PHOENIX — Arizona lawmakers on the Senate Health and Human Services Committee unanimously passed a bill Tuesday that would give the Department of Child Safety (DCS) more authority to investigate allegations of abuse by group home employees.
The new head of DCS told lawmakers earlier this month that under current laws his agency doesn’t have the authority to investigate allegations of abuse or neglect in group homes, and instead, these cases are handed off to local law enforcement to investigate. Senate Bill 1067 would change that.
“I’m not sure this is a finished product, but a good start and it puts us on a path to, I think, some good reforms,” said bill sponsor Senator T.J. Shope (R) of Casa Grande during Tuesday’s committee hearing.
SB1067 in its current version only allows DCS to investigate allegations of abuse in group homes and not allegations of neglect.
“If this bill moves forward, it will restore this important tool to investigate and to substantiate a group home worker in cases where they abuse a child,” said DCS Chief Legislative Liaison Chris Gustafson at the hearing.
The proposed new law comes after an ABC15 investigation found DCS failed to make sure a diabetic child in their custody received his life-saving medication at a group home and a scathing state audit also found an overall lack of oversight in group homes and the agency was slow to investigate in other cases.
Jakob Blodgett, 9, died a day after Christmas two years ago after Maricopa County investigators said employees at a Phoenix group home let him refuse his insulin.
“Jakob's case is obviously a wake-up call, for many folks, especially myself and others who've been watching this agency for some time, and we do know that it's troubled,” said Shope, who chairs the Health and Human Services Committee with direct oversight over DCS.
SB1067 now goes before the Senate Republican Caucus and Rules Committee.
