The Minnesota African American Family Preservation and Child Welfare Disproportionality Act, which aims to reduce foster care disparities, has been tested in two populous counties.
One year into Minnesota’s landmark law aimed at improving equity in the child welfare system, an initial review by a state working group calls for an array of legislative fixes, better tracking and stepped-up practices among social workers, judges, police, children’s advocates and government administrators.
The 22-member advisory panel that released its report this month included community members, state and county leaders and nonprofit directors. In 111 pages, they detailed what the Department of Children, Youth and Families, the state Legislature and counties need to do to fully enact the Minnesota African American Family Preservation and Child Welfare Disproportionality Act.
The report made recommendations for caseworkers to give siblings and family members a greater voice in child welfare proceedings — such as having a relative move into a child’s home when CPS is investigating. Another discussion point outlined a “communal guardianship” that would allow several relatives to help care for a child and “participate in case planning to support the family’s reunification journey.”
That recommendation came from St. Paul resident and city employee Marvalyne Unique Tripp, a “lived experience” member of the advisory group whose sister previously lost temporary custody of her son after a sudden medical emergency. In an interview Thursday, she described fighting to become a kinship caregiver and an overall experience that “triggered horrific, egregious trauma to my family.”
In a communal guardianship arrangement, Tripp highlighted the importance of a temporary communal care option as “not for folks to become guardians and try to take custody of that child. You are there to support the stabilization of that family.”
The Minnesota African American Family Preservation and Child Welfare Disproportionality Act took effect in Hennepin and Ramsey counties last January and will be expanded statewide in 2027. It requires increased efforts to keep children connected with family following allegations of abuse or neglect if they are members of groups overrepresented in foster care due to “race, culture, ethnicity, disability status, or low-income socioeconomic status.” Early estimates of those eligible indicate that as many as 90% of families involved in the child welfare system fall under the new law’s definition.
But “revisions are necessary to ensure statewide consistency, account for real-world practice implications and align with the intent” of the law, the new report states. Recommendations include granting child protection workers enough time to contact “noncustodial” parents and relatives when a child is going to be removed from home, and clearer justifications for “emergency removals” and the termination of parents’ rights.
The working group also described the need to potentially expand the definition of the word “connections” to include “ongoing, meaningful and culturally relevant relationships with relatives, siblings and kin.” Proposals in the early stages would “ensure children maintain their cultural rituals, language, traditions and spiritual practices while in placement.”
“My hope is that the public and the state see this report not just as an outline of challenges but as a roadmap forward, with recommendations rooted in what communities have consistently called for: culturally grounded solutions, stronger data transparency, and policies that recognize and build on the strengths and contributions of African heritage Minnesotans,” said Lolita Davis Carter, a working group member and legislative and policy director for the Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage in an email.
The new law aims to address severe disparities in Minnesota’s foster care system. According to 2023 state data, African American and Hispanic children were roughly two times more likely than their white peers to be placed in out-of-home care. Children identified as two or more races were eight times more likely, and Native American children were 16 times more likely.
Under the federal Indian Child Welfare Act, child welfare agencies must make “active efforts” to avoid separating tribal families — a legal term that requires heightened action by county caseworkers to prevent removals and ensure parents are provided services. For all other groups, the lower legal standard of “reasonable efforts” applies.
The state’s family preservation act extends active efforts to all overrepresented groups in foster care. As passed, it calls for Hennepin and Ramsey counties to begin rolling out the law’s provisions before it applies statewide.
The working group wrote out more than a half-dozen amendments to the existing law and suggested a handful of other fixes to clarify the new state law, along with more precise definitions of who is eligible. In one instance, the reviewers noted that children must self-identify as a member of an overrepresented group in foster care. But what should happen if families refuse to share their identities with caseworkers?
“Members have emphasized that agency workers should not guess or assume a person’s identity, regardless of how confident they are,” the report says.
“Some members are curious if making active efforts means it is the agency’s responsibility to provide concrete resources, such as housing, when it is an identified barrier for families. If families do not have housing, is the agency responsible for providing the housing? What exactly meets the statutory requirements for active efforts?”
— Working group report on the Minnesota African American Family Preservation and Child Welfare Disproportionality Act
Reviewers also asked the state for clarity of terms so data can be properly collected. For example, some members questioned whether the current definition of “disproportionality” in the law might lead to inconsistent practice. Other terms like “disability status” and “ethnicity” are undefined in the law, but should be, according to the report.
The rollout
Last month, a state district court judge struck down the partial rollout of the new law’s provisions, saying that applying protections to parents in just two counties violated the 14th Amendment’s right to equal protection. The new standards initially applied to 30% of eligible cases in Hennepin and Ramsey counties, with percentages increasing over time. Judge Matthew Frank ruled that the phased-in approach was “treating some families as test cases, while excluding others from the services and protections.”
Some members of the working group had similar concerns. They “expressed a need for clearer information about the random selection process; as well as a better understanding of the rationale for the phased-in percentages,” according to the report.
“A preference has been expressed to serve 100 percent of families who qualify,” it further stated.
Members of the workgroup also asked state officials to better clarify what, specifically, constitutes active efforts and to provide examples, demonstrating what they “look like in practice” when caseworkers are recruiting and assisting relatives and noncustodial parents willing to take in children.
“Some members are curious if making active efforts means it is the agency’s responsibility to provide concrete resources, such as housing, when it is an identified barrier for families,” the report states. “If families do not have housing, is the agency responsible for providing the housing? What exactly meets the statutory requirements for active efforts?”
Funding questions
Many changes proposed by the report’s authors would require resources approved by the Legislature, the report acknowledges. They did not attach dollar figures to the proposed reforms, which include enhanced reporting and data tracking, and greater cash assistance for family members and foster parents. Money is also needed to help caseworkers find family members of children in foster care, hire and train staff, fund travel costs and pay for contracted services and grants.
“While upfront costs may appear substantial, driven by staffing, training, family supports and technology,” the report states, “these investments are expected to reduce out-of-home placements, increase family stability and create more equitable outcomes over time.”
