Foster Care Placements – Utah

Utah foster care placements up 38% in past decade, legislative audit finds, By Marjorie Cortez, January 19, 2011, Deseret News: “The fallout of the 1993 federal lawsuit that challenged Utah’s child welfare practices may be a 38 percent increase in children being placed in foster care, a new legislative audit suggests. ‘Others believe the David C. vs. Leavitt lawsuit has made DCFS (the Division of Child and Family Services) and court staff risk averse and led them to protect children in foster care more than in-home,’ according to a performance audit of the Division of Child and Family Services released Tuesday. DCFS has operated under a court-appointed monitor for more than a decade under the lawsuit. Federal oversight ended in 2007. During the past decade, foster care placements in Utah have increased by 38 percent while the number of families that receive in-home supports that allow children to stay in their family homes has decreased by 40 percent, the audit by Legislative Auditor General shows…”