The Senate Judiciary’s CPS-focused agenda includes a bill that would require workers to wear audio recording devices while carrying out their duties, including home inspections for allegations of child abuse and neglect. Willis said they have backed off their original suggestion that CPS employees wear body cameras at work. (Photo by Will Price/West Virginia Legislative Photography)
Numerous bills to improve child protective services in West Virginia will be considered at the Capitol this week.
The changes come as part of CPS could not be removed an 11 year venerable girl, Miana Moranfrom their home in Taylor County, and the child was later found to be unresponsive, weighing only 43 pounds and wearing a diaper. CPS had visited the girl’s home several times before her death. Her father and a caretaker were charged with murder.
“I want us to emphasize that transparency and accountability… Every time we look at a piece of legislation that deals with human services [and] CPS that transparency and accountability is what we are looking for,” said Sen. Vince Deeds, R-Greenbrier.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Tom Willis said his committee will focus on foster care in the coming days, introducing agendas full of bills aimed at improving the way CPS handles and processes cases more tough to terminate parental rights.
Willis, R-Berkeley, held one listening session Monday morning, where parents and grandparents shared their stories of how they have suffered injustice at the hands of CPS, including the wrongful removal of children.
“We have this week set aside for this, and I think this listening session helped us to be in the right frame of mind to hear from the people of West Virginia so that we have that perspective as we go in and digest it and analyze it and, God willing, pass the best possible legislation to protect children and families in West Virginia and achieve the best possible outcomes,” Willis said on the Senate floor later that same day.
As the number of children in state custody has increased, largely due to West Virginia’s drug crisis, CPS staffing levels have lagged, leading to high caseloads and oversight problems.
Gov. Patrick Morrisey’s administration told lawmakers When discussing CPS this legislative session, it was noted that the Department of Human Services is often understaffed.
The governor’s budget did not include funding for additional CPS employees.
There is more than 5,900 children in foster care in West Virginia.
While the CPS vacancy rate has fallen to less than 10%, Data from the Department of Human Services—obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request—showed CPS staff failing to make immediate face-to-face contact with children within the required time frame based on the severity of the allegation of abuse or neglect.
For foster children placed out of state, CPS only meets required time frames 63% of the time.
Molly Aborgast, executive director of the West Virginia chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, encouraged members of the Senate Judiciary who are focused on CPS reform to focus on the reduction reduce the number of workers to a manageable level and invest in recruitment and retention through competitive compensation.
“It is important that frontline staff are meaningfully included in the reform discussions so that the guidelines reflect real-world practice conditions.” Aborgast said.
The Senate Judiciary’s CPS-focused agenda includes a bill that would require workers to wear audio recording devices while carrying out their duties, including home inspections for allegations of child abuse and neglect. Willis said they have backed off their original suggestion that CPS employees wear body cameras at work.
The measure Senate Bill 540does not include estimated costs for recording devices or storage.
The bill provides that in the event that the child is separated from the parents or guardians, all audio recordings will be turned over to the parents or guardians’ lawyers. A transcript or audio recording of the interaction with CPS could be provided to the parents through an attorney. The recordings would be confidential.
Willis said parents and grandparents shared that there was a “he said, she said” scenario between what the CPS worker and the parents said in their interaction.
Arbogast emphasized, “The practice of social work relies on building trust, ensuring confidentiality, and creating safe spaces for individuals and families to share confidential information.”
“We are also concerned about how records are stored, who has access, and whether such a requirement could result in inadvertent exposure of customers to harm or legal risk,” she continued. “While we share the goal of supporting worker safety and accountability, we believe there are more effective, trauma-informed approaches that do not compromise client confidentiality or professional judgment.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee is also considering a measure House Bill 4022that would Distribute CPS workers across the state based on county needs. This is intended to counteract the chronic staff shortage in CPS, Mountain State Spotlight reported.
The bill requested by the governor has already been passed by the House of Representatives.
The Senate has already a Senate Bill 228 To do this, the DoHS would need to have a computer or table to assist CPS staff in their child abuse and neglect investigations. The technology will be used as part of a pilot program in two counties. The House Health Committee will review the bill this week before it can be sent to the full House for a vote.
The idea behind the Republican-backed measure is to minimize the amount of time CPS employees spend on paperwork.
Arbogast also called on members of the Senate Judiciary Committee to expand access to quality supervision and ongoing training and to ensure that workers have access to mental health support given the secondary trauma associated with work.”
“(National Association of Social Workers (West Virginia) remains committed to working with lawmakers and the DoHS to advance policies that support both the well-being of workers and the dignity and safety of the families they serve,” she said.
The House of Representatives has passed several nursing measures so far this session, including legislation This requires the DoHS to implement preventive measures to reduce the number of children in foster care.
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