Contact: David Weaver, 301-217-6530
For Immediate Release: March 11, 1999

Duncan Recommends Additional
$2.7 Million In Funding For Child
Welfare/Family Violence Initiative

In a preview of his first budget of the 21st Century," Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan today announced that he will include more than $2.7 million in additional funding for child welfare services and child support enforcement. The initiative includes hiring additional personnel, enhanced staff and family training, opening of the County's domestic violence center, and additional school health and infant care services.

Highlighting the Executive's initiative is nearly $2 million in new funding to hire 32 additional staff to investigate and process cases of child abuse and neglect and family violence. Funding for the new positions will be included in Duncan's recommended FY 2000 operating budget which will presented to the County Council next week. If approved by the Council, the positions will be funded beginning in July for Child Welfare Services (22), the Department of Police (2), the State's Attorney (3), the County Attorney (3), and Sheriff's Office (2).

"These new positions will help us respond to the increase in the number of reported cases of child abuse, as well as strengthen our child support enforcement efforts," said Duncan. Duncan's budget includes the following personnel allocations:

• Child Welfare Services ($1.4 million) - to hire 22 new employees within the unit, including 20 Social workers and two administrative aides to investigate new cases and provide appropriate follow-up;

• Office of the County Attorney ($149,860) - to hire two assistant county attorneys and one legal assistant to provide legal work for the Department of Health and Human Services' Child in Need of Assistance and Termination of Parental Rights cases;

• Department of Police ($29,330) - to civilanize two positions and deploy two police officers to the Department's Youth Services Division for coordinating child abuse and neglect investigations with Child Welfare;

• Office of the State's Attorney ($148,630) - to hire two attorneys and a legal assistant to be assigned to cases involving family violence; and

• Sheriff's Office ($101,310) - to hire one deputy sheriff and one administrative aide to work in the Office's Child Support Enforcement Unit.

  Following the highly publicized child abuse case of a 5-year old Germantown boy in April 1997, County Executive Duncan launched a total review of the County's Child Welfare Services. This review included a detailed study of this case as well as a system-wide review of how child abuse and neglect cases are investigated in Montgomery County. The review produced an action plan to strengthen the investigations of child abuse and neglect cases. These recommendations were approved and implemented with oversight by a special advisory panel headed by retired Juvenile Court Judge John Tracey. Improvements to date include the hiring of eight additional social workers; opening of two regional child welfare offices in Germantown and Silver Spring; the appointment of an ombudsman to respond to questions and complaints; increasing training for County child welfare and Montgomery County Public Schools staff to improve communication and teamwork; and enhancing public education outreach efforts. The

  County also led a successful State legislative effort that now requires Maryland Courts to give primary consideration to the safety, health and well-being of a child in cases involving the termination of parental rights.

  "The Child Welfare League of America is pleased to see the County make this critical investment in the safety and protection of children," said Linda Spears, director of child protection for the Child Welfare League of America. "It is an essential improvement that will make the difficult job of social workers, police, and legal support more effective. We hope that their efforts will be supported by the broader community through local neighborhood efforts to support kids and help families."

  Since April 1997, the number of investigations for alleged child abuse and neglect have risen more than 25 percent, with an all-time high of 300 cases investigated for February 1999. According to State guidelines, the ratio of caseworkers to the number of cases investigated should be 20 cases per foster care worker. Montgomery County caseworkers are currently averaging 27.1 cases per foster care worker. The State's guidelines also say the ratio of supervisors to caseworkers should be one supervisor to every 6 workers. In Montgomery County the supervisor ratio to employees is 7.5 to 1.

  Full funding of the County's Child Welfare positions will bring the County's Child Welfare Services staffing in line with State guidelines.

  Other funding recommendations include additional spending for child abuse prevention training ($50,000) and family to family violence prevention training ($5,000); hiring of four additional school health workers for new schools ($174,000); operating costs for the new domestic violence center ($174,000); funding for the "Montgomery Babies" healthcare initiatives ($300,000); a grant to the Children of Separation and Divorce Center, Inc. ($4,000) and funding for the Linkages to Learning health care program ($136,000).

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