FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Jan. 5, 1996

Lowry announces DSHS changes

OLYMPIA - Building on earlier changes, Gov. Mike Lowry today announced a plan to create an independent Children's Ombudsman to monitor the state's child protection system while shifting licensing and internal investigation functions at the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS). The changes are part of the governor's efforts to bring greater accountability to the state's human services agency.

"We have studied this issue intensively over the last six weeks and found that these adjustments will best fix the holes in our system without negatively affecting services to families and children," Lowry said.

The governor's plan accomplishes the following:

• Children's Ombudsman - The governor proposes legislation to create an independent Children's Ombudsman to effectively review state-provided children's services and respond to complaints about the care of children under state custody. The ombudsman will report directly to the governor and will issue annual reports on the status of children's services and any recommendations for changes.
• Licensing - The governor will issue an executive order to remove group home and foster care licensing functions from the Division of Children and Family Services and create a separate licensing division within DSHS. Currently, licensers and foster care placement workers report to the same supervisors, raising concerns that the demand for foster care space could lead to relaxed oversight of facilities. Placing licensing and foster care in separate divisions removes that possible conflict of interest.
• Office of Special Investigations - The governor will issue an executive order to remove internal investigation duties from DSHS' Office of Special Investigations (OSI). Because the DSHS secretary oversees both the investigators and the employees being investigated, there is an inherent conflict of interest in this structure. OSI will continue to conduct welfare and vendor fraud investigations, but will no longer look into matters involving employee misconduct. The executive order directs the Washington State Patrol to develop a standard for departmental investigations and assign trained officers to conduct those at the request of the DSHS secretary.
• Child welfare policies - The governor will issue an executive order to codify several policy directives made by former DSHS Secretary Jean Soliz. These policies will ensure that shared decision-making is the rule regarding child welfare cases, that at least one person in each DSHS region be assigned to monitor children's progress in group homes, and that the agency must prepare annual report cards showing how DSHS services are affecting children.

Lowry said these changes will build upon his supplemental budget request for more workers and services to effectively tackle the child protection problem in the state. Last month, the governor formally requested 132 more children's services social workers, 22 substance abuse specialists and 23 group home and foster care licensers. He also earmarked $2.6 million for substance abuse assessment and treatment slots.

The accountability changes proposed today were recommended by a roundtable of experts on child protection services. Newly appointed DSHS Secretary Lyle Quasim said the changes are tightly aimed at reducing the risk of agency error without making service delivery more chaotic.

"Family problems are complex and you can't address them too simply," Quasim said. "Each client of DSHS uses an average of three agency services, such as medical assistance, income assistance, food stamps, or mental health services. The best solution is to make a comprehensive evaluation and deliver these services together, not to create more red tape."

For more information, contact the Governor's Communications Office at 360-753-6790.