WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a move aimed at better understanding and addressing the experiences of American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) children in the child welfare system, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently proposed a rule to expand data collection related to these children’s status and experiences.
The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), a division of HHS, uses data from the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis Reporting System (AFCARS) to provide national statistics on the child welfare population, aid in budgeting, produce reports for Congress, and monitor compliance with federal requirements. However, the current information received is insufficient to fully comprehend the situations of AI/AN children who are subject to both Title IV-E of the Social Security Act and the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (ICWA).
The ICWA was established to promote stability and security within Indian tribes and families by placing children in foster or adoptive homes that reflect the unique values of Indian culture. Despite these protections, AI/AN children remain overrepresented in the child welfare system, and recent data suggests that they are at a higher risk than other children of being confirmed for maltreatment and placed in out-of-home care.
“Every child deserves to feel safe, heard, and connected to their roots. That’s why we’re taking this step to ensure data on American Indian/Alaska Native children and families are collected by our child welfare systems,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra.
The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) would require state child welfare agencies to collect and report a variety of data elements. These include whether the state inquired about a child’s Indian status as defined in ICWA, court determinations that ICWA applies to the child, whether the child’s parent or Indian custodian was sent notice in accordance with ICWA, and information on requests to transfer cases to tribal court.
The NPRM also calls for data on meeting the placement preferences under ICWA and whether the court determined there were active efforts to comply with ICWA’s requirements.
Administration on Children, Youth, and Families Commissioner, Rebecca Jones Gaston, acknowledged that while the current data collected from states is a good start, it does not provide enough information about Native children to meaningfully inform policy-making.
By improving data collection related to ICWA’s procedural protections, HHS, other federal agencies, and states would be better equipped to target policy development, training, and technical assistance to specific areas of need. This increased understanding will help address the disproportionate number of AI/AN children in the child welfare system and maintain the integrity of tribal communities.
The proposed aims to ensure equitable treatment and protection for all children within the child welfare system. The expanded data collection seeks to bring about more informed decision-making, improved policy development, and ultimately, better outcomes for American Indian and Alaska Native children and families.
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