Report 2013-110 Recommendation 41 Responses

Report 2013-110: Child Welfare Services: The County Child Welfare Services Agencies We Reviewed Must Provide Better Protection for Abused and Neglected Children (Release Date: April 2014)

Recommendation #41 To: Social Services, Department of

To promote continued improvement in the CWS system, Social Services should ask each county CWS agency to report to Social Services on the status of these efforts within 60 days, six months, and one year from the publication of this audit report.

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From November 2020

Due to the global COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing declaration of statewide emergency in March 2020 as well as 40 concurrent declared disasters due to wildfire throughout California the ACIN has not been published. Staff have been otherwise engaged in mission critical activities as they have been deployed to assist with emergency operations and duties have been reassigned to account for the safety and well-being of all impacted foster youth as well as the continued operations of all county child welfare programs. Barring any additional unforeseeable natural disasters, the ACIN will be published by January 31, 2021. Draft copies that have not yet been submitted for stakeholder review can be made available upon request.

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Pending

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From November 2019

CDSS will request that counties provide information regarding their county infrastructure including staffing to support quality assurance work, policy work, and what the agency has done to strengthen supervisory reviews. This information will be collected via all county information notice which will be released and have a due date of March 31, 2020.

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Pending

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From November 2018

CDSS is developing an evaluation survey of the California Child and Family Services Review (C-CFSR) process, which will include asking county CWS agencies to specific whether they have a quality assurance unit, policy unit, and what the agency has done to strengthen supervisory reviews. This evaluation will be completed by March 2019 and again after the release of the revised C-CFSR Manual which is anticipated in May 2019.

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Pending

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From November 2016

This reporting was not present when child welfare programs were realigned, therefore, we disagree with the recommendation and will not implement. The cost of county staff time to do this level of reporting to the Department would create an unfunded mandate. The passage of Proposition 30 in 2012 requires that "...administrative directives, implemented after October 9, 2011, that are not necessary to implement the 2011 Realignment Legislation, and that have an overall effect of increasing the costs already borne by a local agency for programs or levels of service mandated by the 2011 Realignment Legislation, shall apply to local agencies only to the extent that the State provides annual funding for the cost increase."

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Will Not Implement

We disagree that asking county CWS agencies whether they have a quality assurance unit, a policy unit, and what they have done to strengthen supervisory reviews, would create an unfunded state mandate. Our recommendation does not require that county CWS agencies undertake these actions but rather that Social Services encourage these practices and follow up with county CWS agencies to see if they are adopting them. This feedback would be part of the ongoing dialogue Social Services has with county CWS agencies regarding improvements to the CWS system. Social Services is refusing to seek feedback on whether these important practices are being adopted and is blaming this lack of action on the spurious notion that asking for such feedback would create an unfunded mandate.

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From September 2015

CDSS is asking for renewed implementation plans (the originals were required via the ACL 15-34 released on 3/16/15).

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Not Fully Implemented

1-Year Agency Response

Please see the response to the previous recommendation.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 1-Year Status: No Action Taken

Based on the response to the previous recommendation and the All County Letters referenced in that response, it does not appear that Social Services has taken any action to implement this recommendation.

6-Month Agency Response

Please see the response to the previous recommendation.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: No Action Taken

Based on the response to the previous recommendation and the "All County Information Notice" referenced in that response, it does not appear that Social Services has done anything to implement this recommendation.

60-Day Agency Response

Partially Implemented/Anticipated Implementation Date: July 2015

The Department continues to monitor county data, specific to emergency response, investigation timeliness and abuse determinations and dispositions, to identify trends that support further review and technical assistance. The Department also continues to monitor county performance on recurrence of maltreatment or re-entry into foster care. This activity is completed on a continuous basis as part of the California Child and Family Services Review (C-CFSR).

The Department agreed to issue an ACIN to remind counties of the benefits of conducting qualitative reviews of their programs. This ACIN currently is being reviewed, and the Department is on-track to meet our July 2014 commitment.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

All Recommendations in 2013-110

Agency responses received are posted verbatim.