Agency fighting racial disparities looks to expand services

Almost half of the reports of child maltreatment made in Minnesota involve Native American Children or children of color, but since 1991, the Office of Ombudsperson for Families has been working to decrease the racial and ethnic disparities in Minnesota’s child welfare system.

The independent state agency was founded to ensure that all families and children are protected and treated fairly in child placement proceedings, said Ann Hill, ombudsperson for African-American Families.

Currently, four ombudspersons work with American Indian, African-American, Asian-Pacific, and Spanish-speaking children and families, but officials hope to receive additional funding that will allow them to meet a growing need for their services, they told the House Health and Human Services Finance Committee Wednesday during a review of Gov. Mark Dayton’s $45.8 billion biennial budget proposal.

In addition to taking complaints against child welfare agencies, reviewing public policy and monitoring agency compliance of laws like the Indian Child Welfare Act, the ombudspersons also investigate potential cases of bias, discrimination, linguistic or cultural insensitivity and the lack of culturally appropriate services.

The number of complaints and inquiries the agency received in 2014 more than doubled in 2015, as did the number on consultations and resolutions. While the agency conducted 19 investigations in 2013, it conducted 29 in 2014 and 58 in 2015.

Dayton’s proposal includes recommendations for an additional $169,000 in the 2018-19 biennium and $176,000 in the 2020-21 biennium to hire a full-time investigator.

Not only would an investigator allow the ombudspersons to meet increased demand on the agency, but it would also enable the office to expand its current offerings. Additions would include a referral center to connect families with resources and an external survey to identify trends and systemic problems, said Jill Kehaulani Esch, ombudsperson for American Indian Families.

The increased demand on the agency resulted from recent county changes to their screening and intake processes, the implementation of the Northstar Care for Children law, and policy changes stemming from the Governor’s Task Force on the Protection of Children, Kehaulani Esch said.

Dayton’s budget also includes $19,000 in Fiscal Years 2018-19 and $24,000 in Fiscal Years 2020-21 to maintain the agency’s current level of service by covering routine cost increases in compensation and operational expenses.