Michigan Votes Forum

As previously stated:

First, Section 7(b)1 must be revised to strike "may" and replace with SHALL.  A basic review of county activities, particularly Wayne County, will demonstrate the lack of federal compliance, OMB Circular A-87.  So, if a county is not mandated to establish and maintain a database of child fatalities, then how is the state to meet the objectives of a statistical database as the data are and will be skewed, and even suspect.

Next, Section 5  must include (g) ONE COMMUNITY REPRESENTATIVE.  The operations of the state's child welfare system are sheilded behind the iron curtain of secrecy.  There needs to be established in this advisory committee a system of checks and balances to steer policy; otherwise, the status quo will continue to admiral failed policies.

Finally, add Section 10 (G) The number and type of child abuse or neglect complaints against A CHILD PLACING AGENCY OR RESIDENTIAL INSTITUTION before the child's death and, if there was more than 1 child abuse or neglect complaint in the 2 years preceding the child's death, the child protective services category as described in section 8d given to each investigated complaint.

Currently, there is very little opportunity to report child abuse and neglect within the confines of the foster care system.  The Office of Children's Ombudsman "may entertain" which complaints will investigated and most of the investigative reports are liminted to selective issues of investigation due to a lack of office resources or a failure of a party to comply with the investigation.  The Bureau of Children and Adult Licensing have no enforcement authority and this is why:

A licensed entity my operate under 2nd and 3rd provisional licensing without any recourse.  Conversely, if an organization "voluntarily" stops its operations, it may reorganize under a different name, continuing it same aberant operations, which include abuse and neglect.

Lastly, Counties Community Mental Health may be the only opportunity for children under the auspices of the state to self-report complalints of abuse and neglect.  Unfortunately, these reports are either kept internally and never reported to the state, or, the reports are filed for refuse recycling.

I understand these legislative initatives are to bring the state in line with the UNESCO Intercountry Adoptions Treaty, the same that was done with licensing standards of social workers, but this is a window of opportunity, opened to include an integral part of transparency and accountability, and that is create a universal complaint registry for child welfare to include, not just child fatalities in foster care, but abuse and neglect in foster care, as well as fraud, waste and abuse.

Beverly Tran

An Original Source