February 18, 2015

This Friday, February 20, 2015, from 3:00-4:00 p.m. (EST) the Children's Bureau is seeking tribal input on new data that state foster care and adoption programs (Title IV-E programs) will collect. This data influences policy and tracks trends for children in foster care and adoption. The data is also reported by tribes that operate Title IV-E programs.

 

The Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) collects information from state and tribal child welfare agencies on children in foster care and children who have been adopted with assistance from federal funds. Examples of data collected by AFCARS include the number of times a child has been removed from the home, the number of foster care placements a child has had, and the permanency goals for a child. State and tribal agencies that receive Title IV-E federal funding must submit the data required by AFCARS twice a year.

 

A Notice of Proposed Rule Making on AFCARS was published in the Federal Register on Monday, February 9, 2015, announcing that ACF intends to change some of the AFCARS reporting requirements. The full text of this Notice of Proposed Rule Making and proposed changes can be found here and an overview is available here

 

Currently, there is no requirement for states to report data related to the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) as a part of AFCARS. In addition, AFCARS does not require states to identify children in their care who are eligible for ICWA's protections. Without this data there is no national information about how and when ICWA is followed in state child welfare systems 

 

Recent court cases point to significant problems with ICWA compliance across the country. Accurate data is necessary to highlight these problems and hold states accountable. Through the Notice of Proposed Rule Making process, ACF is already revising AFCARS requirements. Collection of ICWA data should be included in this revision. This Friday is your chance to tell the Children's Bureau that ICWA matters and that ICWA kids need to be counted!

 

Call-in information:

 

Date: Friday February 20th

Time: 3:00-4:00 p.m. (EST)

Dial in Number: 1-888-324-3618

Participant Code: 9280237

 

A detailed agenda for the call is available here

 

If you are unable to make this call, your thoughts and opinions can still be shared!

 

Written comments can be submitted at www.regulations.gov on or before April 10, 2015. We encourage tribal child welfare programs, courts, leaders, and families to send comments urging ACF to require states to collect more information on ICWA. We deserve to know how state systems are treating our children!

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