OLYMPIA -- Native American and black children are more likely to enter Washington's child welfare system than white children, and stay in the system far longer, concludes a report on racial disproportionality released today.

The report was prepared by the Washington State Institute for Public Policy for the statewide Racial Disproportionality Advisory Committee. In 2007, the Legislature passed Substitute House Bill 1472 which created the Advisory Committee and tasked the members to determine to what degree disproportionality exists in Washington's child welfare system, and to come up with a remediation plan to reduce disproportionality.

Today in Olympia, the Advisory Committee presented the data portion of the report to Department of Social and Health Services Secretary Robin Arnold-Williams. The remediation plan is due to the Legislature by December of this year. The comprehensive data report looked at the 58,005 children referred to Child Protective Services (CPS) in 2004 and followed them through 2007. Among its findings:

• Racial disproportionality exists statewide.
• Disproportionality begins with the decision of whether to refer a child to CPS.
• Indian children were three times as likely to be referred to CPS as were white children; black children nearly twice as likely.
• Indian and black children were more frequently removed from their home and they stayed in out-of-home care longer than white children.
• Children from low-income families and children from single-parent households were over-represented in the child welfare system.
• While Hispanic children were more frequently referred to child welfare than white children, they were no more likely to be removed from their home or remain in care over two years.
• Asian children were less likely to be referred to child welfare than white children.

"The report confirms what our social workers and our community partners are experiencing," said Arnold-Williams. "The level of disproportionality among Native American children really stands out. We are committed to working with tribal and community leaders throughout the state to understand why it exists at the level it does and finding ways to reduce it."

The report looked at the level of racial disproportionality at key decision points along the child welfare spectrum. Findings show that disproportionality begins with the decision of whether or not to report abuse or neglect to CPS. Disproportionality is consistently greater for mandatory reporters such as health care workers, educators, police officers and court officials. But it is observed even among non-mandatory reporters who are most often relatives, friends or neighbors.

"We need to better understand why some children are referred while other children, with similar family characteristics, are not," said Arnold-Williams. "Societal issues must be addressed collectively. It's going to take a lot of folks, listening to each other and working together, to develop a remediation plan."

That discussion begins tomorrow when a two-day symposium on racial disproportionality opens at the University of Washington School of Law. The June 26 - 27 event is being sponsored by the UW, Casey Family Programs and the Children's Administration.

Arnold-Williams said Children's Administration already has adopted some practices that have been shown to reduce disproportionality in other states. Over the next few months, she and committee members, along with Children's Administration staff, will travel the state, discussing the report with community and tribal leaders, children's advocates and members of organizations and professions that influence or have an interest in the state's child welfare system.

Radio and Television Version:

The agency that protects Washington state's children today received a report showing that Native American and black children are over-represented in the state's child welfare system, and that they are more frequently removed from their homes and stay in the system longer than white children.

DSHS Secretary Robin Arnold-Williams, who received the report today, said she and members of the statewide Racial Disproportionality Advisory Committee will spend the next few months meeting with Tribal leaders and various community groups and children's advocates to discuss the report and explore ways to reduce disproportionality.

Tomorrow, the University of Washington's School of Law will host a two-day symposium on racial disproportionality in child welfare. The event will feature some of the nation's leading experts on the issue.