Improved Monitoring of Vulnerable Children
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IMPROVED MONITORING OF VULNERABLE CHILDREN HEARING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES OF THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION NOVEMBER 19, 2003 Serial No. 108–29 Printed for the use of the Committee on Ways and Means ( U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 92–985 WASHINGTON : 2004 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2250 Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 20402–0001 VerDate May 21 2004 23:58 Jul 21, 2004 Jkt 092985 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 E:\HR\OC\92985.XXX 92985 COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS BILL THOMAS, California, Chairman PHILIP M. CRANE, Illinois CHARLES B. RANGEL, New York E. CLAY SHAW, JR., Florida FORTNEY PETE STARK, California NANCY L. JOHNSON, Connecticut ROBERT T. MATSUI, California AMO HOUGHTON, New York SANDER M. LEVIN, Michigan WALLY HERGER, California BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland JIM MCCRERY, Louisiana JIM MCDERMOTT, Washington DAVE CAMP, Michigan GERALD D. KLECZKA, Wisconsin JIM RAMSTAD, Minnesota JOHN LEWIS, Georgia JIM NUSSLE, Iowa RICHARD E. NEAL, Massachusetts SAM JOHNSON, Texas MICHAEL R. MCNULTY, New York JENNIFER DUNN, Washington WILLIAM J. JEFFERSON, Louisiana MAC COLLINS, Georgia JOHN S. TANNER, Tennessee ROB PORTMAN, Ohio XAVIER BECERRA, California PHIL ENGLISH, Pennsylvania LLOYD DOGGETT, Texas J.D. HAYWORTH, Arizona EARL POMEROY, North Dakota JERRY WELLER, Illinois MAX SANDLIN, Texas KENNY C. HULSHOF, Missouri STEPHANIE TUBBS JONES, Ohio SCOTT MCINNIS, Colorado RON LEWIS, Kentucky MARK FOLEY, Florida KEVIN BRADY, Texas PAUL RYAN, Wisconsin ERIC CANTOR, Virginia Allison H. Giles, Chief of Staff Janice Mays, Minority Chief Counsel SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES WALLY HERGER, California, Chairman NANCY L. JOHNSON, Connecticut BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland SCOTT MCINNIS, Colorado FORTNEY PETE STARK, California JIM MCCRERY, Louisiana SANDER M. LEVIN, Michigan DAVE CAMP, Michigan JIM MCDERMOTT, Washington PHIL ENGLISH, Pennsylvania CHARLES B. RANGEL, New York RON LEWIS, Kentucky ERIC CANTOR, Virginia Pursuant to clause 2(e)(4) of Rule XI of the Rules of the House, public hearing records of the Committee on Ways and Means are also, published in electronic form. The printed hearing record remains the official version. Because electronic submissions are used to prepare both printed and electronic versions of the hearing record, the process of converting between various electronic formats may introduce unintentional errors or omissions. Such occur- rences are inherent in the current publication process and should diminish as the process is further refined. ii VerDate May 21 2004 23:58 Jul 21, 2004 Jkt 092985 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 0486 Sfmt 0486 E:\HR\OC\92985.XXX 92985 C O N T E N T S Page Advisories announcing the hearing ........................................................................ 2 WITNESSES U.S. General Accounting Office, Cornelia M. Ashby, Director, Education, Workforce, and Income Security Issues ............................................................. 10 Chapin Hall Center for Children, University of Chicago, Fred H. Wulczyn ...... 61 Child Welfare League of America, Robert McKeagney ......................................... 37 Community College Foundation, David R. Springett ........................................... 49 DeLay, Hon. Tom, a Representative in Congress from the State of Texas, and House Majority Leader ................................................................................. 58 Florida Department of Children and Families, Michael A. Watkins .................. 44 Norfolk Department of Human Services, Jill Baker ............................................. 30 SUBMISSIONS FOR THE RECORD Acevedo-Vila´, Hon. Anı´bal, a Representative in Congress from the Common- wealth of Puerto Rico, statement ........................................................................ 83 Advocates for Children in Therapy, Loveland, CO, Larry W. Sarner and Jean Mercer, statement ....................................................................................... 84 Baff, Mark C., Sandata Technologies, Inc., Port Washington, NY, letter ........... 86 Cardoza, Hon. Dennis A., a Representative in Congress from the State of California, statement ........................................................................................... 87 Covenant House of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, statement .................................... 88 Family Alliance to Stop Abuse and Neglect, Teaneck, NJ, statement ................ 90 Gladwell, Lisa E., River Edge, NJ, letter .............................................................. 92 Hanson, Greg S., and Lisa R. Watkins, Hiawatha, IA, statement ...................... 93 Harris, Barbara, Rocky Ridge, MD, statement ..................................................... 98 Helson, Kandy, Racine, WI, statement .................................................................. 99 Indiana Civil Rights Council, Whitestown, IN, Torm L. Howse, letter .............. 100 Jones, E. Pamela, In the Spirit of the Children, Inc., New York, NY, state- ment ...................................................................................................................... 101 Kroll, Joe, North American Council on Adoptable Children, Saint Paul, MN, statement .............................................................................................................. 102 Mercer, Jean, Advocates for Children in Therapy, Loveland, CO, statement .... 84 North American Council on Adoptable Children, Saint Paul, MN, Joe Kroll, statement .............................................................................................................. 102 Sandata Technologies, Inc., Port Washington, NY, Stephen A. Silverstein and Mark C. Baff, letter ...................................................................................... 86 Sarner, Larry W., Advocates for Children in Therapy, Loveland, CO, state- ment ...................................................................................................................... 84 Silverstein, Stephen A., Sandata Technologies, Inc., Port Washington, NY, letter ...................................................................................................................... 86 Sowles, Darlene G., Pueblo, CO, statement .......................................................... 106 In the Spirit of the Children, Inc., New York, NY, E. Pamela Jones, state- ment ...................................................................................................................... 101 Wardell, Jody, Enon, OH, statement ..................................................................... 107 Watkins, Lisa R., and Greg S. Hanson, Hiawatha, IA, statement ...................... 93 iii VerDate May 21 2004 23:58 Jul 21, 2004 Jkt 092985 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 0486 Sfmt 0486 E:\HR\OC\92985.XXX 92985 VerDate May 21 2004 23:58 Jul 21, 2004 Jkt 092985 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 0486 Sfmt 0486 E:\HR\OC\92985.XXX 92985 IMPROVED MONITORING OF VULNERABLE CHILDREN WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2003 U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS, SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES, Washington, DC. The Subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:15 p.m., in room B–318, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Wally Herger (Chair- man of the Subcommittee) presiding. [The advisory and the revised advisory announcing the hearing follow:] (1) VerDate May 21 2004 23:58 Jul 21, 2004 Jkt 092985 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 E:\HR\OC\92985.XXX 92985 2 ADVISORY FROM THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: (202) 225–1025 November 06, 2003 HR–6 Herger Announces Hearing on Improved Monitoring of Vulnerable Children Congressman Wally Herger (R–CA), Chairman, Subcommittee on Human Re- sources of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Sub- committee will hold a hearing in an effort to improve the monitoring of vulnerable children. The hearing will take place on Thursday, November 13, 2003, in room B–318 Rayburn House Office Building, beginning at 10:00 a.m. In view of the limited time available to hear witnesses, oral testimony at this hearing will be from invited witnesses only. Witnesses will include Federal, State, and local officials and outside experts familiar with ongoing efforts to monitor and collect information on children in foster care and adoptive settings. However, any individual or organization not scheduled for an oral appearance may submit a writ- ten statement for consideration by the Committee and for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing. BACKGROUND: The Federal Government provides approximately $7 billion to the States to oper- ate foster care and adoption assistance programs. As a condition of receiving these funds, States must collect and report data on children in their care. The Sub- committee held a hearing on November 6, 2003, to receive testimony about a recent New Jersey caseinvolving four boys who were apparently starved while in the care of their adoptive parents—even as caseworkers made numerous visits to the home— and has raised questions about the effectiveness ofcurrent monitoring. This case has highlighted gaps in current monitoring and data reporting, including for children whose foster and adoptive parents received Federal funds or other services and sup- ports. ‘‘We have learned that, absent basic information on the