frivolously" accused, sponsor Rep. Wayne Harper, R-West Jordan, has crafted legislation that goes too far in protecting those parents' rights at the expense of children who need help from the state to escape physical and mental abuse in their homes.

HB202 redefines abuse as causing "physical injury" or "actual harm" and allows wide latitude for discipline that does not cause physical harm, making it difficult for case workers to intervene when a child is being emotionally pummeled. It requires the state to prove that an abuser had "criminal intent" and exempts "accidental" harm.

The legislation also raises the burden of proof needed for a court to terminate a parent's rights from "clear and convincing" to "beyond a reasonable doubt," the high and much more difficult to prove standard used in criminal cases.

Simply stated, this bill puts children at greater risk.

It makes the dangerous assumption that parents in all cases are capable of knowing and doing what is best for their children, even though reports of child abuse and neglect have increased at the alarming rate of 21 percent over the past decade.

Supporters of HB202 have cited cases where children were removed from their homes for such frivolous reasons as poor housekeeping. Such cases seem unlikely, considering the increase in reports of abuse to be investigated; caseloads have grown 47 percent in four years. Still, there is no doubt some parents are wrongly accused.

Any system that is vigilantly protecting children will sometimes make errors in judgment, but HB202 could result in far too many cases when children are left in abusive homes where they are injured by mental abuse or neglect. It could also prevent the state from offering services to help parents, including counseling.

The Utah Division of Child and Family Services has been implementing reforms in the way it handles child welfare cases, especially in the 12 years since the National Center for Youth Law in Oakland, Calif., filed suit on behalf of Utah's children in foster care.

If it becomes law, Harper's bill could set back reforms aimed at protecting children, and Utah could find itself back in court, defending its too-stringent burden of proof and a law that gives parents greater authority but falls short of protecting the rights of children to be raised in a safe and secure environment.