Texas isn’t properly protecting the children in foster care, according to federal court monitors examining a system that’s been dangerous to kids — in the view of the courts — for at least the last decade.
Child Protective Services
Posted in
Coronavirus in Texas
Out of sight, child abuse in Texas thought to be on the rise
Families are stuck at home, confronting stress and fear. And with many schools and day care centers shuttered, child welfare workers can’t rely on teachers to help detect abuse.
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State Government
Federal judge hammers Texas officials over failures to improve foster care system
An exasperated U.S. District Judge Janis Graham Jack found the state in contempt of court for failing to comply with some of her earlier orders in the wide-ranging lawsuit filed on behalf of Texas foster children.
Posted inState Government
Texas child welfare chief Hank Whitman announces retirement
He championed staff pay raises in the three years he spent at the helm of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services.
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Texas Legislature 2019
Analysis: To the relief of Texas lawmakers, voters just aren’t into state budgets
Most of what the state government does is spelled out in the budget Texas lawmakers write every two years. Lucky for them, most voters don’t pay close attention to what’s in that big stack of numbers.
Posted in
Health care
Federal appeals court finds Texas foster kids were endangered — but strikes down some attempts at reform
A 2011 lawsuit over Texas’ beleaguered child welfare system has ping-ponged back and forth between an appeals court in New Orleans and a district court in Corpus Christi.
Posted in
Health care
For girls in the Texas foster care system, teen pregnancy is 5 times more likely
A new report says current and former Texas foster youth face greater pregnancy risks and calls on the state to provide health care and education to at-risk teens.
Posted inState Government
In Texas, you probably won’t get welfare benefits — even if you qualify
Texas’ rolls of cash assistance recipients under its TANF program have steadily shrunk over the last two decades. Some experts say the bureaucracy guarding the state’s safety net makes it difficult to access those benefits, even for Texans who fit the requirements.
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State Government
Texas attorney general sues feds, seeks to help family adopt Native American 2-year-old
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing the federal government over a law that seeks to keep Native American children from being separated from their families.
Posted inState Government
On Reveal: How the crusade against sex trafficking left Texas kids behind
In this hour of Reveal, a public radio show and podcast, listeners will hear from the victims of sex trafficking left behind by the state.
