How is Indiana's child welfare system handling foster-home capacity gaps and equity concerns?

Indiana's Department of Child Services and the legislature's child-welfare task force spent June 2026 examining a system where placement demand still outpaces licensed foster homes. DCS leaders told lawmakers that per-child spending has climbed even as the foster caseload has trended down, and the DCS Ombudsman reported hundreds of family-side complaints centered on case plans and placement decisions.

AI-generated summary compiled from Citizen Portal's coverage of the bill. Officials' positions below are sourced from their own words in indexed meetings and press events.