Latest news with #DCYF
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Murders of Wenatchee girls sparks outcry over WA child welfare laws
The Brief The murders of three young sisters in Wenatchee have sparked debate over Washington's Keeping Families Together Act, which aims to reduce foster care placements. Critics argue the law may compromise child safety by allowing unsupervised visits for risky parents, while DCYF attributes child fatalities to factors like fentanyl availability. The incident underscores tensions between family preservation and child safety, prompting calls to reassess visitation rights practices. WENATCHEE, Wash. - The recent deaths of three young sisters—Paityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia, 5—have resurfaced a fierce debate over child welfare policies in Washington state. The girls were found near a campground in Wenatchee after a scheduled visit with their father, Travis Decker, who is now a fugitive wanted on charges of kidnapping and first-degree murder. The tragedy has drawn attention to the state's child welfare laws, particularly the Keeping Families Together Act (HB 1227), which was enacted in 2021 to reduce the number of children placed into foster care and support family preservation. However, some lawmakers argue that the law's provisions may have inadvertently compromised child safety. What they're saying Rep. Travis Couture, a Republican representing the 35th Legislative District, has been vocal in his criticism of the law. He emphasized that while he supports parental rights, the safety of children must be the paramount concern. "We've got to start using common sense and find out that if a parent is homeless and/or mentally ill and dangerous that they shouldn't be having unsupervised access to three young children," Couture said. "I think that's a recipe for disaster and just because nothing may have happened in previous visits, it's really a ticking time bomb for some of these folks." Couture also criticized what he perceives as judicial leniency in granting unsupervised visitation rights to parents with known risks. "Oftentimes, what we're seeing here in Washington, is the courts kind of doing some gymnastics and bending over backwards to make sure dangerous parents still have access, unsupervised, to their kids," said Couture. "Just speaking generally about child welfare, we've had a stunning skyrocketing amount of needless deaths of small children in our state over the last handful of years because of the Keeping Families Together Act." The other side The Washington State Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) has defended the law, stating that data does not support claims that it has led to an increase in child fatalities. According to DCYF, the rise in child deaths is primarily due to the increased availability of fentanyl and a lack of substance-use disorder treatment in communities, rather than changes in removal standards. The Source Information in this story comes from original reporting from FOX 13 Seattle reporter Lauren Donovan. Wenatchee dad, 3 young girls unreachable, missing person alert activated 'Shut your legs' comment, rating female staff: Snoqualmie Police Chief fired after probe DOJ to announce drug trafficking arrests in Seattle Washington state named 'sanctuary jurisdiction' by Trump admin, 35 of 39 counties listed Motorcyclist speaks out after arrest made in Auburn, WA hit-and-run nearly 2 years ago WA beekeeper working to save millions of bees involved in crash in Whatcom County FBI scrutiny puts pressure on Seattle mayor after protest clash To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter. Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national news.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
DCYF frontline workers call for funding protections amid persistent vacancies
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Frontline workers lined the entrance of the Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) as they once again urged lawmakers to hold the line on the child welfare agency's budget. 'The DCYF administration and the politicians are not on the frontline,' said Jessie Sheridan, a DCYF casework supervisor. 'We will always have higher needs with our youth with significant mental health challenges, behavioral issues, trauma and substance abuse histories.' Last year, SEIU Local 580 fought to restore $4.6 million in unspent funds so the department could fill frontline vacancies. But this year, union president Matthew Gunnip said, the state agency still needs to fill those jobs. 'There are 51 vacancies just among frontline positions that were connected to funding for accreditation,' he said. DCYF was not able to meet 12 News' deadline for comment. Currently, DCYF is authorized to have 715 employees, but documents show only about 650 of those jobs were filled as of last winter. House Speaker Joe Shekarchi has warned several times that this year's budget will be tight due to a projected deficit and federal funding cuts. 'DCYF's chronic problems are not due to a lack of funding from the General Assembly,' he wrote on Tuesday. Just last week, the House voted to block raises for Governor Dan McKee's cabinet, which includes the head of DCYF. But Senate President Val Lawson allowed those raises to take effect as of Sunday. 'This is about trying to retain and recruit cabinet-level positions, and that has been an area here in Rhode Island that has been of concern,' Lawson said on Newsmakers last Friday. Gunnip said the union is not against cabinet raises, but said the state needs to make sure it's supporting rank-and-file workers as well. 'Until they're fighting for all their frontline workers to get those same raises that compensate competitively with Massachusetts and Connecticut, those raises shouldn't be accepted,' he said. Download the and apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch or with the new . Follow us on social media: Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Foster families deserve gratitude. But they need support too.
Foster parenting remains one of the most impactful roles a Rhode Islander can play. But the number of licensed foster homes is shrinking. (Getty photo) Across Rhode Island, children enter foster care every week because their homes are no longer safe — due to a range of complex factors, including family instability, abuse, unmet needs, or other family challenges. When that happens, we don't just need shelter. We need people. We need families who can meet children where they are, offer compassion and consistency, and help them begin to heal. The problem is, those families are getting harder to find. According to the most recent data, approximately 1,272 children under the age of 21 are in the care of Rhode Island's Department of Children Youth and Families (DCYF) and living in out-of-home placements. But the number of licensed foster homes is shrinking. Too often, children wait in hospitals, residential treatment facilities, or bounce between short-term placements simply because there's nowhere else for them to go. In some cases, siblings are separated — not because it's in their best interest, but because no one can take them together. Foster parents have always been asked to do a lot. But today, they are doing more than ever: caring for children who have experienced complex trauma, navigating behavioral and medical challenges, and coordinating services across multiple systems — all while parenting. And they are doing it with less. Fewer fellow foster parents to lean on. Less access to respite care. Fewer placements to share the load. Less certainty about the resources that will be there for them tomorrow. Despite these challenges, foster parenting remains one of the most impactful roles a Rhode Islander can play. I've seen it firsthand. I've seen teens placed in homes where they were listened to — maybe for the first time — and start to believe they matter. I've seen toddlers learn to sleep through the night again, and siblings reunited in a living room that's suddenly filled with laughter. What foster parents provide isn't just shelter. It's safety, consistency, and the hope of a brighter future. And yet, we rarely talk about what these families need. We thank them in May, but gratitude isn't enough. They need respite, mental health resources, community, and predictable support from the systems around them. They need to be treated not as temporary caregivers, but as essential partners in a child's recovery and growth. I've seen teens placed in homes where they were listened to — maybe for the first time — and start to believe they matter. I've seen toddlers learn to sleep through the night again, and siblings reunited in a living room that's suddenly filled with laughter. Policy conversations around foster care often center on recruitment — but recruitment is only part of the equation. Retention — ensuring that families stay engaged and supported over time — requires meaningful, sustained investment. That means adequate reimbursement rates, and timely, barrier-free access to the services they need, without having to navigate a maze of referrals or red tape. We need a 'no wrong door' approach and a system of care that's easy to understand and navigate. It also means investing in a stable workforce — one where families aren't met with long waitlists, and where workers have manageable caseloads and the capacity to provide consistent, compassionate support. And it means ensuring foster parents themselves have access to emotional support, ongoing training, and responsive systems of care. What's at stake isn't just program success — it's the well-being of children who've already lost too much. If we want foster families to keep showing up, we must meet them there — with better support, stronger networks, and policies that reflect the gravity of what we ask them to do. Because every child who needs a foster home deserves one. And every person willing to open their home deserves our full support. This Foster Care Awareness Month, let's not only thank foster families. Let's stand behind them — and ensure they're not standing alone. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
As Senate takes up budget, state rep intensifies attacks on New Hampshire's child advocate
Child Advocate Cassandra Sanchez speaks on March 22, 2023. Behind her are, from left, Sen. Sharon Carson, Rep. Jess Edwards, and Joe Ribsman, the former head of DCYF. (File photo by Annmarie Timmins/New Hampshire Bulletin) What was originally pitched as purely a cost-cutting measure has morphed into attacks on the New Hampshire Office of the Child Advocate. When state Rep. Dan McGuire originally proposed eliminating the Office of the Child Advocate — which serves as the state's watchdog for its child welfare, juvenile justice, and youth care systems, and advocates for the best interests of New Hampshire children — he said it had to be done because the state needed to save money amid a challenging fiscal environment. However, the Epsom Republican has since altered his argument, saying the office is interfering with the Legislature's work. McGuire, as chair of one of the three legislative subcommittees tasked with cutting hundreds of millions of dollars from the state budget, first publicly pitched eliminating the office — as well as the Commission on Aging and the Housing Appeals Board — during a March 17 work session. 'There's a number of these smaller things that are sort of nice-to-haves, but they're not necessary,' McGuire said that day. 'And so, we need the money. I don't know how to put it any blunter.' The work session came in the midst of the lengthy state budgeting process that began in February when Gov. Kelly Ayotte released her budget proposal. Soon after, the Republican-led House Ways and Means Committee deemed her revenue projections — which predicted a quick economic turnaround after years of lagging business tax revenues — too optimistic by hundreds of millions of dollars. Republicans on the Finance Committee, including McGuire, soon got to work cutting. McGuire was tasked with finding $200 million of savings, he said. Cutting the child advocate saves the state about $2.2 million. However, when the budget came to the full House for a final vote, McGuire said it wasn't just the need for cost-savings that warranted this elimination. 'The Office of Child Advocate has interfered with rather than assisted needed legislation to reform child abuse and child welfare laws,' he said on the House floor this month. McGuire assessed the office's two main functions as advocating for and against legislation and serving in an ombudsman or conflict resolution-type role. 'There are no end to people interested in legislation who have child welfare in mind,' he said. 'We don't need to hire people to do that.' McGuire added that the latter function was 'duplicative' of that of the Division for Children, Youth, and Families, 'and if DCYF is poorly run, the solution is not to create yet another agency, but its to fix and change the leadership of DCYF.' McGuire did not respond to the Bulletin's requests for an interview. Cassandra Sanchez, the state's child advocate and head of that office, said neither McGuire nor his colleagues spoke to her about the elimination or raised any of their concerns before they moved to eliminate her office. She also said McGuire's floor speech was the first she heard that he was displeased with her work. 'They did mention that there needed to be further cost-saving measures, but had not floated any idea of the potential of repealing our statute,' she previously told the Bulletin. 'And given our office budget is so miniscule, I had not even thought of that as a potential option.' Soon after McGuire's statements on the House floor, the New Hampshire House of Representatives approved a roughly $15.36 billion budget — one that eliminated funding for the Office of the Child Advocate. That budget spends $643 million less than Ayotte's proposal. Now, it will be considered by the Senate. Ayotte, who included the office in her budget proposal, said she hopes to work with the Senate to restore the Office of the Child Advocate — as well as several other agencies, funds, and positions that House Republicans removed. 'There are many things that I'm going to be working with the Senate to prioritize and make sure that I get back in the priorities that were in my budget,' Ayotte, who is also a Republican, said earlier this month around the vote. She added that she is 'confident that the revenue numbers that I laid out in my budget are actually more accurate revenue numbers than the lower proposals made by the House.' The Senate will now have the opportunity to either restore funding for the Office of the Child Advocate or keep it out of the budget. State Sen. James Gray, the Senate's finance chair, said he won't say for certain what the Senate hopes to do until the Senate Ways and Means Committee has completed its revenue projections, but he noted that the Senate Finance Committee is being pulled in many different directions. 'The Finance Committee has a lot of requests from a lot of different people to restore things from the House budget,' he said. 'Before we can make any informed decision, we need to know what revenues are.' Gray said programs to keep children safe — like the Office of the Child Advocate — are a priority. Funding Medicaid for people with disabilities is also a priority. 'I could go on and on,' he said. 'It's just too many priorities and the funding is limited.' Gray said he and his legislative colleagues are always communicating with the governor's office, but wouldn't say whether they'd discussed the budget yet.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
WA Senate passes bill to exclude juvenile facilities from prison riot laws
The Brief The Washington State Senate passed a bill Tuesday morning that excludes juvenile facilities from laws around punishments for prison riots. Supporters of the bill argue current standards around prison riots are unfairly applied to inmates at juvenile facilities, while opponents say it will only enhance dangerous environments. OLYMPIA, Wash. - The Washington State Senate passed a bill Tuesday morning that excludes juvenile facilities from laws around punishments for prison riots. Supporters argue the change is necessary to correct unfair standards, while opponents say the bill threatens safety for kids and staff at already dangerous facilities. Passed on a 27-21 vote, House Bill 1815 excludes juvenile detention facilities operated by counties or the Department of Children Youth and Families from laws around prison riots. Under those laws, if at least two people disturb the order of the facility, they could be charged with a riot and face at least another year behind bars. Additionally, anyone with a prior prison riot offense would be able to petition to have their conviction vacated by a court, and apply for a resentencing if their overall prison term was determined in part by a riot conviction. Supporters of the legislation argued prison riot charges have been disproportionately brought against juveniles, particularly at DCYF's Green Hill School in Lewis County. The facility has recently been under scrutiny for overcrowding, inmate unrest and allegations of staff misconduct. "Charges are often brought against young people getting into fist fights and not stopping the fight when told to do so," said Sen. Claire Wilson, D-Auburn. "They often are brought also against young people who are in the way and get into a fight and are not part of that fight. It is seriously problematic behavior, I will agree with that. But not what most would consider a riot," she added. Instead, Wilson said, riot behavior would be handled by DCYF's internal behavioral management system. Additional charges for bad behavior would be brought based on other specific offenses like assault, arson or escape. All Republicans were joined in opposition to the bill by two Democrats Tuesday, arguing the bill prioritizes offenders rather than facility staff and their safety. "This is sending a message that it's okay to riot in the prison because you'll not be charged with that charge because it'll go away," said Sen. Leonard Christian, R-Spokane Valley. While opponents acknowledged the current prison riot laws may be too harsh, they said the fix is to change the standards, not get rid of them altogether. Senate Minority Leader John Braun, R-Chehalis, spoke out as the Green Hill juvenile facility is in his district. He argued legislative actions around the juvenile rehabilitation system in recent years have created challenges for staff and led to dangerous situations. "It is a very dangerous place for the students and for the staff," he said. "And what this bill will do, meaning well, but what this will do is add more uncertainty and less chance to create a safe environment." Because the Senate made amendments to the bill, it will go back to the House to weigh in on those changes. Once that is resolved, the legislation will be sent to the governor for his consideration. The Source Information in this story Albert James, a television reporter covering state government as part of the Murrow News Fellowship program – a collaborative effort between news outlets statewide and Washington State University. 2 teens accused of ambush-style killing of 18-year-old in Tacoma, WA Trump order opens up all WA national forests for logging Axe-wielding suspect faces multiple charges after arrest in downtown Bremerton Motorcyclist hopes for justice after Snohomish County crash caught on camera Effort to ban flavored tobacco products in WA revived in legislature Seattle man pleads not guilty for child sex abuse material found in dumpsters 77-year-old Seattle man dies after driving off multi-story parking garage To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter. Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national coverage, plus 24/7 streaming coverage from across the nation.
