[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 61 (Tuesday, April 9, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Page S2331]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. KAINE:
  S. 1070. A bill to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
to fund demonstration projects to improve recruitment and retention of 
child welfare workers; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 
and Pensions.
  Mr. KAINE. Mr. President, investing in the development of a robust, 
well-trained, and stable child welfare workforce is central to 
improving outcomes for children and families across the United States. 
The existence of such a workforce is essential to a child welfare 
agency's ability to carry out the responsibilities with which they have 
been entrusted. Child welfare work has been shown to be physically and 
emotionally challenging, as demonstrated by recent studies into the 
impact of secondary traumatic stress (STS) on child welfare 
professionals. The multitude of challenges inherent in child welfare 
work, combined with relatively low compensation and work benefits, make 
these careers difficult to sustain, resulting in high rates of 
turnover.
  Studies conducted over the last 15 years estimate the national rate 
of turnover of child welfare workers to be 20-40 percent annually. In 
2017, Virginia reported a turnover rate of 30%, while Washington State 
reported a turnover rate of 20% and Georgia reported a turnover rate of 
32%. These high rates of turnover detract from the quality of services 
delivered to children and families and result in an estimated cost of 
$54,000 per worker leaving an agency.
  Greater action is needed to ensure that individuals pursuing child 
welfare careers receive appropriate training and support to improve the 
sustainability of their important, yet demanding work. Higher rates of 
retention for child welfare workers translates to greater stability for 
families and improved services for vulnerable youth. Existing research 
provides a number of evidenced-based and promising practices for 
improving recruitment and retention in the child welfare workforce.
  This is why I am pleased to introduce today the Child Welfare 
Workforce Support Act. This bill directs the Secretary to conduct a 
five-year demonstration program for child welfare service providers to 
implement targeted interventions to recruit, select, and retain child 
welfare workers. This demonstration program will focus on building an 
evidence base of best practices for reducing barriers to the 
recruitment, development, and retention of individuals providing direct 
services to children and families. Funds will also be used to provide 
ongoing professional development to assist child welfare workers in 
meeting the diverse needs of families with infants and children with 
the goal of improving both the quality of services provided and the 
sustainability of such careers. Investing resources in determining what 
practices have the greatest impact on the successful recruitment and 
retention of child welfare workers will assist in developing an 
evidence-base for future federal investment in this space.
  I hope that as the Senate begins to discuss reauthorizing the Child 
Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act that we consider the Child Welfare 
Workforce Support Act and recognize the important role that child 
welfare workers make to improve outcomes for vulnerable infants and 
children.
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      By Mr. KAINE (for himself and Ms. Baldwin):
  S. 1073. A bill to amend the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act 
to ensure protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth 
and their families; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 
Pensions.
  Mr. KAINE. Mr. President, according to the Department of Health and 
Human Services (HHS), lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) youth are at an 
increased risk for experiencing maltreatment compared to non-LGB youth. 
A 2011 meta-analysis of 37 school-based studies found that LGB 
adolescents were 3.8 times more likely to experience childhood sexual 
abuse and 1.2 times more likely to experience physical abuse by a 
parent or guardian when compared to their heterosexual peers. 
Additional studies have demonstrated that gender nonconformity during 
childhood may increase the risk for child maltreatment. Unfortunately, 
there is not enough research and data available to identify the risk of 
child maltreatment for individuals who identify as transgender.
  These risks for maltreatment often times result in LGBTQ youth 
entering the child welfare system. Studies have found that, ``LGBT 
young people are overrepresented in child welfare systems, despite the 
fact that they are likely to be underreported because they risk 
harassment and abuse if their LGBT identity is disclosed.'' This 
overrepresentation of LGBTQ youth in the foster care system raises 
concerns about issues in the child abuse and prevention space. 
Additional research is needed to understand the risk of maltreatment 
among LGBTQ youth, particularly those identifying as transgender. These 
studies will yield invaluable information to be used in developing 
targeted prevention strategies to reduce the rates of adverse childhood 
experiences of LGBTQ individuals.
  This is why I am pleased to introduce the Protecting LGBTQ Youth Act, 
which calls for HHS and other federal agencies to carry out an 
interdisciplinary research program to protect LGBTQ youth from child 
abuse and neglect and improve the well-being of victims of child abuse 
or neglect. This legislation also expands current practices around 
demographic information collection and reporting on incidences and 
prevalence of child maltreatment to include sexual orientation and 
gender identity. Additionally, the bill opens existing grant funding 
opportunities to invest in the training of personnel in best practices 
to meet the unique needs of LGBTQ youth and calls for the inclusion of 
individuals experienced in working with LGBTQ youth and families in 
state task forces. Improving data collection and disaggregation will 
provide greater insight into the circumstances LGBTQ youth face in the 
home that, when left unaddressed, lead to entry into the child welfare 
system. This improved data-driven understanding can then be used to 
develop appropriate and effective primary prevention practices to 
decrease the risks faced by LGTBQ youth.
  I hope that as the Senate begins to discuss the reauthorization of 
the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act we consider the Protecting 
LGBTQ Youth Act to better inform our collective understanding of the 
risks faced by LGBTQ youth and the best ways to address them.

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