Advocates urge child-centered reforms; committee adopts regular meeting schedule

The House Oversight Subcommittee on Child Welfare System met Jan. 30 and heard a presentation from Bradley Gilbreth of the Center for Rights of Abused Children outlining nationwide child-welfare data and possible reforms to give children stronger legal protections and improve permanency outcomes.

Gilbreth told the committee that “everybody had a voice except the child,” arguing that many child-welfare proceedings lack child-directed legal representation and citing national research that, he said, shows poor outcomes for children who lack counsel. He urged Michigan lawmakers to consider steps other states have taken, including guaranteed legal counsel for children, enforceable bills of rights for children and caregivers, stronger fatality-review processes, and clearer statutory kinship-search requirements.

The presentation framed reforms around four pillars — justice, safety, family and future — and included national and state figures Gilbreth attributed to federal data. Highlights cited to the committee included: that about 50% of children experience reabuse within three years of reunification;…