Notice of Final List of Child Welfare Outcomes and Measures

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

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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?

(1) Less than 12 months from the time of latest removal from home

(2) At least 12 months, but less than 24 months

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(3) At least 24 months, but less than 36 months

(4) At least 36 months, but less than 48 months

(5) 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?

(1) Less than 12 months from the time of latest removal from home

(2) At least 12 months, but less than 24 months

(3) At least 24 months, but less than 36 months

(4) At least 36 months, but less than 48 months

(5) 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?

(1) Less than 12 months from the time of latest removal from home

(2) At least 12 months, but less than 24 months

(3) At least 24 months, but less than 36 months

(4) At least 36 months, but less than 48 months

(5) 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?

(1) Less than 12 months from the time of latest removal from home

(2) At least 12 months, but less than 24 months

(3) At least 24 months, but less than 36 months

(4) At least 36 months, but less than 48 months

(5) 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