The child welfare system is at a critical stage for accountability. In the past, child welfare reforms typically were motivated by individual tragedies or class action lawsuits. Today, policymakers have much more sophisticated federal and state data available to them to provide leadership and oversight for better child welfare outcomes.
State policymakers can also help develop internal state review processes that involve all the key stakeholders in the child welfare system, including agencies, courts, private providers and the community. It is particularly important for families who are impacted by the child welfare system to be involved in these efforts.
What Can Policymakers Do?
· Require public availability of data. Several states now publish key child welfare outcomes data on their websites, including county-by-county data for county administered states. The data can be used by administrators, policymakers, and the public to measure the state’s progress on key child welfare outcomes. In California, the Child Welfare and System Improvement Accountability Act [i] created a statewide system that mirrors the federal child and family services review process. Counties now receive quarterly data to measure progress toward safety, permanency and well-being.
· Require reporting on implementation of the Program Improvement Plan (PIP). After every Child and Family Service Review, states submit a PIP to the federal government with details of how they will make improvements to address shortcoming found in the review. California and Washington statute requires reporting to the legislature on progress in PIP implementation. Both California[ii] and Wisconsin[iii] appropriated funds for PIP implementation.
· Promote publication of annual data reports and/or evaluation. The Children and Family Research Center in Illinois produces an annual report called Children in or at Risk of Foster Care that examines safety, permanency and well-being outcomes and assesses the outcomes in relation to key policy and practice initiatives in the state. California statute required an evaluation of savings in foster care and child welfare services that can be attributed to dependency court programs.[iv]
· Establish oversight bodies. States can establish meaningful oversight bodies that consistently review key actions by state child welfare systems. Child abuse fatality review boards are critical for oversight in the event of child deaths. In Rhode Island, the Office of Child Advocate is appointed by the governor and provides oversight of actions by the Department of Children, Youth and Families. Massachusetts recently established a similar office through an executive order. Special commissions such as the California Blue Ribbon Commission on Children in Foster Care can bring together a diverse group of people in the state to deal with specific outcomes areas, including timeliness to reunification, adoption and guardianship.
[iii] (2005 Wis. Laws, AB 100, Act 25)