68-West–Statehouse | 300 SW 10th Ave. | Topeka, Kansas 66612-1504 (785) 296-3181 [email protected] kslegislature.org/klrd August 25, 2020

To: Special Committee on Foster Care Oversight

From: Norma Volkmer, Fiscal Analyst

Re: Child Welfare System Task Force

2018 AND 2020 INTERIM COMMITTEES ON FOSTER CARE

This memorandum will provide a brief overview of the 2020 Special Committee on Foster Care Oversight (Committee) and the Child Welfare System Task Force (Task Force), including a description of the mandates and membership of each and a summary of the Task Force’s top priority recommendations and relevant action taken.

Mandate and Membership

The Committee and the Task Force have different mandates and membership in part because of the difference in creation. The Committee was established by the Legislative Coordinating Council (LCC) under KSA 46-1205, which grants the LCC the power to appoint or authorize a special committee. The Committee’s mandate, per the LCC, is to receive input from families, social workers, and other stakeholders on progress and shortfalls in the State’s child welfare system, including:

● Quality of care for children in foster care;

● Access to health and mental health services;

● Trends in factors contributing to youth in foster care;

● Program outcomes from the Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA); and

● Barriers to sharing information across stakeholders.1

The Committee is also directed to make recommendations to the Legislature for additional improvements and oversight needed to improve the State’s child welfare system.

1 See 2020 Special Committee on Foster Care Oversight, Kansas Legislative Research Department, http://www.kslegresearch.org/KLRD-web/Committees/Committees-Spc-Foster-Care-Oversight.html. The Task Force was created by House Sub. for SB 126 (2017), which directed the Secretary for Children and Families (Secretary) to establish the Task Force and working groups to study the child welfare system, including the general administration, protective services, family preservation, reintegration, foster care, and permanency placement. Specific topics for study included:

● The Department for Children and Families’ (DCF) level of oversight and supervision over each entity contracted to provide reintegration, foster care, and adoption services;

● Duties, responsibilities, and contributions of the entities providing child welfare services in Kansas, including state agencies, nongovernmental entities, and service providers;

● Level of access to child welfare services, including health and mental health services and community-based services in Kansas;

● The increasing number of children in the child welfare system and contributing factors;

● Case manager licensing standards for working in the child welfare system; and

● Any other topic the Task Force or a working group deemed necessary or appropriate.2

There are some overlaps in the mandates, notably mental health access and contributing factors to the number of children in foster care. Similarly, there is some overlap in membership, with both the Committee and the Task Force including legislative members. The Committee has 13 voting members—5 Senators and 8 Representatives. The Task Force had 20 voting and non-voting members, but only 6 legislative members—3 Senators and 3 Representatives. The marked difference is the Committee consists of only legislators, while non-legislators formed the majority of the Task Force.3

Per House Sub. for SB 126, the Task Force was required to include lawyers, law enforcement officers, social workers, and a representative of the Child Death Review Board, as well as representatives of DCF and foster care contractors as non-voting members. The Task Force also had three working groups, which included non-Task Force members.

Recommendations

House Sub. for SB 126 required the Task Force to submit a preliminary report to the 2018 Legislature and a final report to the 2019 Legislature. In the final report, the Task Force provided 23 recommendations, broken down into 3 priority levels. This memorandum will review only the five considered highest priority—the “Tier One Recommendations.”

2 See 2018 Child Welfare System Task Force, Kansas Legislative Research Department, http://www.kslegresearch.org/KLRD-web/Committees/2018Committees/Committees- ChildWelfareSysTF.html. 3 See Appendix A for a full list of the Committee and Task Force members.

Kansas Legislative Research Department 2 Special Committee on Foster Care Oversight – Volkmer – Child Welfare System Task Force – August 25, 2020 The recommendations are as follows:

● Workforce: The State of Kansas should invest in the child welfare system workforce by increasing funding for recruitment, retention, and support to effectively attract and retain high-quality staff;

● Data Infrastructure: The State of Kansas should create a single, cross-system, web-based, integrated case management and data reporting system that can be used by DCF and all relevant agencies and stakeholders to efficiently and effectively share information (e.g., education, dental, medical, behavioral);

● Families First Act: The State of Kansas should fund and institute the [FFPSA] in Kansas and follow the federal guidelines;

● Access to Care: The State of Kansas should require access to high-quality and consistent medical and behavioral health care for Medicaid-eligible high-risk youth through the Medicaid state plan or other appropriate sources of funding; and

● Code for Care of Children: The Judicial Council should review the Code for Care of Children (CINC Code), especially with regard to: a) the way DCF’s definition of “non-abuse neglect” relates to cases under the CINC Code, and b) modifications to meet the child’s ongoing best interests for permanency.

The Legislature and DCF have taken actions addressing the above recommendations. Enacted 2019 HB 2103 amended the CINC Code and created statutory provisions to implement the requirements of the FFPSA. These changes included notice and hearing requirements for placements in Qualified Residential Treatment Programs.

In addition to HB 2103, the 2019 Legislature appropriated funding in fiscal year (FY) 2019 and for FY 2020 for additional child welfare staff, FFPSA staff and grants, and database modernization. House Sub. for SB 25 (the 2019 appropriations bill) added a total of 42.0 full- time equivalent (FTE) additional child welfare services staff for DCF, including $415,526, with $401,148 from the State General Fund (SGF), for 26.0 FTE positions in FY 2019 and $2.7 million, with $2.6 million from the SGF, for 16.0 FTE positions for FY 2020. The Legislature appropriated $537,518, including $452,516 from the SGF, in FY 2019 and $13.5 million, including $6.9 million from the SGF, for FY 2020 for FFPSA staff and grants. Lastly, the Legislature appropriated $1.5 million for FY 2020 to plan for the modernization of the Comprehensive Child Welfare Information System (CCWIS).

The 2020 Legislature also appropriated funding for the creation of a new CCWIS and additional FFPSA staff and grants. SB 66 (the 2020 appropriations bill) added $4.0 million, including $2.0 million from the SGF, for the development of a new CCWIS and $7.5 million, including $3.8 million from the SGF, for FFPSA grants and 8.0 FTE case management staff. As part of the Governor’s Allotment Plan released on June 25, 2020, the Governor allotted the $3.8 million from the SGF for FFPSA items. Without state funds, the federal funds will not be drawn down. However, DCF received an additional $4.8 million, all federal funds, as part of the Family First Transition Act, which does not require matching state funds.

Kansas Legislative Research Department 3 Special Committee on Foster Care Oversight – Volkmer – Child Welfare System Task Force – August 25, 2020 Appendix A

2020 Special Committee on Child Welfare System Task Force Child Welfare System Task Force Foster Care Oversight Working Groups Representatives: Non-voting: General Administration of Child Welfare • • Gina Meier-Hummel, Secretary for and Foster Care (Chairperson); Children and Families; Task Force: • • • ; Patricia Long, Prevention and Sandra Lessor (Chairperson); • • ; Protection Services, DCF; Senator Kelly (Vice-chairperson); • • • Nick Hoheisel; Rachel Marsh, Saint Francis Hon. Daniel Cahill; • • ; Community Services; and Dr. Katherine Melhorn; and • • • ; Lindsey Stephenson, KVC Mary Tye. • ; and Kansas. Non-Task Force: • Senators: • Dona Booe; . • • Senators: Vicki Schmidt (Chairperson); Kellie Hogan; • • • Molly Baumgardner Laura Kelly; and Kathy Keck; • 4 • (Vice-chairperson); Ty Masterson. Sarah Oberndorfer; • • Ed Berger; Representatives: Loren Pack; • 5 • Erin Davis (Vice-chairperson); • Susana Prochaska; and Bud Estes; • • Linda Gallagher; and • Erin Rainey. Oletha Faust- • Goudeau; and Jarrod Ousley. Protective Services and Family • Richard Hilderbrand. Outside Parties: Preservation • Hon. Jeffry Larson6, a district court Task Force: judge appointed by the Chief • Sgt. David Ohlde (Chairperson); Justice of the Kansas Supreme • Representative Jarrod Ousley Court (Chief Justice); (Vice-chairperson); and • Mickey Edwards, state director of • Secretary Gina Meier-Hummel. the Kansas Court Appointed Non-Task Force: Special Advocates, Chief Justice • Sarah Coats; appointee; • • Hon. Erika DeMarco; Alicia Johnson-Turner, citizen • Kathleen Holt; review board member, Chief • Connie Mayes; Justice appointee; • Tara Wallace; • Mary Tye, foster parent • Hon. Taylor Wine; organization representative, • Kate Zigtema; and Judicial Council appointee; • • Serena Hawkins, guardian ad Gail Cozadd (effective 12/11/2017). litem, Judicial Council appointee; Reintegration and Permanency Placement • Ashlyn Yarnell, family law attorney, Task Force: Judicial Council appointee; • Alicia Johnson-Turner • Gail Cozadd, licensed social (Chairperson); worker, Judicial Council • appointee; Representative Gallagher (Vice- • chairperson); Dr. Katherine Melhorn, Child • Death Review Board Mickey Edwards; • Serena Hawkins; and representative; • • Sandra Lessor, Sedgwick County Ashlyn Yarnell. Non-Task Force: District Attorney’s Office, the • Kansas County and District Charlene Brubaker; • Attorneys Association appointee; Bethany Fields; • and Cara Payton; • • Sgt. David Ohlde, Marysville Lori Ross; Police Department, the Kansas • Ruth Schenck; Association of Chiefs of Police • Nina Shaw-Woody; and appointee. • Hon. Kathleen Sloan.

4 Senator Masterson was a member of the Task Force from July 26, 2018, onward. Senator Bollier was a member until July 18, 2018. 5 Representative Davis was a member of the Task Force from January 9, 2018, onward. Representative Alford was a member until January 9, 2018. 6 Hon. Larson was a Task Force member from April 4, 2018, onward. Hon. Cahill, a district court judge, was a member of the Task Force until April 4, 2018.

Kansas Legislative Research Department 4 Special Committee on Foster Care Oversight – Volkmer – Child Welfare System Task Force – August 25, 2020