House Speaker David Ralston on Thursday predicted that the General Assembly will act to address problems at the state agency that handles child welfare.
Ralston, R-Blue Ridge, offered few specifics but said lawmakers have a duty to act.
“This is a serious issue,” Ralston said. “Frankly, some of these (legislative) issues don’t keep me awake at night. But that one does.”
The Department of Child and Family Services has been under fire for failures to protect children in foster, which have been widely reported by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. A number of high-profile deaths of children have led to firings and other punishment for DFCS employees and vows from Gov. Nathan Deal to boost the agency’s budget and staff.
The AJC reported that DFCS has been unable to effectively handle many of the nearly 70,000 reports of abuse or neglect it receives each year. In an analysis of 86 cases from 2012 in which children died despite DFCS intervention with their families, the newspaper identified at least 25 deaths in which the agency’s workers did not detect or did not act on signs that children were at imminent risk.
In response, Deal has proposed spending $27 million over the next three years to hire 525 additional child-protection workers —- an increase of 26 percent.
Ralston pledged to work with the governor on a solution.
“As we go further into the session I may have some proposals that hopefully will be helpful,” Ralston said. “I know the governor plans to address this issue in a budgetary manner and I think that’s a good beginning.”
Ralston said he was “open” to the idea of privatizing child welfare services, as has happened in a number of states. While he said he is not endorsing the idea, Ralston said it was among many ideas that will be considered.
Thomas Rawlings, who served as the State Child Advocate under former Gov. Sonny Perdue, said Deal and Ralston will not be alone in the fight to address DFCS’ problems.
“I’m very pleased that we have a lot of our leadership in the state, not just gubernatorial leadership and not just legislative leadership, but I think ‘thought leadership’ who are very concerned about child welfare and child protection,” Rawlings said.
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