Lawmakers Looking To Overhaul Child Protection System
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - Minnesota lawmakers are moving quickly to overhaul the state's child protection system.
A state Senate committee opened hearings Monday on recommendations from a task force appointed by the governor after the abuse death of a 4-year-old boy.
A lot of lawmakers say they feel a sense of urgency about this, and the legislative process started abnormally quickly after a Star Tribune investigation found gaping holes in the state's child protection system.
The Star Tribune's report of the death of 4-year old Eric Dean, despite 15 reports to Pope County authorities that the boy was in danger, is prompting swift action from the state.
"A child's death from maltreatment, whether or not that child is ever part of our child protection system--it should be the top of the front page and the most e-mailed story," Department of Human Services Commissioner Lucinda Jesson said. "It should cause us all to question what we can do better in the future."
A Blue Ribbon Task Force moved so quickly, the legislature is expecting to introduce a bill within days to simplify and toughen up Minnesota's complicated child protection reporting system.
Among the law changes the legislature is considering after Dean's death:
- That counties must review a family's prior history of abuse.
- All abuse reports must be sent to law enforcement
- For the first time, social workers must have access to maltreatment reports in other counties.
Federal and state government spending on child protection dropped significantly due to widespread budget cutting since 2002.
Child protection leaders say that will change this year, along with a new focus on safety above everything else.
Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Vernon Center, expressed concern for children who have multiple protection reports filed.
"How do we make sure that instead of 15 family assessments, we can discover that this family, this child, is in great danger?" she asked.
Here's what's expected almost immediately: The legislature will repeal a law it passed just last year that banned counties from considering previous abuse reports when they are deciding whether to investigate new ones. No one is sure why that law got passed in the first place.
The legislature has seriously cut back local government aid to child protection in the last decade. That includes aid for counties, which pay for more than half of all family services including child protection.
Today, children's services vary widely from county to county.
