DCS and warrants:

A bill expected to be introduced this week in the Arizona Legislature would mark a first step toward requiring the Department of Child Safety to obtain a warrant before removing a child from his or her home.

Arizona could soon make the first move toward requiring the Department of Child Safety to obtain a warrant prior to removing a child from his or her home.

Legislation expected to be introduced this week would mark a major change for an agency that is often the target of angry parents who complain the state is taking their children for no good reason.

The bill would be a “half step” toward the goal of a warrant requirement for the state’s child-welfare program, said Rep. John Allen, R-Scottsdale. He said he intends to introduce his proposal this week, most likely as a strike-everything amendment on a Senate bill.

Several other states require a judge’s approval before taking a child.

Allen said the first step is technical: It would remove a procedural requirement so a case gets before a juvenile-court judge quickly. The intent is to have a judge determine if a child should be removed before the agency acts.

Currently, judges approve or reject a

child removal after the fact, when they receive what is called a dependency petition from the DCS. That takes time, since a petition requires some level of investigation, filling out a checklist and consultation with attorneys for the state. State law allows the DCS three days (excluding weekends and holidays) to do that, with exceptions if a caseworker determines the child is in present danger.

Allen said the idea is to let the DCS — which is regaining lawmaker trust with a recent show of progress in key areas — run a pilot program during the summer. They would analyze results, which would help shape legislation next year to create a warrant program. That should show whether the policy change would result in fewer children being removed from their homes, he said.

“There’s a lot of members who want this,” Allen said.

A number of lawmakers believe that requiring a juvenile-court judge to issue a warrant before a child is removed would reduce the number of children who are in out-of-home care and overseen by the DCS. That number was 17,149 as of December, down 9.3 percent from March 2016.

DCS, activists supportive, but urge caution

DCS Director Greg McKay said he’s on board with the idea but cautioned the agency needs to move deliberately.

He said the DCS has worked intentionally to reduce caseloads and the number of kids in out-of-home care, and he doesn’t want to introduce an abrupt policy change that would reverse those gains.

Besides, it would take a while to set up a warrant system, he said. For example, the juvenile courts, which are housed in each county, would need to ensure they had a judge on call 24/7 to handle requests.

“We need unsafe kids with no options (to be) in foster care, and safe kids to remain in their own homes,” he told The Arizona Republic.

A warrant policy would include exceptions for “exigent” situations, McKay said, so caseworkers could work swiftly if they find a child in imminent danger.

Some activists who have pushed for a mandatory warrant policy say they’re happy the agency is pursuing the change. But they say they’re nervous about how broadly the “exigency” standard will be interpreted, fearing it could be used even in cases that they think don’t pose immediate harm.

“My concern is it would be toothless,” said Del McArdle, who was the legal guardian of his nephew when the DCS removed him from his care.

Rep. Kelly Townsend, R-Mesa, introduced House Bill 2507 earlier this year to narrowly define “exigent,” but the measure did not get a hearing.

DCS making progress

The warrant discussion came after members of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee praised McKay and his agency for strides in fixing a number of areas, including a nagging backlog of cases.

Chairman Rep. Don Shooter, R-Yuma, offered to kick in $50 for fireworks so the agency could celebrate.

The panel, which oversees budget issues, had harshly criticized the agency for failing to fix problems.

Last week, the agency reported progress in the following key areas where lawmakers had said they needed to see progress. All numbers are compared with March 2016:

» A 5.8 percent increase in the number of caseworkers, to 1,344. However, the agency is still short of the 1,406 caseworkers the Legislature has authorized.

» A 9.3 percent reduction in the number of kids in out-of-home care (such as foster homes and group homes), to 17,149 from 18,917.

» A 91 percent reduction in the backlog of cases involving abuse or neglect, to 966 from 10,751. That puts the agency below the goal of 1,000 backlogged cases and frees up $2 million for overtime pay and $765,000 to hire new case aides.