Department of Children and Families - Other Matters 2

The Department of Children and Families Should Coordinate With Other State Agencies, Law Enforcement, and Other Child-Serving Agencies To Address How To Detect and Respond to Human Trafficking.

Overview

In July 2022, the US Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS OIG) issued a report¹⁷ that cited Massachusetts as one of five states where there was no evidence that children in foster care were screened for human trafficking after they had gone missing from, and later returned to, foster care. Massachusetts was selected because, in fiscal year 2018, it was one of five states that reported the largest number of children who went missing from state custody. Specifically, in its report, HHS OIG identified 949 children in Massachusetts who went missing from, and later returned to, foster care. HHS OIG selected a sample of 88 out of the 949 identified children and reviewed their case files. HHS OIG found that 72 out of the 88 sampled children were not screened for human trafficking after they returned to foster care.

We reached out to DCF via email to ascertain what corrective measures the agency took, or is taking, to address the findings and concerns of this HHS OIG report. Based on DCF’s responses, the agency does not agree with the findings in the HHS OIG report but has taken measures to address those concerns. Specifically, DCF stated in an email to us on January 5, 2024,

We also outlined subsequent actions and continuous improvement efforts that we continue to work on. . . . Our ongoing quality improvement work to date has included our Missing or Absent Program Manager presenting a series of trainings to congregate care providers. We have also created a video for DCF staff, “Missing or Absent Children/Youth: DCF Screening Guidance for All Youth” on best practices for screening youth who return from being Missing or Absent (MOA), in collaboration with Support to End Exploitation Now (SEEN) at the Children’s Advocacy Center of Suffolk County, My Life My Choice (MLMC), as well as the accompanying guide, “Human Trafficking: DCF Screening Guidance for All Youth.” These supplementary tools and training aides have been communicated to our staff and utilized through several platforms and meetings to date.

In addition, DCF has worked with [the Administration for Children and Families] National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Center (NHTTTAC) to create a guide for the field which is currently being vetted by executive staff for distribution and inclusion on our Human Trafficking intranet page.

We also asked several related follow-up questions that addressed the detection and prevention of human trafficking.

Illinois was one of the other states audited in the 2022 HHS OIG report. Specifically, the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services agency developed a webpage, entitled Human Trafficking of Children, that is dedicated to the awareness of human trafficking of minors. The webpage also has educational brochures and posters in several languages available for download. Currently, DCF has one webpage, entitled Definitions of abuse and neglect, that mentions this issue but DCF does not provide details on how to detect and prevent human trafficking. We recommend that DCF create a webpage, or another platform to easily reach the public, dedicated to recognizing signs and what to do if someone has suspicions of human trafficking, like the webpage that the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services developed.

Finally, we wish to share the model legislation, policies, and regulations put forth by the advocacy organization, Shared Hope International,¹⁸ called “Report Cards on Child & Youth Sex Trafficking 2023 Toolkit.” Massachusetts received an overall F grade from this organization for its efforts to stop child and youth sex trafficking. We recommend that DCF work with law enforcement and other child-serving government agencies (e.g., the Office of the Child Advocate) to implement the model legislation, policies, and regulations. DCF should also work to determine why Massachusetts has such a high rate of children going missing from state care and address the issue.

Auditee’s Response

The Department of Children and Families did not agree with the methodology used by the OIG when the report was issued and subsequently did a comprehensive, parallel review and found screenings were noted in the vast majority of the records the OIG reviewed. The OIG only accepted evidence of screening documentation for 22 of the 89 sample cases it deemed eligible for the review. After receiving this information, DCF conducted a thorough review of the other 67 cases in which OIG determined that there was insufficient evidence of screenings. Based on this review, we believe that there was evidence to support screenings of youth who returned to DCF placement in 82 of the 89 sample cases.

The screenings may have been missed by the OIG because [DCF] collected the data but had not been consistent with entering the information in the case record or in structured data.

Since the OIG report, DCF has made [information technology] changes to capture the screening of youth for human trafficking when they return from being missing or absent and to improve tracking of the screenings that take place. This, and other system upgrades are scheduled to begin at the end of August.

The Shared Hope report does not take into consideration the ongoing proactive, preventive continuous improvement initiatives as mentioned above, and which also include:

• Extensive work with the Federal Administration for Children and Families and its National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Center to update and streamline information on the DCF Human trafficking employee intranet page.
• DCF’s Clinical Manager for Field Support becoming a member of the National Child Welfare Anti-Trafficking Coalition. Participants include those creating and implementing state-level child welfare policy and practice addressing human trafficking.
• Collaborating with My Life My Choice to create a Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) prevention training program.
• [CSEC] is providing training congregate care providers over the next two years.
• Creating a 9-part video series for DCF social workers to use with foster parents and other caregivers to increase their knowledge regarding Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC).
• In collaboration with My Life My Choice (MLMC) and Support to End Exploitation Now (SEEN), creating a training video for DCF social workers on best practices for screening youth who return from being [Missing or Absent], as well an accompanying guide, “Human Trafficking: DCF Screening Guidance for all Youth.”

Further, finalization of our negotiations with [the collective bargaining unit] will allow us to hire 5 full time supervisors and increase the Missing or Absent (MOA) unit from 10 social workers to 18. MOA social workers are dedicated to engaging and locating children who are on-the-run. Additional staff will allow for collaboration with community stakeholders as well as more prevention work with youth, families and substitute care providers.

Massachusetts has multi-disciplinary teams (MDTs) in every county to respond to Child Trafficking. These teams are based in the state’s Children’s Advocacy Centers (CAC) in partnership with their DA offices, local police and DCF to provide a coordinated response to CSEC. MDTs are currently operating in all CACs in the Commonwealth. DCF also collaborates with local police Departments, including the Boston Police, on child trafficking concerns.

In its Annual Report, DCF tracks the number of 51A reports and supported 51Bs for human trafficking labor and human trafficking sexually exploited child as well as the unique count of children DCF has found to have been trafficked.

DCF will also develop a website on Mass.gov where the public can find information on human trafficking prevention and detection in children.

Auditor’s Reply

We commend DCF on its efforts and current initiatives to prevent children from going missing and sex trafficking in Massachusetts. Based on its responses, DCF appears to have taken steps to collaborate with relevant organizations, coordinate additional training for care providers, and hire more staff members. DCF also plans to develop a website to raise awareness of this issue. As part of our post-audit review process, we look forward to revisiting this topic with DCF and seeing what progress has been made in approximately six months from now. 

17.    This HHS OIG report is titled In Five States, There Was No Evidence That Many Children in Foster Care Had a Screening for Sex Trafficking When They Returned After Going Missing. 

18.    According to its website, “Shared Hope is a member of the National Advisory Committee on the Sex Trafficking of Children and Youth in the United States which publishes Best Practices and Recommendations for States to combat the sex trafficking of children and youth in the United States.”

Date published:	November 7, 2024