Washington Courts: Press Release Detail

Washington Supreme Court Establishes Commission on Children in Foster Care

With a goal of improving how courts and child welfare agencies work together for the safety and well-being of children in foster care, and improving the quality of children's lives once they enter the child welfare system, the Washington Supreme Court has established the Commision on Children in Foster Care. 

The Commission will meet for the first time on Thursday, February 24^th and is co-chaired by Washington Supreme Court Justice Bobbe J. Bridge and the head of DSHS’s Children’s Administration, Uma Ahluwalia. Members include representatives of the justice system and child welfare agencies. 

“There is a lot of good work being done to improve the system for the nearly 10,000 children in state care every year, but more work is needed,” said Justice Bridge. “This Commission will work to improve collaboration between courts and child welfare agencies that all play different but critical roles in the lives of children in our state’s foster care system.”

“This Commission clearly recognizes the close ties that these two entities have when it comes to positive outcomes for children.  We have an enormous investment in each other’s systems working well, and working together,” said Ahluwalia.

Commission members will monitor the effectiveness of policies and programs in the foster care system and the courts; recommend changes in policies, laws and court rules; and report their findings to lawmakers and the public in an annual report, with a goal of increasing awareness of child welfare trends and issues.

“I commend Justice Bridge for her vision for this Commission,” said Washington Supreme Court Chief Justice Gerry L. Alexander.  “Their work will not be easy, but will be critical to improving the lives of children in our foster care system.”

The Commission is designed to be ongoing with membership to include:  The head of DSHS’s Children’s Administration as co-chair; the Washington State Attorney General; the Superintendent of Public Instruction; president of the Washington Superior Court Judges’ Association; executive director of the Washington State Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) program; a representative of Washington foster parents; chief judge of Northwest Intertribal Court System; chair of the House Children and Family Services Committee; director of the Washington State Office of Public Defense; and chair of the Senate Children Services and Corrections Committee.   

The Commission grew out of a nationwide, non-partisan effort — the Pew Commission — to study improvements needed in the lives of foster children across the U.S. Among other areas needing work, the Pew Commission concluded improvement was needed nationwide in “court oversight of child welfare cases to facilitate better and more timely decisions related to children’s safety, permanence and well-being.”

“Judges wrestle every day with decisions impacting the safety of children, the rights of parents and the survival of the family constellation,” Justice Bridge said.  “To be done well, such decisions must include collaboration between the many voices in the system whose actions impact the lives of foster children.”

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