[Federal Register: August 20, 1999
(Volume 64, Number 161)]
[Notices]
[Page 45552-45554]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access
[wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr20au99-91]
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES,
Administration for Children and Families
Notice of Final List of Child Welfare Outcomes and Measures
SUMMARY: Section 203 of the Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA), signed into law in November 1997, requires that the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), in consultation with Governors, State legislatures, State and local public officials responsible for administering child welfare programs, and child welfare advocates, develop a set of outcome measures (including length of stay in foster care, number of foster care placements, and number of adoptions) that can be used to assess the performance of States in operating child protection and child welfare programs. In addition, the law requires that to the maximum extent possible, the outcome measures should be developed from data available from the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS). Section 203 of ASFA also directs the Secretary to prepare and submit to the Congress an Annual Report on the performance of each State on each outcome measure.
To meet these requirements, the Children's Bureau, the Federal agency charged with the task of implementing ASFA, engaged in a consultation process with State officials, advocates and other experts in the field. As a result of this process, the Children's Bureau published a preliminary list of child welfare outcomes and measures in the Federal Register for public comment on February 2, 1999. Comments were received from 31 State child welfare agencies including the District of Columbia, 14 representatives of national organizations, nine members of a congressional coalition, one local child and family services agency, one tribal organization, four child welfare researchers, four Federal staff and one unaffiliated individual. Based on an analysis of the comments, numerous changes were made to the preliminary list of outcomes and measures.
This notice announces the final list of child welfare outcomes and measures and the data elements that will be used to compute each State's performance on each measure. The notice also describes additional data about each State system's characteristics that will be used in the Annual Report to provide context for interpreting State performance on the outcome measures. Finally, the notice provides general information about the steps that will lead to publication of the first Annual Report to the Congress on the performance of each State on each outcome measure.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Marianne Rufty
Children's Bureau
330 C Street, SW
Washington, DC 20447
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Nation's child welfare systems are designed to protect children who have suffered maltreatment, who are at risk for maltreatment, or who are under the care and placement responsibility of the State because their families are unable to care for them. These systems also focus on securing permanent living arrangements for children who are unable to return home. The Children's Bureau is the agency within the Federal Government that is responsible for assisting State child welfare systems by promoting continuous improvement in the delivery of child welfare services.
The Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA) unequivocally established that our national goals for children in the child welfare system are safety, permanency, and well-being. To help achieve these goals, the ASFA requires the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), in consultation with States and experts in the field, to identify outcome measures to gauge State and national progress in reaching these goals, and to report on these outcomes in an annual report to the Congress.
The Children's Bureau formed a consultation group comprised of representatives from State, Tribal and county child welfare agencies; State
Governor's offices; State legislatures; family and juvenile courts; local advocacy organizations; the research community; private nonprofit child and family services agencies; and a public employee organization. Representatives of national organizations such as the American Public Human Services Association, the Child Welfare League of America, and the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges also were asked to participate in the consultation process.
The Children's Bureau wishes to thank these individuals for sharing their time and expertise in the development of the preliminary set of child welfare outcomes and measures, which were published in the Federal Register for comment on February 2, 1999. We also would like to thank the many individuals who responded to that notice. Based on the comments received, the Children's Bureau has made a number of changes to the list of outcome measures, as detailed below.
What Data Sources Will Be Used To Measure State Performance
To avoid additional reporting by the States, the first Annual Report to the Congress will include outcome measures that are based on data already available through the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS), and the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS). For the first Annual Report to the Congress, the Children's Bureau will use calendar year 1997 data for NCANDS, and fiscal year 1998 data for AFCARS. The specific data elements that will be used from these databases are listed below under each outcome measure. Please note that one of the consequences of focusing on outcomes that can be measured through AFCARS and NCANDS is that the outcomes to be included in the first Annual Report do not address child-well being measures and procedures for collecting data pertaining to those outcomes in the future.
In addition to displaying data on State performance on the outcome measures, the Annual Report will provide additional data about each State and its child welfare system in order to provide context for interpreting performance on the outcome measures. For the most part, these data also will be derived from the calendar year 1997 NCANDS and fiscal year 1998 AFCARS databases. Some examples include:
- the number of children under age 18;
- the number of children found to be victims of child maltreatment;
- the number of child fatalities due to maltreatment;
- the number of children entering foster care at the beginning of the reporting year, the number exiting at the end of the same year and their median length of stay in care;
- the number of children waiting to be adopted; and
- the number of children adopted.
It also will include age and race/ethnicity data for children in these categories.
Steps Leading to Publication of the Annual Report
The Children's Bureau will mail a letter to each State Child Welfare Director that will transmit the State's own data pages for review and comment prior to their being published and submitted to the Congress. State agencies will have the opportunity to provide comments that clarify their data or identify factors that may have affected their performance on the outcome measures. Since States' comments will be included in the Annual Report to the Congress, the Children's Bureau will need to require that the comments be limited due to space restrictions. In addition, State Child Welfare Directors will be asked to return their comments to the children's bureau by a specified date. No response by the due date will indicate that the State chooses not to submit comments. The transmittal letter will provide detailed information about the procedures for reviewing and submitting comments on the data.
Final List of Child Welfare Outcomes and Measures
The following outcome measures will be used as the basis for the first and subsequent Annual Reports to the Congress on the performance of each State in meeting the goals and objectives of the child welfare system. The data elements that will be used to compute the measures are also listed. Additional outcomes and measures may be added in future years as reporting capacities develop. This is particularly true for outcomes addressing child safety and well-being.
Child Welfare Outcome 1: Reduce Recurrence of Child Abuse and/or Neglect
Measure 1.1: Of all children who were victims of substantiated or indicated child abuse and/or neglect during the reporting period, what percentage had another substantiated or indicated report within a 12- month period?
Data Elements: NCANDS, DCDC record
Element 3: Report ID
Element 4: Child ID
Element 8: Report disposition
Element 9: Report disposition date
Child Welfare Outcome 2: Reduce the Incidence of Child Abuse and/or Neglect in Foster Care
Measure 2.1: Of all children who were in foster care during the reporting period, what percentage was the subject of substantiated or indicated maltreatment by a foster parent or facility staff?
Data Elements: NCANDS, DCDC record
Element 80: Perpetrator-1 Relationship
Element 93: Perpetrator-2 Relationship
Element 106: Perpetrator-3 Relationship
AFCARS
Element 21: Date of latest removal
Element 41: Current placement setting
Child Welfare Outcome 3: Increase Permanency for Children in Foster Care
Measure 3.1: For all children who exited the child welfare system, what percentage left either to reunification, adoption, or legal guardianship?
Measure 3.2: For children who exited the system and were identified as having a diagnosed disability, what percentage left either to reunification, adoption, or legal guardianship?
Measure 3.3: For children who exited the system and were age 12 or older at the time of their most recent entry into care, what percentage left either to reunification, adoption, or legal guardianship?
Measure 3.4: For all children who exited the system, what percentage by racial/ethnic category left either to reunification, adoption, or legal guardianship?
Measure 3.5: Of all children exiting the system to emancipation, what percentage was age 12 or younger at the time of entry into care?
Data Elements: AFCARS
Element 6: Date of birth
Element 8: Race
Element 9: Hispanic origin
Element 10: Child diagnosed with disabilities
Element 21: Date of latest removal
Element 56: Date of discharge from foster care
Element 58: Reasons for discharge
Child Welfare Outcome 4: Reduce Time in Foster Care to Reunification Without Increasing Re-entry
Measure 4.1: Of all children who were reunified with their parents or caretakers at the time of discharge from foster care, what percentage was reunified in the following time periods?
- Less than 12 months from the time of latest removal from home
- At least 12 months, but less than 24 months
- At least 24 months, but less than 36 months
- At least 36 months, but less than 48 months
- 48 or more months
Measure 4.2: Of all children who entered foster care during the reporting period, what percentage re-entered care within 12 months of a prior foster care episode?
Data Elements: AFCARS
Element 19: Total number of removals
Element 20: Date of discharge from last episode
Element 21: Date of latest removal
Element 56: Date of discharge from foster care
Element 58: Reason for discharge
Child Welfare Outcome 5: Reduce Time in Foster Care to Adoption
Measure 5.1: Of all children who exited care to a finalized adoption, what percentage exited care in the following time periods?
- Less than 12 months from the time of latest removal from home
- At least 12 months, but less than 24 months
- At least 24 months, but less than 36 months
- At least 36 months, but less than 48 months
- 48 or more months
Measure 5.2: Of all children who exited care to a finalized adoption and who were age 3 or older at the time of entry into care, what percentage exited care during the following time periods?
- Less than 12 months from the time of latest removal from home
- At least 12 months, but less than 24 months
- At least 24 months, but less than 36 months
- At least 36 months, but less than 48 months
- 48 or more months
Data Elements: AFCARS
Element 6: Date of birth
Element 21: Date of latest removal
Element 56: Date of discharge from foster care
Element 58: Reasons for discharge
Child Welfare Outcome 6: Increase Placement Stability
Measure 6.1: Of all children served who had been in care for the time periods listed below, what percentage had no more than two placement settings during that time period?
- Less than 12 months from the time of latest removal from home
- At least 12 months, but less than 24 months
- At least 24 months, but less than 36 months
- At least 36 months, but less than 48 months
- 48 or more months
Data Elements: AFCARS
Element 21: Date of latest removal
Element 24: Number of previous settings in episode
Element 56: Date of discharge from foster care (needed only if child
exited during the year.)
Child Welfare Outcome 7: Reduce Placements of Young Children in Group Homes or Institutions
Measure 7.1: For all children who entered care during the reporting period and were age 12 or younger at the time of their most recent placement, what percentage was placed in a group home or an institution?
Data Elements: AFCARS
Element 6: Date of birth
Element 21: Date of latest removal
Element 23: Placement date in current setting
Element 41: Current placement setting
Dated: August 13, 1999.
Patricia Montoya,
Commissioner, Administration on Children, Youth and Families.
[FR Doc. 99-21657 Filed 8-19-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-01-M
