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Bill limits child abuse investigations from hotline calls
The House has passed a bill that would cut the number of child abuse hotline calls that require full investigations to focus child safety workers on cases that actually involve abuse and neglect.
From X-rays to highways, backlogs affect several state agencies
The term “backlog” has become synonymous with the Department of Child Safety, but agencies throughout the state are facing their own workload difficulties and some historically fall behind in their work.
Panel advances bill to ease child safety caseloads
A House panel advanced a bill that would exempt the Department of Child Safety from investigating certain non-criminal reports of abuse or neglect.
Child Safety agency pushes for new way of measuring case backlog
The Department of Child Safety has been judged since its creation by the number of cases it has left behind, but now agency leaders are asking to be monitored by a new metric.
Exodus from Child Safety agency continues despite new spending
In fiscal year 2015, about one-fourth of people who worked at the Department of Child Safety left their jobs. And most of them quit. Turnover at the beleaguered agency is one of the highest within state government at 24.5 percent.
Woman locks herself to Capitol doors in child custody dispute
A Phoenix mother locked herself to doors at the historic Capitol building Tuesday afternoon to protest the Department of Child Safety, which she claims wrongfully took custody of her son.
JLBC members question McKay’s absence
Joint Legislative Budget Committee members questioned why they were hearing from Michael Dellner, operations chief at the Department of Child Safety, rather than Greg McKay, the agency’s director, since the Dec. 15 meeting had been on the calendar for weeks.
Lawmakers admonish Department of Child Safety
Arizona lawmakers voted to rebuke the Department of Child Safety on Tuesday afternoon, a striking statement against an agency that has struggled to impress the legislators who created it over a year ago.
Don’t give up on DCS yet! What the agency needs is inspiring leadership
Dear Legislature: Don’t give up on Arizona’s children and the Department of Child Safety yet, please.
McKay defends his approach, says DCS problems created by past administrations
Officials at the Department of Child Safety know the beleaguered agency has problems, but Director Greg McKay says previous administrations are to blame.
Hundreds of millions of dollars later, child safety programs plagued by the same problems
A decade ago, a team of auditors embedded themselves in the agency charged with protecting Arizona’s children and found that some reports of child abuse or neglect weren’t properly investigated. Other cases lacked the relevant information necessary to ensure children’s safety. Ten years, hundreds of millions of dollars and a new agency later, the problems that plague the Department of Child [...]
DCS chief offers new plan to cut backlog of cases
The head of the state's child welfare agency said Thursday he will slash the backlog of inactive cases by cutting down the number investigated on the front end.
