Bill Text: NJ A5086 | 2018-2019 | Regular Session | Introduced


Bill Title: "New Jersey Predatory Alienation Prevention and Consensual Response Act."

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-02-25 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Health and Senior Services Committee [A5086 Detail]

Download: New_Jersey-2018-A5086-Introduced.html

ASSEMBLY, No. 5086

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

218th LEGISLATURE

 

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 25, 2019

 


 

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman  CAROL A. MURPHY

District 7 (Burlington)

 

 

 

 

SYNOPSIS

     "New Jersey Predatory Alienation Prevention and Consensual Response Act."

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     As introduced.

  


An Act concerning predatory alienation and supplementing Title 30 of the Revised Statutes.

 

     Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

 

     1.    This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the "New Jersey Predatory Alienation Prevention and Consensual Response Act."

 

     2.    The Legislature finds and declares the following:

     a.     Predatory alienation occurs whenever a person or group uses predatory behaviors, such as entrapment, coercion, and undue influence, to establish a relationship with a victim and isolate the victim from existing relationships and support systems, including family and friends, with the goal of gaining and retaining sweeping control over the victim's actions and decisions. 

     b.    Predatory alienation tactics and other forms of undue influence are commonly used by cults, religious sects, gangs, extremist groups, human traffickers, sexual predators, domestic abusers, and other similar persons and groups, as a means to recruit members, carry out crimes, spread their belief systems, advocate their political agendas, or simply impose their will on, and exert power, control, and supremacy over, victims. 

     c.     There is currently a lack of adequate legal or other protection for individuals in the State who are victims of predatory alienation or other undue influence.

     d.    The protection of individuals from predatory alienation and undue influence requires a delicate balancing of interests, particularly in the case of vulnerable or victimized adults.  Specifically, while the State and the family members or friends of an individual may have an interest in protecting the individual from the physical and mental abuse, domestic violence, manipulation, and control that is associated with predatory alienation and other undue influence, this paternal interest must be balanced against the individual's interest in maintaining personal autonomy and the ability to make independent life decisions.

     e.     Compulsive third party influence and control are difficult things to measure, and there is often a lack of physical evidence to establish that an individual has fallen victim to coercive or compulsive tactics, even in cases where other forms of abuse have contributed to, or have facilitated, the victimization. 

     f.     The American Civil Liberties Union has concluded that, unless physical coercion or threats are used, there is no legal justification for those who have reached the age of maturity to be subjected to mental incompetency hearings, conservatorships, or temporary guardianships on the basis that they have become unwitting victims of predatory alienation or other undue influence. 

     g.    By establishing a system that counters the effectiveness of predatory alienation and other types of undue influence through the use of front-line prevention and consensual response efforts, such as extensive public education, proactive screening practices, the provision of therapeutic consultation to the families and friends of victims, and the provision of consensual counseling and treatment to the victims themselves, the State can properly balance the interests at stake in this area, thereby ensuring that its citizens will be better protected from predatory alienation and undue influence while continuing to exercise personal autonomy in their own lives. 

 

     3.    As used in this act:

     "Authorized family member" means a parent or guardian, in the case of a minor under the age of 18; or, in the case of an adult 18 years of age or older, any member of the individual's family who is authorized by the individual to receive predatory alienation screening information about the individual, pursuant to section 6 of this act. 

     "Certified instructor" means a person who is certified by the department to perform on-site, in-person training on predatory alienation, undue influence, and healthy relationship building, as provided by subsection d. of section 4 of this act.

     "Certified screener" or "screener" means an employee of a facility identified in subsection a. of section 6 of this act who is certified by the department to provide in-house predatory alienation screening assessments to the facility's clients, patients, or residents. 

     "Concerned third party" means an individual who is concerned that one of the individual's family members or friends is personally susceptible to, or is being victimized by, predatory alienation or other undue influence.

     "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Human Services.

     "Department" means the Department of Human Services.

     "De-identified information" means information that does not identify, and that cannot be reasonably used to identify, an individual. 

     "Personally susceptible" means that an individual, who may or may not be a member of a vulnerable population, is personally inclined, predisposed, or likely to be victimized by predatory alienation or other undue influence, as a result of the individual's current life circumstances, mindset, world view, or physical or mental status.

     "Predatory alienation" means the exertion of extreme undue influence on, or the coercive persuasion or psychologically damaging manipulation of, an individual, which leads to a deceptive or exploitative relationship between the individual and the person or group exerting the influence, and which causes the individual to experience physical or emotional harm, the loss of financial assets, the disruption of a parent-child relationship, or isolation from family and friends.

     "Predatory alienation counseling referral system" means the counseling referral system established pursuant to section 5 of this act.

     "Undue influence" means persuasion that overpowers a person's will, or that otherwise exerts control over a person, so as to prevent the person from acting intelligently, voluntarily, and with understanding, and which effectively destroys the person's willpower and constrains the person to act in a manner that they would not have done in the absence of such persuasion. 

     "Vulnerable population" means children, young adults, senior citizens, veterans, individuals with developmental disabilities, and incarcerated individuals, as well as any other population group, as determined by the department, whose members are inherently vulnerable to predatory alienation or other undue influence, due to age, physical or mental incapacity or fragility, or other distinguishing characteristics that are held in common by all, or the majority of, the group's members. 

 

     4.    a. The commissioner, in consultation with the Commissioners of Health, Education, and Children and Families, shall develop and operate an ongoing public awareness campaign, as provided in this section, to educate the public about predatory alienation, undue influence, and healthy relationships. 

     b.    In conducting the public awareness campaign, the department shall develop and distribute appropriate informational materials and make use of all appropriate media, including newspapers and other written media, television, the Internet, and social media.  Separate, targeted information shall be prepared for, and made available to, each of the following groups: 

     (1)   vulnerable populations;

     (2)   concerned third parties;

     (3)   professional actors, including, but not limited to, emergency medical responders, law enforcement officers, health care practitioners, and mental health care practitioners, who respond to instances of predatory alienation or other undue influence, or who attempt to alleviate the results thereof; and

     (4)   members of the general public. 

     c.     Information disseminated under the public awareness campaign shall address the following topics, tailored, as appropriate, to each of the population groups identified in subsection b. of this section:

     (1)   the elements of a healthy relationship, the behaviors that facilitate the establishment and maintenance of healthy relationships, and the difference between healthy relationships and unhealthy relationships that are exploitative, manipulative, or coercive in nature;

     (2)   the factors that may increase an individual's personal susceptibility to, or risk of victimization from, predatory alienation and other undue influence;

     (3)   the signs of victimization stemming from predatory alienation and other undue influence, and the short-term and long-term psychological, physical, and economic effects that can result from such victimization;

     (4)   the importance of using a trauma-informed approach when engaging with victims of predatory alienation or other undue influence, and the importance of avoiding re-traumatization when providing assistance to such victims;

     (5)   the nature and type of tactics that are used by perpetrators of predatory alienation and other undue influence, including, but not limited to, grooming, isolation, desensitization, and enforced compliance tactics, and how to recognize, protect against, and respond to controlling, exploitative, manipulative, or coercive behavior, both in cases where the individual is the object of such behavior, and in cases where the individual is a concerned third party, a member of the general public, or a professional observing such behavior; and

     (6)   information on programs, services, and resources, including, but not limited to, the predatory alienation counseling referral system established pursuant to section 5 of this act, which are available to assist victims of predatory alienation or other undue influence and their families.

     d.    (1)  The public awareness campaign shall also include an ongoing on-site training component, pursuant to which individuals throughout the State will be provided with in-person training from certified instructors on predatory alienation, undue influence, and the establishment and maintenance of healthy relationships.  Predatory alienation training sessions shall be provided, under this subsection, on a regular basis, to individuals in schools and child care facilities; on college campuses; in community centers; in correctional institutions; in veterans' affairs offices and associations; in retirement homes, senior centers, nursing homes, and other long-term care facilities; in churches, synagogues, mosques, and other religious institutions; in group homes, community care residences, and day programs serving individuals with developmental disabilities; and in other appropriate facilities serving vulnerable populations. 

     (2)   The department, in consultation with the Departments of Education, Health, and Children and Families, shall develop a standardized training curriculum, incorporating the topics identified in subsection c. of this section, for use by certified instructors who engage in on-site training pursuant to this section.  The curriculum shall be targeted to vulnerable populations, and, to the extent practicable, shall be tailored to the particular type of vulnerable population being served by each facility. 

     (3)   No person shall be authorized to provide on-site training, pursuant to this subsection, unless the person has been certified by the department as being qualified to provide such training. 

     e.     The commissioner shall ensure that the informational materials prepared pursuant to this section are distributed, or are otherwise made available, to each facility that provides predatory alienation screening assessments under section 6 of this act, for dissemination thereby to the facility's clients, patients, or residents who are found to be personally susceptible to, or victimized by, predatory alienation or other undue influence.

     f.     The commissioner shall coordinate the efforts and activities of the public awareness campaign with any related activities or public awareness initiatives on predatory alienation, undue influence, or healthy relationship building that are being undertaken by other State agencies or local government units.

 

     5.    a.  The department, in consultation with the Department of Health, shall establish and operate a predatory alienation counseling referral system, as provided in this section.

     b.    The predatory alienation counseling referral system shall be designed to:

     (1)   assist concerned third parties by connecting them to legal experts, health care practitioners, mental health care practitioners, and support groups that specialize in domestic violence, physical and sexual abuse, mental manipulation and duress, and other relevant subject areas, and that can provide consensual, culturally sensitive advice and counseling that is designed to both assess the situation of concern, and identify the avenues that can be pursued by the concerned third party to prevent further harm to, or further alienation or undue influence of, the victim; and

     (2)   assist individuals who have been victimized by predatory alienation or undue influence, or who are attempting to leave a situation involving predatory alienation or undue influence, by connecting such individuals to legal experts, health care practitioners, mental health care practitioners, and support groups that specialize in domestic violence, physical and sexual abuse, mental manipulation and duress, trauma recovery, and other relevant subject areas, and that can provide the individual with consensual, culturally sensitive advice, counseling, and health care to address the individual's past trauma stemming from the predatory alienation or undue influence, as well as any ongoing issues related to that trauma; and by connecting such individuals to shelters, financial aid resources, and other resources and services that are available for trauma survivors. 

     c.     Individuals in the State shall be authorized to request a predatory alienation counseling referral through any available means, including by phone, in person, or over the Internet.  The Departments of Human Services, Health, Education, Children and Families, Law and Public Safety, Corrections, and Military and Veterans Affairs shall each post on their respective department websites, a description of the predatory alienation counseling referral system, the phone number and physical address where referral requests can be made, and a link to a referral request form that can be submitted online.  Appropriate referrals shall be made as soon as practicable, but not more than 48 hours, after a referral request is submitted pursuant to this subsection. 

     d.    A legal expert, health care practitioner, mental health care practitioner, or support group to whom an individual is referred for services, pursuant to this section, shall provide the referred client with timely, consensual, and culturally sensitive counseling and advice, health care where appropriate, and referrals to other ancillary services, as may be necessary to achieve the goals specified in paragraph (1) or (2) of subsection b. of this section, as appropriate. 

 

     6.    a. The commissioner, in consultation with the Commissioners of Health and Children and Families, shall: 

     (1)   develop a comprehensive screening and assessment tool to facilitate the identification of, and the provision of consensual assistance to, individuals in the State who are personally susceptible to, or are being victimized by, predatory alienation or other undue influence; and

     (2)   establish standards for the use of the screening and assessment tool by certified screeners in hospital emergency rooms and private medical offices; retirement homes and senior centers; nursing homes and other long-term care facilities; group homes, community care residences, and day programs serving individuals with developmental disabilities; churches, synagogues, mosques, and other religious institutions; educational institutions and child care facilities; law enforcement agencies; veterans' affairs agencies and associations; correctional institutions; and other appropriate facilities serving vulnerable populations. 

     b.    The standards developed pursuant subsection a. of this section shall require each relevant facility to develop written policies concerning the provision of in-house predatory alienation screening assessments to the facility's clients, patients, or residents.  Such standards shall include, but not be limited to, policies concerning the referral of victimized individuals to relevant services, and, where appropriate, policies concerning the in-house provision of consensual counseling or treatment to such individuals. 

     c.     (1)  If the predatory alienation screening and assessment tool indicates that an individual is personally susceptible to predatory alienation or other undue influence, the screener shall:  (a) notify the individual and the individual's authorized family members of this determination and the factors that support the determination; (b) provide the individual and the individual's authorized family members with appropriate informational materials on predatory alienation, undue influence, and healthy relationship building, which have been developed by the department pursuant to section 4 of this act; and (c) refer the individual to an in-person training session on predatory alienation and healthy relationship building, which is offered, pursuant to section 4 of this act, either at the facility where the screening was performed, or at another facility that is located within the individual's county of residence.

     (2)   If the predatory alienation screening and assessment tool indicates that an individual is the victim of predatory alienation or other undue influence, the screener shall:  (a) notify the individual and the individual's authorized family members of this determination and the factors that support the determination; (b) provide the individual and the individual's authorized family members with appropriate informational materials on undue influence, predatory alienation, and healthy relationship building, which have been developed by the department pursuant to section 4 of this act; (c) refer the individual and the individual's authorized family members to the State's predatory alienation counseling referral system, and, to the extent practicable, offer to provide the individual and the individual's authorized family members with direct access to the counseling referral system while they are still present at the facility; and (d) as appropriate, and based on the capabilities of professionals employed at the facility, offer to immediately provide the individual with consensual counseling or treatment at the facility, in order to begin addressing the trauma suffered thereby. 

     d.    No person shall be authorized to perform a predatory alienation screening assessment with the tool established pursuant to this section, unless the person has been certified by the department as being qualified to perform such screening. 

     e.     A facility that provides predatory alienation screening assessments, pursuant to this section, shall maintain a confidential record of each screening assessment performed at the facility.  Each record shall identify: 

     (1)   the name, age, sex, race, education level, and address of the screened individual, and, as appropriate, the vulnerable population of which the individual is a member;

     (2)   the results of the screening assessment and the factors that supported the screener's conclusions;

     (3)   the actions that were taken or recommended by the screener and by other professionals at the facility in response to the screening results, both with respect to the individual and with respect to the individual's authorized family members; and

     (4)   any other information required by the department. 

     f.     On an annual basis, each covered facility shall prepare and submit to the department, in writing, a predatory alienation screening report that provides the following aggregate and de-identified information:

     (1)   the total number and percentage of the facility's clients, patients, or residents who were screened at the facility during the preceding annual reporting period;

     (2)   the total number and percentage of screened individuals who were found to be personally susceptible to predatory alienation or other undue influence;

     (3)   the total number and percentage of screened individuals who were found to be victims of predatory alienation or other undue influence;

     (4)   where applicable, the total number and percentage of screened individuals who, after being identified as victims of predatory alienation or undue influence, agreed to receive consensual counseling or treatment at the facility where screening was performed; and the number and percentage of such individuals who refused an offer for such on-site counseling or treatment;

     (5)   the total number and percentage of cases in which screening results were disclosed to an authorized family member;

     (6)   statistical demographic information summarizing the demographic characteristics of screened individuals who have been determined to be personally susceptible to predatory alienation or other undue influence, and the demographic characteristics of screened individuals who have been determined to be victims of predatory alienation or undue influence; and

     (7)   any other information required by the department. 

 

     7.    a.  The department shall annually prepare and submit a written report on predatory alienation to the Governor and, pursuant to P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), to the Legislature.  The report shall also be posted on the department's Internet website. 

     b.    The department's annual report shall include the following information:

     (1)   a de-identified, aggregate summary of the annual screening data reported by facilities, pursuant to subsection f. of section 6 of this act, including an indication as to:  (a) the total number of individuals, on a Statewide and county-by-county basis, who were screened during the year; (b) the total number and percentage of screened individuals, on a Statewide and county-by-county basis, who were found to be personally susceptible to predatory alienation or other undue influence; (c) the total number and percentage of screened individuals, on a Statewide and county-by-county basis, who were found to be victims of predatory alienation or other undue influence; (d) the total number and percentage of screened individuals, on a Statewide and county-by-county basis, who received an offer for immediate, consensual on-site counseling or treatment, and the number and percentage of those individuals who accepted the offer, and who refused the offer; and (e) the demographic characteristics, on a Statewide and county-by-county basis, of screened individuals who were determined to be personally susceptible to predatory alienation or undue influence, and of screened individuals who were determined to be victims of predatory alienation or undue influence;

     (2)   an indication as to the number and location of in-person training sessions that were offered, pursuant to subsection d. of section 4 of this act, in each county during the reporting period, and the total number of distinct individuals who participated in those in-person training sessions;

     (3)   an indication as to the total number of referral requests that were submitted through the State's predatory alienation counseling referral system during the year, including the number and percentage of those requests that were submitted by concerned third parties, and the number and percentage of those requests that were submitted by individuals who have been victimized by predatory alienation or undue influence; and an indication as to the average and mean amount of time that elapsed between the submission of a referral request, and the issuance of associated referrals;

     (4)   a representative sampling of the public information materials that were prepared for, and made available to, each distinct population group identified in subsection b. of section 4 of this act during the reporting period;

     (5)   information showing, for each type of vulnerable population, the frequency of victimization occurring among members of that population;

     (6)   an analysis of trends evident from the data, including a description of any significant changes in the data that have occurred over time; and

     (7)   an evaluation of the overall reach and effectiveness of the State's predatory alienation prevention and consensual response system, and recommendations for legislative, executive, or other action that may be necessary to improve the system.

 

     8.    a.  The Commissioner of Human Services, in consultation with the Commissioners of Health, Education, Children and Families, Law and Public Safety, Corrections, and Military and Veterans Affairs, as appropriate, shall adopt rules and regulations, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this act. 

     b.    The Commissioners of Health, Education, Children and Families, Law and Public Safety, Corrections, and Military and Veterans Affairs may also adopt rules and regulations, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this act; however, any such rules and regulations shall be developed in consultation with the Commissioner of Human Services, shall be fully consistent with the rules and regulations adopted by the Commissioner of Human Services pursuant to subsection a. of this section, and shall be applicable only to the facilities or vulnerable populations under each agency's respective jurisdiction.

 

     9.    This act shall take effect on the first day of the sixth month next following the date of enactment, except that the Commissioners of Human Services, Health, Education, Children and Families, Law and Public Safety, Corrections, and Military and Veterans Affairs, in consultation with each other, may take anticipatory administrative action in advance of the effective date, as may be necessary to implement this act.

 

 

STATEMENT

 

     This bill would establish a predatory alienation prevention and consensual response system in the State. 

     Predatory alienation occurs whenever a person or group uses predatory behaviors, such as entrapment, coercion, and undue influence (persuasion that overpowers a person's will), to establish a relationship with a victim and isolate the victim from existing relationships and support systems, with the goal of gaining and retaining sweeping control over the victim's actions and decisions.  Predatory alienation tactics and other forms of undue influence are commonly used by cults, religious sects, gangs, extremist groups, human traffickers, sexual predators, domestic abusers, and other similar persons and groups, as a means to recruit members, carry out crimes, spread their belief systems, advocate their political agendas, or simply impose their will on, and exert power, control, and supremacy over, victims. 

     Nevertheless, because compulsive third-party influence and control are difficult things to measure, it is often hard to prove that an individual is being victimized by coercive or compulsive third-party tactics, and is not making their own independent life decisions, in that regard.  By establishing a system that focuses on front-line prevention efforts, and that provides for consensual (as opposed to mandatory and involuntary) counseling and treatment in response to victimization, the State can better protect individuals from predatory alienation and undue influence without questioning the legitimacy of their personal decisions, or otherwise infringing upon their personal liberty or autonomy.  

     Specifically, under the bill, the Commissioner of Human Services would work to lessen the effectiveness of predatory alienation tactics and other methods of undue influence through the use of extensive public education, proactive screening, and the facilitation of consensual counseling and treatment for victims and concerned third parties (i.e., the family members or friends of people who are susceptible to, or victims of, predatory alienation or undue influence). 

     The bill requires the commissioner's public awareness campaign to include two components:  1) the dissemination of targeted information to vulnerable populations, concerned third parties, professional actors, and the general public; and 2) the provision of in-person training on predatory alienation, undue influence, and healthy relationship building at facilities that serve vulnerable populations.  The bill defines "vulnerable population" to include children, young adults, senior citizens, veterans, individuals with developmental disabilities, and incarcerated individuals, as well as any other population group whose members are deemed by the Department of Human Services (DHS) to be inherently vulnerable to predatory alienation or other undue influence, due to age, physical or mental incapacity or fragility, or other distinguishing characteristics that are held in common by all, or the majority of, the group's members. 

     The bill also requires the DHS to operate a predatory alienation counseling referral system, which would be accessible by phone, in person, or over the Internet.  The counseling referral system would be designed to:  1) assist concerned third parties by connecting them to legal experts, health care and mental health care practitioners, and support groups who would be able to assess the situation of concern and identify avenues that can be pursued by the concerned third party to prevent further harm to, or further alienation or undue influence of, the victim; and 2) assist victims of predatory alienation or other undue influence both by connecting them to legal experts, health care and mental health care practitioners, and support groups that can provide consensual, culturally sensitive counseling and health care to address the victim's trauma, and by connecting them to shelters, financial aid resources, and other resources and services that are available for trauma survivors. 

     Finally, the commissioner would be required to develop a comprehensive screening and assessment tool to facilitate the identification of, and the provision of consensual assistance to, individuals who are personally susceptible to, or are being victimized by, predatory alienation or undue influence.  The screening and assessment tool would be used to evaluate individual clients, patients, or residents, as appropriate, at hospital emergency rooms and private medical offices; retirement homes and senior centers; nursing homes and other long-term care facilities; group homes, community care residences, and day programs serving individuals with developmental disabilities; churches, synagogues, mosques, and other religious institutions; educational institutions and child care facilities; law enforcement agencies; veterans' affairs agencies and associations; correctional institutions; and other appropriate facilities serving vulnerable populations. 

     If the predatory alienation screening and assessment tool indicates that an individual is personally susceptible to predatory alienation or other undue influence, the DHS-certified screener would be required, under the bill, to:  1) notify the individual and the individual's authorized family members of this determination and the factors that support the determination; 2) provide the individual and the individual's authorized family members with appropriate informational materials on predatory alienation, undue influence, and healthy relationship building, which have been developed by the department pursuant to the bill; and 3) refer the individual to an in-person training session on predatory alienation and healthy relationship building, which is offered either at the facility where the screening was performed, or at another facility that is located within the individual's county of residence.

     If the predatory alienation screening and assessment tool indicates that an individual is the victim of predatory alienation or other undue influence, the screener would be required to:  1) notify the individual and the individual's authorized family members of this determination and the factors that support the determination; 2) provide the individual and the individual's authorized family members with appropriate informational materials on undue influence, predatory alienation, and healthy relationship building, which have been developed by the department; 3) refer the individual and the individual's authorized family members to the State's predatory alienation counseling referral system, and, to the extent practicable, offer to provide the individual and the individual's authorized family members with direct access to the counseling referral system while they are still present at the facility; and 4) as appropriate, and based on the capabilities of professionals employed at the facility, offer to immediately provide the individual with consensual counseling or treatment at the facility, in order to begin addressing the trauma suffered thereby. 

     Each facility performing screening assessments under the bill would be required to annually submit a screening report to the DHS, which includes aggregate and de-identified information about the results of screening assessments performed at the facility. 

     The DHS would similarly be required to annually submit a written report on predatory alienation to the Governor and Legislature.  This report would include:  1) a de-identified aggregate summary of the annual screening data reported by facilities; 2) an indication of the number and location of in-person training sessions that were offered in each county during the reporting period, and the total number of distinct individuals who participated in those training sessions; and 3) an indication of the number and type of referral requests that were submitted through the predatory alienation counseling referral system, and the average and mean amount of time that elapsed between the submission of a request and the issuance of associated referrals. The report would also include a representative sample of informational materials prepared by the department; information showing the frequency of victimization occurring among members of various vulnerable populations; an analysis of trends in the data; an evaluation of the reach and effectiveness of the predatory alienation prevention and consensual response system; and recommendations for executive, legislative, or other action necessary to improve the system. 

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