(The Center Square) – The amount of child maltreatment cases the Division of Children and Family Services handled promptly decreased in Arkansas this year, according to a new report released Monday.
DCFS Director Mischa Martin presented the division’s annual report to a joint meeting of the Senate Committee on Children and Youth and the House Committee on Aging, Children and Youth, Legislative and Military Affairs. It showed 79% of maltreatment investigations were opened on time, down from 85% in 2021. The law requires reports of maltreatment to be initiated within 24 or 72 hours, depending on the severity of the case.
Similarly, DCFS completed 74% of its investigations on time. The previous three years saw 81% of cases being completed on time, according to the report. Investigations are supposed to be completed within 45 days.
It comes as caseworkers are handling more than what the division has deemed ideal. The average caseload statewide was a little over 22 cases per worker, according to the report. The goal of DCFS is for a caseworker to handle no more than 20 cases.
There were 9,442 children involved in cases where the division found allegations of maltreatment to be true. Throughout the year, there were 29 cases involving a child’s death and 10 where a child almost died, the report said. Eleven child fatality cases were still pending at the time of the report.
Of the 31,859 reports of child maltreatment received by the Arkansas Child Abuse Hotline, 26% were found true. Neglect was the main allegation investigated, Martin said.
Meanwhile, DCFS improved its timeliness in completing initial health screenings for children entering the foster system due to maltreatment. Depending on the alleged maltreatment, DCFS must complete either a 24-hour or 72-hour initial health screening. Children must also get a Comprehensive Health Assessment within 60 days. DCFS completed 76% of these screenings on time. Sixty-seven percent were completed on time in 2021.
More children left foster care than entered during fiscal year 2022, according to the report. There were 4,524 children in the system at the end of the fiscal year, down by 330 in 2021. More than half of the children in foster care have been in the system for over a year, the report said.
Also improved was the amount of time it takes for adoptions to be finalized. The average length of time for an adoption to be finalized was just over 10 months, compared to a little over 12 months in 2021. A total of 803 adoptions were finalized in Arkansas during fiscal year 2022, the report said.
