Utah

Context Data | Outcomes Data | State Comment | Federal Comment

Utah [ Context Data ]

A. Context Statistics

General Child Population (Census Bureau)	2000	2001	2002	2003
Total children under 18 years	721,097	729,754	737,874	742,927
Race/Ethnicity (%)1
Alaska Native/American Indian	1.4	1.5	1.4	1.4
Asian	2.1	1.7	1.3	1.4
Black (non-Hispanic)	0.8	0.9	0.8	0.8
Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander	0.0	0.9	0.9	0.9
Hispanic (of any race)	10.9	11.2	11.4	11.8
White (non-Hispanic)	82.4	81.7	82.1	81.7
Two or more races	2.3	2.2	2.0	2.0
% Child population in poverty	11.6	12.5	12.5	12.4

Child Welfare Summary	2000	2001	2002	2003
Child maltreatment victims2	8,729	10,200	10,282	12,366
Children in foster care on 9/30	1,805	1,957	2,025	2,033
Children adopted	303	349	346	311

B. Child Maltreatment Data [National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS)]

	2000		2001		2002		2003
Overview Maltreatment Information	Number	Rate	Number	Rate	Number	Rate	Number	Rate
Children subject of an investigated report alleging child maltreatment	25,102	34.8 per 1,000	28,485	39.0 per 1,000	29,836	40.4 per 1,000	31,679	42.6 per 1,000
Total child maltreatment victims3	8,729	12.1 per 1,000	10,200	14.0 per 1,000	10,282	13.9 per 1,000	12,366	16.6 per 1,000
Child fatalities	12	1.7 per 100,000	11	1.5 per 100,000	12	1.6 per 100,000	9	1.2 per 100,000

1 Race/ethnicity data for 2001, 2002, and 2003 represent population estimates. Back
2 A child victim is defined as a child who is the subject of a substantiated or indicated maltreatment report. Back
3 Children with more than one report of substantiated or indicated maltreatment may be counted more than once. Back

Age of Child Victims (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
<1 year	7.9	7.2	7.8	7.8
1-5 years	31.7	30.0	32.3	32.7
6-10 years	29.7	28.8	26.9	27.1
11-15 years	24.5	27.3	26.6	26.0
16+ years	6.0	6.7	6.2	6.1
Unknown	0.2	0.0	0.4	0.3
Number	8,729	10,200	10,282	12,366

Race/Ethnicity of Child Victims (%)4	2000	2001	2002	2003
Alaska Native/American Indian	1.2	1.7	2.4	1.8
Asian	1.0	1.4	2.4	0.7
Black (non-Hispanic)	1.6	2.0	3.4	2.7
Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander	N/A	N/A	N/A	1.6
Hispanic (of any race)	13.1	13.9	19.8	21.6
White (non-Hispanic)	38.7	43.9	68.1	69.6
Two or more races	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.2
Unknown	44.4	37.1	3.9	0.7
Number	8,729	10,200	10,282	12,366

Maltreatment Types of Child Victims (%)5	2000	2001	2002	2003
Emotional abuse	40.8	31.7	40.9	44.0
Medical neglect	1.0	0.8	1.0	0.5
Neglect	29.3	25.9	21.3	20.9
Physical abuse	15.8	14.3	16.1	14.2
Sexual abuse	19.6	22.7	21.7	19.6
Unknown/missing data	0.0	14.6	0.1	0.0
Other	9.5	7.2	14.5	15.8
Number	8,729	10,200	10,282	12,366

4 Percentages may total more than 100 because Hispanics may be counted by Hispanic ethnicity and race. Back
5 Percentages may total more than 100 because children can be victims of more than one type of maltreatment. Back

C. Characteristics of Children in Foster Care [Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS): Foster Care File]

	In Foster Care on 10/1 FY				Entered Foster Care in FY				Exited Foster Care in FY				In Foster Care on 9/30 FY
	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003
Total Number	1,921	1,960	1,966	1,926	2,148	2,006	2,177	1,928	2,264	2,009	2,118	1,821	1,805	1,957	2,025	2,033
Median length of stay (months)	12.0	12.6	11.5	11.0	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	5.8	6.8	6.1	6.9	10.4	10.9	10.4	10.3

	In Foster Care on 10/1 FY				Entered Foster Care in FY				Exited Foster Care in FY				In Foster Care on 9/30 FY
Age (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003
<1 year	4.4	4.7	3.9	5.0	12.8	11.6	12.8	10.5	8.1	7.5	8.1	7.9	5.1	4.3	5.1	4.0
1 year	3.9	4.8	3.7	3.5	7.9	6.2	6.6	6.6	7.1	7.6	7.1	7.0	4.8	3.6	3.4	3.7
2 years	2.9	4.3	4.5	3.9	6.3	6.1	5.1	6.4	6.1	6.4	6.0	6.7	4.0	4.5	4.0	3.5
3 years	3.4	3.5	3.7	3.5	7.0	4.4	5.7	4.7	6.1	5.1	6.1	5.4	3.2	3.7	3.2	3.4
4 years	3.4	4.1	3.5	3.2	5.4	5.8	5.2	5.0	5.2	5.8	5.7	5.0	3.9	3.5	3.1	3.1
5 years	3.1	3.9	3.1	3.3	6.1	3.9	5.1	3.9	5.8	5.1	5.5	4.6	4.0	3.0	3.2	3.2
6 years	3.9	3.3	3.2	2.9	4.5	4.5	4.2	4.2	4.1	4.8	4.5	4.4	3.3	3.3	3.0	2.5
7 years	3.4	3.9	3.5	2.7	5.4	4.4	3.8	3.6	4.6	4.2	4.1	3.5	4.3	3.6	2.7	3.1
8 years	3.8	4.4	4.0	3.2	5.0	4.3	3.9	3.1	4.5	4.4	4.2	3.5	4.5	3.9	3.2	2.4
9 years	4.7	4.0	3.4	3.8	4.2	4.3	4.3	3.8	4.5	4.6	4.2	3.8	4.0	3.4	3.7	3.1
10 years	3.9	4.2	4.4	3.8	4.1	4.8	4.2	3.5	3.8	4.4	4.2	3.6	4.4	4.3	4.0	3.9
11 years	6.4	4.5	5.0	4.9	3.8	4.6	4.2	4.1	4.1	4.3	3.4	3.6	4.4	5.1	4.8	4.5
12 years	6.0	6.1	5.6	5.8	4.1	5.1	4.5	4.7	3.4	3.4	4.2	3.3	6.6	5.6	5.7	5.1
13 years	7.4	7.1	7.7	6.0	5.2	6.1	5.7	6.2	3.8	3.7	4.1	4.0	7.5	7.9	6.1	7.0
14 years	8.2	8.2	9.3	9.2	5.1	7.4	6.2	7.8	4.8	5.4	5.1	5.0	8.6	9.2	9.1	8.9
15 years	8.6	8.0	10.3	10.5	4.9	6.4	7.1	8.9	5.0	4.9	5.3	6.4	8.1	10.7	10.5	11.3
16 years	9.4	8.9	8.6	12.5	5.3	5.9	7.0	7.5	6.2	5.1	5.6	7.0	8.9	8.4	12.5	12.0
17 years	8.7	7.8	8.7	9.5	2.7	3.8	4.1	5.2	5.1	5.0	4.2	7.0	7.4	8.8	9.6	12.2
18 years	4.1	3.4	2.8	2.2	<.1	0.0	0.1	0.1	6.5	7.0	7.4	7.0	2.3	2.3	2.3	2.7
19 years	0.4	0.8	0.7	0.4	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.2	0.9	0.6	0.8	0.6	0.7	0.4	0.3
20 years	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.3	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	<.1	0.3	0.2	0.3	0.0	0.2	0.3	<.1
Missing data	0.0	<.1	0.0	0.0	<.1	<.1	0.0	0.0	<.1	<.1	0.1	0.1	0.0	0.0	<.1	<.1

	In Foster Care on 10/1 FY				Entered Foster Care in FY				Exited Foster Care in FY				In Foster Care on 9/30 FY
Race/Ethnicity (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003
Alaska Native/American Indian	5.2	5.2	5.1	5.2	2.8	3.1	4.0	4.7	2.4	3.8	3.8	3.9	5.9	4.5	5.2	6.0
Asian	0.5	1.1	0.9	0.9	0.6	0.3	0.4	0.6	0.5	0.6	0.5	0.3	0.6	0.9	0.8	1.1
Black (non-Hispanic)	3.0	5.5	4.5	5.7	1.9	2.9	4.4	3.7	1.1	4.5	3.4	5.5	4.2	3.8	5.5	3.9
Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander	0.2	0.7	0.9	0.8	0.4	1.1	1.1	1.0	0.2	0.9	1.1	0.5	0.4	0.8	0.9	1.3
Hispanic (of any race)	13.8	19.2	18.6	21.1	18.6	20.8	20.4	23.7	16.1	21.9	18.9	23.4	16.6	18.1	20.2	21.4
White (non-Hispanic)	49.3	59.2	56.7	64.2	33.3	42.7	58.7	65.6	29.5	47.3	55.6	63.8	55.1	54.5	60.0	65.8
Two or more races	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Unknown	28.0	9.1	13.3	2.1	42.4	29.0	11.0	0.7	50.3	21.0	16.7	2.5	17.2	17.4	7.3	0.4
Missing data	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0

D. Characteristics of Children "Waiting for Adoption"6 (AFCARS: Foster Care File)

Waiting for Adoption	2000	2001	2002	2003
Total waiting children	350	333	450	447
Numbers of waiting children whose parents' rights have been terminated	225	235	199	176

Age (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
<1 year	8.6	6.0	6.7	4.9
1 year	4.6	5.7	4.2	5.1
2 years	7.1	7.2	8.0	6.7
3 years	5.4	6.0	6.2	6.5
4 years	4.6	4.5	5.8	4.9
5 years	6.3	6.0	5.8	6.0
6 years	4.6	8.4	6.0	4.9
7 years	5.7	5.1	4.9	5.1
8 years	9.1	6.6	6.9	5.1
9 years	6.0	5.1	7.3	6.7
10 years	8.0	6.9	5.6	6.3
11 years	6.3	6.6	7.1	7.2
12 years	6.9	5.7	6.9	7.2
13 years	6.9	6.0	5.1	6.7
14 years	4.0	5.7	4.9	5.6
15 years	2.6	4.5	5.1	4.5
16 years	2.0	2.7	2.2	4.0
17 years	1.4	0.3	0.9	2.2
18 years	0.0	0.9	0.2	0.2
19 years	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
20+ years	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Missing data	—	—	—	—

Race/Ethnicity (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
Alaska Native/American Indian	4.6	1.2	0.9	2.7
Asian	0.9	1.2	1.3	2.0
Black (non-Hispanic)	4.3	5.4	5.1	2.9
Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander	0.0	0.3	0.4	0.2
Hispanic (of any race)	22.3	24.6	25.6	24.4
White (non-Hispanic)	58.3	61.3	58.9	67.6
Two or more races	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Unknown	9.7	6.0	7.8	0.2
Missing data	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0

6 There is no Federal definition for a child waiting to be adopted. The definition used in the table above includes children who have a goal of adoption and/or whose parental rights have been terminated. It excludes children 16 years old and older whose parental rights have been terminated and who have a goal of emancipation. A State's own definition may differ from that used here. Furthermore, some numbers in this table may be lower than the numbers reported in the prior Child Welfare Outcomes reports. Only children with terminations prior to the end of the fiscal year of interest are included in the current table. Back

E. Characteristics of Children Adopted (AFCARS: Adoption File)

Adoptions	2000	2001	2002	2003
Total children adopted	303	349	346	311

Age (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
<1 year	7.6	8.6	9.0	10.9
1 year	16.2	17.8	15.9	17.4
2 years	8.9	11.2	11.0	11.9
3 years	9.2	8.0	10.7	9.3
4 years	7.3	7.4	6.9	7.7
5 years	9.2	9.2	7.5	7.4
6 years	5.6	6.6	6.1	8.4
7 years	7.3	4.0	6.9	4.5
8 years	5.6	6.3	6.4	4.2
9 years	5.9	4.9	4.0	4.8
10 years	5.3	5.2	4.3	3.9
11 years	4.0	3.4	3.5	3.5
12 years	1.7	2.3	2.9	0.6
13 years	2.6	1.7	1.7	2.3
14 years	1.7	1.7	0.9	0.6
15 years	0.7	0.6	0.9	1.0
16 years	1.0	0.0	0.6	1.3
17 years	0.3	0.9	0.9	0.3
18 years	0.0	0.3	0.0	0.0
19 years	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
20+ years	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Missing data	—	—	—	—

Race/Ethnicity (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
Alaska Native/American Indian	1.7	2.9	2.0	3.5
Asian	1.0	1.4	0.3	1.6
Black (non-Hispanic)	3.3	5.7	4.6	7.4
Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander	0.3	1.1	0.0	0.6
Hispanic (of any race)	18.5	28.4	25.7	24.4
White (non-Hispanic)	54.5	51.9	54.0	57.9
Two or more races	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Unknown	20.8	8.6	13.3	4.5
Missing data	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0

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Utah [ Outcomes Data ]

1. Reduce Recurrence of Child Abuse and/or Neglect (NCANDS)

1.1 Recurrence of Maltreatment Within 6 Months (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
Children without a recurrence	92.9	92.9	92.3	92.3
Children with one or more recurrences	7.1	7.1	7.7	7.7
Number	4,241	4,965	5,042	5,664

2. Reduce the Incidence of Child Abuse and/or Neglect in Foster Care (NCANDS and AFCARS: Foster Care File, Jan.-Sept.)

2.1 Maltreatment in Foster Care (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
Children maltreated while in foster care	0.54	0.55	<.1	0.41
Children not maltreated while in foster care	99.46	99.45	99.92	99.59
Number	3,535	3,440	3,682	3,400

3. Increase Permanency for Children in Foster Care (AFCARS: Foster Care File)

3.1 Exits of Children from Foster Care (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
Adoption	13.4	17.4	16.4	17.0
Guardianship	9.5	1.3	1.7	1.5
Reunification	63.7	70.3	70.5	65.0
Other	11.3	10.8	10.9	16.4
Missing data	2.1	0.2	0.4	0.2
Number	2,264	2,009	2,118	1,821

3.2 Exits of Children with a Diagnosed Disability (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
Adoption	23.2	26.0	22.0	23.4
Guardianship	8.3	1.2	1.4	1.8
Reunification	53.2	59.4	60.2	53.1
Other	14.0	12.8	16.1	21.8
Missing data	1.3	0.6	0.3	0.0
Number	457	335	354	556

3.3 Exits of Children Older than Age 12 at Entry into Foster Care (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
Adoption	0.8	0.6	1.4	0.3
Guardianship	6.5	1.5	1.9	1.7
Reunification	57.4	65.5	62.7	53.1
Other	33.7	32.1	34.1	44.6
Missing data	1.6	0.4	0.0	0.2
Number	618	545	592	572

3.4 Exits to Emancipation (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
Children age 12 or younger at entry	10.5	13.5	8.8	14.4
Children older than 12 at entry	89.5	86.5	91.2	85.6
Missing data	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Number	172	163	170	146

3.5 Exits by Race/Ethnicity (%)	Alaska Native/Am. In.				Asian				Black (non-Hispanic)
	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003
Adoption	9.3	13.2	8.6	15.5	25.0	41.7	10.0	83.3	25.0	22.0	22.5	22.8
Guardianship	7.4	1.3	8.6	5.6	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.1	0.0	3.0
Reunification	66.7	63.2	63.0	63.4	41.7	33.3	50.0	0.0	58.3	61.5	62.0	57.4
Other	16.7	22.4	19.8	15.5	33.3	25.0	40.0	16.7	16.7	15.4	15.5	16.8
Missing data	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Number	54	76	81	71	12	12	10	6	24	91	71	101
	Native Hawaiian/Other Pac. Is.				Hispanic (of any race)				White (non-Hispanic)
	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003
Adoption	25.0	21.1	0.0	22.2	15.1	22.5	22.2	17.8	21.0	19.1	16.0	15.4
Guardianship	50.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	7.4	0.0	0.2	1.2	3.3	1.6	1.7	1.3
Reunification	25.0	63.2	78.3	77.8	68.2	72.0	69.6	66.5	52.8	64.6	69.7	66.1
Other	0.0	15.8	21.7	0.0	7.9	5.0	8.0	14.1	22.0	14.6	12.0	17.1
Missing data	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.4	0.5	0.0	0.5	0.9	0.1	0.7	<.1
Number	4	19	23	9	365	440	401	427	667	950	1,178	1,162
	Unable to Determine				Two or more Races				Missing Data
	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003
Adoption	8.3	7.1	13.3	31.1	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Guardianship	14.1	2.4	2.5	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Reunification	69.0	85.7	77.7	46.7	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Other	5.4	4.3	6.2	22.2	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Missing data	3.2	0.5	0.3	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Number	1,138	421	354	45	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

4. Reduce Time to Reunification Without Increasing Re-entry (AFCARS Foster Care File)

4.1 Time to Reunification (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
Less than 12 mos.	82.9	81.7	83.3	82.3
At least 12 mos., but less than 24 mos.	11.6	12.4	11.6	12.4
At least 24 mos., but less than 36 mos.	2.4	2.7	2.9	2.3
At least 36 mos., but less than 48 mos.	1.8	1.4	0.7	0.6
48 or more mos.	0.8	1.3	1.3	1.3
Missing data	0.5	0.4	0.2	1.1
Number	1,442	1,412	1,493	1,183

4.2 Children Re-entering Foster Care (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
Children entering care for the first time	73.9	75.1	76.6	77.0
Children re-entering care within 12 mos. of a prior episode	13.0	15.2	14.5	11.2
Children re-entering care more than 12 mos. after a prior episode	6.7	8.1	8.4	8.6
Missing data	6.4	1.5	0.5	3.3
Number	2,148	2,006	2,177	1,928

5. Reduce Time in Foster Care to Adoption (AFCARS Foster Care File)

5.1 Time to Adoption (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
Less than 12 mos.	27.3	25.5	33.9	38.7
At least 12 mos., but less than 24 mos.	39.1	45.3	44.0	37.1
At least 24 mos., but less than 36 mos.	23.7	20.1	13.5	13.9
At least 36 mos., but less than 48 mos.	5.9	5.7	3.7	7.1
48 or more mos.	3.9	3.4	4.9	3.2
Missing data	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Number	304	349	348	310

6. Increase Placement Stability (AFCARS Foster Care File)

6.1 Number of Placements by Time in Care (%)	In Care less than 12 Months				In Care at Least 12 Months but less than 24 Months				In Care for 24 Months or Longer				Missing Time in Care
	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003	2000	2001	2002	2003
Children with 2 or fewer placements	74.0	80.1	74.9	72.5	31.3	42.2	39.4	33.8	15.8	15.7	15.3	15.3	100.0	83.3	100.0	94.4
Children with 3 or more placements	26.0	19.9	25.0	26.7	68.7	57.8	60.5	65.9	84.2	84.3	84.7	84.7	0.0	16.7	0.0	0.0
Number	2,575	2,345	2,575	2,325	684	772	749	716	802	843	811	795	8	6	8	18

7. Reduce Placements of Young Children in Group Homes or Institutions (AFCARS Foster Care File)

7.1 Most Recent Placement Settings of Children Who Entered Care During the Fiscal Year and Were Age 12 or Younger at the Time of This Placement (%)	2000	2001	2002	2003
Group homes	1.2	1.1	1.3	1.8
Institutions	1.9	3.7	4.2	9.4
Other settings	97.0	95.1	94.4	86.9
Missing data	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.9
Number	1,295	1,307	1,417	1,193

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Utah [ State Comment ]

Richard Anderson, Director
Division of Child and Family Services
Department of Human Services

The following are Utah's comments on the State's data presented in Child Welfare Outcomes 2003: Report to Congress.

Utah utilizes SACWIS system data and Case Reviews regularly to evaluate performance outcomes and services to children and families. For more information on Utah's Child and Family Services, as well as our performance please visit our website at www.hsdcfs.utah.gov.

Section B (Maltreatment Type of Child Victims): In October 1997, Utah passed a law defining child witnessing, or knowledge of, domestic violence as a type of child abuse. This allegation type is mapped to emotional abuse in NCANDS and accounts for the large percentage of emotional abuse allegations in Utah.

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Utah [ Federal Comment ]

PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT

The following is a discussion of Utah's performance on the national outcomes established for the Report to Congress. The discussion focuses on the State's performance in 2003 and on change in performance over time. Change over time was determined by calculating the percent change in performance from 2000 to 2003. A percent change that was less than 5.0 in either direction (i.e., positive or negative) was considered to represent "no change in performance."

Outcome 1. Reduce recurrence of child abuse and/or neglect

In 2003, 7.7 percent of the children in Utah who were victims of maltreatment during the first 6 months of the year experienced another maltreatment incident within a 6-month period (measure 1.1). This percent is slightly higher than the national median of 7.1 percent, but also represents a slight decline in performance from 2000 to 2003 (+7.8 percent change).

In 2003, the rate of child maltreatment victims in Utah was 16.6 child victims per 1,000 children in the population, which exceeds the national median of 10.6 child victims per 1,000 children in the population. The 2003 victim rate is substantially greater than the 2000 rate of 12.1 child victims per 1,000 children in the population.

Outcome 2. Reduce the incidence of child abuse and/or neglect in foster care

In 2003, 0.41 percent of the children in foster care were found to be maltreated by foster parents or facility staff members. Although this percent exceeds the national median of 0.39 percent, it represents an improvement in performance from 2000 to 2003 (-24.1 percent change).

Outcome 3. Increase permanency for children in foster care

In 2003, 83.5 percent of children exiting foster care in Utah (measure 3.1) were discharged to a permanent home, which is close to the national median of 86.3 percent. Also in 2003, 78.3 percent of the children exiting foster care who had a diagnosed disability (measure 3.2) were discharged to a permanent home, which is close to the national median of 79.5 percent. However, only 55.1 percent of the children exiting foster care in 2003 who were older than age 12 when they entered foster care (measure 3.3) were discharged to a permanent home, which is substantially less than the national median of 72.2 percent.

In 2003, 14.4 percent of the children reported as emancipated from foster care entered foster care when they were age 12 or younger (measure 3.4). Although this percent is less than the national median of 29.6 percent, it represents a decline in performance on this measure from 2000 to 2003 (-37.1 percent change).

There were no real differences in 2003 with regard to exits to permanency as a function of children's race or ethnicity (measure 3.5). (This was assessed only when a particular race or ethnicity accounted for at least 10 percent of the exits from foster care.) White (non-Hispanic) children exiting foster care were as likely to be discharged to a permanent home (82.8 percent) as were Hispanic children exiting foster care (85.5 percent). However, the percent of Hispanic children in the foster care population (21.4 percent) exceeded the percent of Hispanic children in the State's child population (11.8 percent).

Outcome 4. Reduce time in foster care to reunification without increasing re-entry

In 2003, 82.3 percent of reunifications in Utah occurred within 12 months of a child's entry into foster care (measure 4.1), which exceeds the national median of 72.0 percent. There was no change in performance on this measure from 2000 to 2003. In addition, only 1.9 percent of reunifications occurred after the child had been in foster care for at least 36 months, which is less than the national median of 3.5 percent.

Utah's relatively high percentage of reunifications occurring within 12 months of a child's entry into foster care corresponds to a relatively high percentage of children re-entering foster care. In 2003, 11.2 percent of the children entering foster care were re-entering within 12 months of a prior episode (measure 4.2). Although this percent exceeds the national median of 9.5 percent, it represents an improvement in performance on the measure from 2000 to 2003 (-13.8 percent change). However, 8.6 percent of the children entering foster care in 2003 were entering more than 12 months after a prior foster care episode. Consequently, 19.8 percent of all children entering foster care in 2003 had been in foster care at a prior time.

Outcome 5. Reduce time in foster care to adoption

In 2003, 75.8 percent of finalized adoptions in Utah occurred within 24 months of a child's entry into foster care (measure 5.1). This percent not only far exceeds the national median of 23.9 percent, but also represents an improvement in performance on this measure from 2000 to 2003 (+14.2 percent change).

Outcome 6. Increase placement stability

In 2003, only 72.5 percent of the children in foster care for less than 12 months experienced no more than two placement settings (measure 6.1), which is less than the national median of 84.2 percent. Also in 2003, only 33.8 percent of the children in foster care for at least 12 months, but less than 24 months, experienced no more than two placement settings, which is less than the national median of 59.1 percent.

Outcome 7. Reduce placements of young children in group homes and institutions

In 2003, 11.2 percent of the children entering foster care who were age 12 or younger were placed in a group home or institution (measure 7.1). This percent not only exceeds the national median of 8.3 percent, but also represents a decline in performance on this measure from 2000 to 2003 (+261.3).

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