Our Child Welfare System Needs Real Change

Families are being torn apart under policies that prioritize bureaucracy over evidence-based solutions. This petition calls for critical reforms, inspired by the National Coalition for Child Protection Reform (NCCPR), to protect children and families, ensure civil liberties, and promote fairness and transparency.

PURPOSE
To prioritize family preservation, transparency, accountability, and evidence-based practices in Oregon’s child welfare system, ensuring fairness and protecting civil liberties.

CORE REFORMS

1. Transparency in Hearings and Records

• Open child welfare court hearings and records to the public by default, with exceptions only for severe harm proven by clear and convincing evidence.
• Allow child welfare agencies to comment freely on cases made public by other sources to ensure balanced narratives and accountability.

2. Raising Evidentiary Standards

• Apply the "clear and convincing evidence" standard to all stages of child welfare proceedings, including removal, foster care decisions, and substantiating allegations.
• Require detailed judicial findings to justify removals, emphasizing preventive efforts and evidence-based reasoning.

3. Ensuring Quality Legal Representation

• Guarantee interdisciplinary defense teams for families facing CPS investigations, including lawyers, social workers, and parent advocates.
• Provide representation from the moment CPS begins investigating a case.
• Require guardians ad litem (GALs) to advocate for the expressed wishes of children, rather than solely their perceived “best interests.”

4. Restricting CASA’s Role

• Limit Court-Appointed Special Advocates (CASAs) to mentoring foster children and locating extended family for kinship care placements.

5. Screening and Reporting Improvements

• Replace mandatory reporting laws with permissive reporting to encourage genuine suspicions while reducing false or frivolous reports.
• Shift from anonymous to confidential reporting, discouraging misuse while protecting reporters’ identities.
• Establish rational screening protocols for child abuse hotlines to ensure cases meet a reasonable threshold of suspicion before investigation. Read more: The Failure of Mandatory Reporting.

6. Reforming Registries

• Guarantee Due Process: Prohibit listing individuals in central registries without an administrative hearing conducted by an independent officer.
• Raise the Evidence Standard: Apply the "clear and convincing evidence" standard for substantiating allegations before adding names to registries.
• Safeguard Against Misuse: Mandate expungement of unfounded reports within 30 days and create mechanisms for appeals.
• Enhance Oversight: Conduct regular audits of registry systems and publicize findings to ensure compliance and transparency.

7. Supporting Families and Reducing Trauma

• Mandate daily supervised visits between children and their families from the moment of removal until the first court hearing, unless proven harmful by clear and convincing evidence.
• Prohibit practices akin to legal ransom, such as requiring parents to reimburse the state for foster care costs as a condition for reunification.

8. Repealing Harmful Legislation

• Repeal the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) and the Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA), which perpetuate systemic biases and unnecessary removals.

9. Promoting Humility in Policy Language

• Replace “best interests of the child” with “least detrimental alternative” in all child welfare laws and policies, emphasizing the harm of intervention and the need to minimize it.

WHY THIS REFORM MATTERS

• Harm of Foster Care: Children in foster care face trauma, loss of family bonds, and poor life outcomes, with studies showing they often fare worse than children left in minimally supported homes.
• Systemic Issues: High rates of abuse in foster care and overwhelmed systems lead to unsafe placements and unnecessary removals.
• Root Causes: Poverty is often mistaken for neglect, with small supports like housing assistance proving sufficient to keep families intact.
• Due Process Failures: Current processes lack legal protections, leading to unwarranted removals and surveillance.

SOLUTIONS THAT WORK

• Family Preservation Focus: Proven programs like housing assistance, drug treatment, and parent coaching offer better outcomes than foster care.
• Due Process Reforms: Higher standards of proof, timely hearings, and effective legal representation safeguard children and families.
• Success Stories: States like Alabama and Illinois have reduced foster care placements while improving child safety through family-centered reforms.

GOAL

• Gather 1,000 signatures to present to Oregon’s Legislature during its open session.

For more insights and resources, visit nccpr.org and nojudgenojury.org to explore the critical issues surrounding child welfare reform and how you can help make a difference.

Let’s show lawmakers that Oregon families deserve better!