An Arizona House committee is preparing to take a hard look at the state's child welfare agency this week, as lawmakers push for reforms they say are long overdue.
Representative Walt Blackman (R-AZ), chairman of the Arizona House Committee on Government, will convene a special hearing on Thursday alongside Vice Chairman Lisa Fink (R-AZ), targeting the Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS).
The session is scheduled for February 19 at the state capitol, where the committee will examine how DCS handles abuse reports, places children in homes, and oversees congregate care facilities.
Rep. Blackman didn't mince words when describing what's driving the push. "Arizona's child safety system exists for one reason: to protect children," he said. "When the state takes custody, there is no room for excuses. This hearing is about accountability and enforceable change."
Package of Bills
At the center of the hearing is a package of six bills. The most significant may be Blackman's HB 2860, which would create an independent oversight committee to review DCS performance and critical incidents, a direct response to concerns that the agency has been left to police itself for too long.
His HB 2611 would also impose stricter safety and training standards on congregate care facilities, where some of the state's most vulnerable children are housed.
Rep. Fink is sponsoring her own reforms, including HB 2035, which would broaden kinship placement eligibility and require greater transparency when DCS denies a relative's request to care for a child. She's also behind HB 2041, which would clarify that poverty alone cannot be treated as child neglect.
"Families and taxpayers deserve a child welfare agency that acts with urgency, follows the law, and does the basics right every time," Fink said. "We are advancing reforms that strengthen kinship care, raise standards in group settings, and require action when credible abuse is reported."
The committee will additionally hear HB 4004 from Representative Rachel Keshel (R-AZ), which would prohibit DCS from screening out abuse reports when the alleged abuser holds parenting time over the child.
