Bureau of Milwaukee Child Welfare
Settlement Agreement
Children's Rights
Lawsuit
Full copy of the
Settlement Agreement (PDF, 995 KB)
In 1993, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
Children's Rights Project (now Children's Rights, Inc.) filed an action
in the Federal District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin on behalf of an estimated class of
approximately 5,000 children who were receiving, or should have been
receiving, child welfare services in Milwaukee County.
The federal court approved a settlement agreement on
September 2, 2002, effectively closing the case, although the state will
be subject to arbitration or court intervention if non-compliance issues
arise. The settlement requires DHFS to attain specified outcomes on or
before January 1, 2006, for permanence, safety, and child well-being for
children in out-of-home care in Milwaukee County. In November
2003, the original version was amended to delete the 1146 child
baseline in Section I.B.3.
The settlement agreement sets clear and measurable outcomes
for three one-year periods with progressive improvement in outcomes
required each year.
Permanence. The settlement requires BMCW to
negotiate with the Milwaukee County District Attorney to ensure
adequate legal representation for the prosecution of termination of
parental rights (TPR) petitions, consistent with federal Adoption and
Safe Families Act (ASFA) requirements. It sets specific percentages
that BMCW must meet regarding moving children toward either
reunification with parents or to termination of parental rights and
adoption.
Safety. The settlement agreement requires that no
more than 0.6% of children in out-of-home care may be victims of
substantiated abuse or neglect allegations by a foster parent or staff
of a licensed facility.
Child Well-Being. Under the settlement agreement, the
caseloads of ongoing case managers may not exceed an average of 11
family cases per case-carrying manager per site. In addition, 90% of
the children in out-of-home care must have a monthly face-to-face
visit from their case manager. No children were to be placed in a
shelter after December 31, 2003. BMCW was to develop
diagnostic/assessment centers for children over 12 years of age who
need additional assessment to determine the appropriate placement. At
least 90% of children are required to have three or fewer placements
Reports. The settlement requires BMCW to provide a
number of reports on the items mentioned above and a variety of
additional statistics, as well as a comprehensive case review at least
once annually.
Last Revised:
July 24, 2008
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