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Parents, caseworkers and foster parents press board on fatalities, removal standard and provider safety
Summary
During public comment the board heard pleas from foster parents, social workers and family members demanding legislative fixes to Washington's removal standard and stronger protections for childcare providers amid fraud allegations and harassment.
Public commenters used the oversight meeting to press policymakers on several fronts: a change to the state's legal removal standard, worker pay and protections for childcare providers accused publicly of fraud.
Multiple speakers asked lawmakers to modify what they described as an overly narrow legal standard (often summarized at the meeting as requiring "imminent physical harm") and to treat substance abuse and chronic neglect as grounds for earlier intervention. Christina Johnson of Keeping Kids Safe and other commenters specifically urged removal of the word "imminent" and urged recognition of neglect and illegal substance use as serious risk factors.
Frontline workers and union members said certain case types—extended foster care, adoption and missing‑from‑care work—are not uniformly eligible for assignment pay even though they involve similar risks and unregulated home visits. "Withholding assignment pay from some staff sends a message that my work in supporting my youth is worth 10% less than my counterparts for no legitimate reason," a social worker said.
A family member’s written account read at the meeting recounted years of DCYF involvement before the death of a child, Soojin Han, and asked the legislature to review House Bill 12‑27 and agency implementation because, the commenter said, the system had "documented opportunities to protect a child and did not." The board recorded the testimony and requested DCYF include these concerns in follow‑up materials.
Several commenters urged stronger safeguards for childcare providers who report being doxxed or threatened; board members asked DCYF about statutory limits on withholding provider contact information and were told such changes would require legislative action. Hedden said the agency is coordinating with the Attorney General’s office on disclosure questions and that suspected fraud is referred to the Office of Financial Accountability.
The public comment segment underscored sharp public concern about child safety and worker protections, and it reinforced board members’ requests for more data and clearer descriptions of how case monitoring and escalation occur when families disengage from voluntary services.
