TOPEKA — Lawmakers dropped a plan to increase oversight of Kansas’ troubled child welfare system in the final hours of their annual session.
The Wichita Eagle and The Kansas City Star report that the provision that was eliminated would have created a committee that could have summoned officials to explain problems, drafted legislation and provided frustrated parents with a place to vent.
Some advocates saw the panel as their last, best hope to make progress after a year that began with high expectations but ended in disappointment. The measure fell apart after it became caught up in the legislative battle over Medicaid expansion.
Kansas’ child welfare system has been under stress for years. Problems include child deaths, problems recruiting and retaining staff and dozens of children missing from foster care.
