Date: 04/23/2010
Final
County Directors of Dept
COMMITTEE ON CHILD WELFARE
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01:33 PM -- County Directors of Department of Human Services
A panel of county directors of departments of human services came to the table.
01:35 PM
Cheryl Ternes, President, Social Services Directors Association and Director, Arapahoe County Department of Human Services, introduced herself to the committee. She began her testimony by stating that the directors support 27 of the 29 Child Welfare Action Committee (CWAC) recommendations. The CWAC was established by executive order in 2008 to provide recommendations to the governor on how to improve the child welfare system in Colorado. The committee met over a two-year period and issued final recommendations in December of 2009. She spoke to recommendation 11 which recommends that the state conduct a workload study. She stated that only one county supported the recommendation from the CWAC to refer authority and administration of the child welfare system to the state, 5 abstained from voting, and the remaining 58 counties voted against the recommendation. Ms. Ternes stated that state-administered systems have a higher percentage of child fatalities than states that have county-administered child welfare systems. She spoke to data suggesting that child welfare systems under the authority of the county have faster response times than state-administered systems. Ms. Ternes continued and indicated that 51 counties voted against recommendation 14 which would establish a centralized call center. She described Arapahoe County's call center and stated it works effectively. Ms. Ternes provided her written testimony to the committee (Attachment F).
01:45 PM -- Patricia Wilson Pheanious, Manager, Denver Human Services, provided her written testimony to the committee (Attachment G). She described the population of children served in the child welfare system. She stated there are several factors that present challenges to the county departments that administer child welfare programs. She highlighted several factors and stated that both counties and the state would have difficulties addressing these challenges. She commented that the child welfare system is not funded to act in a preventative manner. Ms. Pheanious spoke to protecting children and preventing child abuse. She explained that the child welfare system encompasses more than just protecting children, it's about education, poverty, and income levels of families. She provided data to the committee regarding the relationship between child poverty and child welfare. She spoke to the counties concerns regarding recommendation 29, which would require the state to administer the child welfare system.
01:55 PM -- Linda Fairbairn, Director, Prowers County of Social Services, introduced herself to the committee and provided her written testimony to the committee (Attachment H). She described her professional background to the committee. She spoke to the dependency and neglect process in Prowers County. She stated that Prowers County has developed a model which encompasses other members of the community including other family members to ensure that children are safe and protected.
02:03 PM -- Kindra Mulch, Director of Social Services, Kit Carson County and Cheyenne County, introduced herself to the committee and provided her written testimony to the committee (Attachment I). She described the demographics of her county. She stressed that local control is extremely important in her county. She stated that in a county of 8,000 people, everyone knows everyone. She commented that strong leadership is important and spoke in support of the child welfare training academy. Ms. Mulch stated that they do not have the level of personnel that is required by the child welfare training academy due to the size of her community. She suggested that the state needs to improve the delivery of behavioral health services in Colorado.
02:16 PM
Senator Lundberg asked the panel to comment on the child fatality review process. Ms. Ternes spoke to the child fatality review process. Ms. Pheanious stated that she was satisfied with the internal process and the state process. She stated one of her concerns is that when the child fatality review report are made public, information pertaining to the report is still confidential, yet the report is public. Ms. Mulch stated that confidentiality is very important. Ms. Pheanouis spoke to the Mountain and Plains Child Welfare Implementation Center that will be working towards implementing a best practice model.