Creates Office of Child Advocate and
Appoints Lifelong Champion of Children’s Rights
(NEWARK)—
Governor James E. McGreevey today took a significant step in
his continuing aggressive effort to reform the state of child
welfare in New Jersey and ensure all our children are
protected. At Covenant House in Newark, McGreevey signed
legislation creating the first-ever Office of the Child
Advocate.
“There is no
more fundamental obligation of state government than to
protect our children,” said McGreevey. “Over the past
decade, two separate reports on the state of child welfare in
New Jersey called for the creation of an independent entity to
protect our children and operate outside the burden of a
bureaucracy. But, despite strong economic times and
these desperate recommendations, nothing was done. Today
we are creating the Office of the Child Advocate, a strong
independent watchdog, who will answer only to the needs of the
children it serves.”
The new
Office of the Child Advocate, created by bill number A3772,
will have the broadest scope of powers of any entity since the
Public Advocate was eliminated. The Advocate will have
subpoena power, the power the demand corrective action and
bring litigation, and the power to report publicly. The Child
Advocate will investigate, review, monitor or evaluate all
State agencies and service providers, ensuring the safety of
children, and respond to allegations of child abuse and
neglect. They will establish and maintain a 24 hour
hotline for complaints regarding the State’s child protection
system, and will propose methods to improve coordination and
collaboration among State agencies, leading to improved child
care.
Governor
McGreevey appointed Kevin Ryan, a lifelong advocate for
children’s rights, to be the first Child Advocate. Ryan
currently serves as Deputy Chief of Management and Operations
in the Administration and played a key role in the settling of
the Children’s Rights lawsuit earlier this year. Before
joining the Administration, Ryan spent many years fighting for
the children of New Jersey. He was an advocate for
children and youth at Covenant House for over nine years,
co-authored the New Jersey Homeless Youth Act in 1999 and in
2000 wrote the law giving health insurance coverage to
children aging out of foster care.
"This is an extraordinary opportunity to
hold government accountable to our children,” said Kevin
Ryan. “I thank the Governor for his trust. I plan to get
to work quickly to focus on the needs of our most vulnerable
children."
Recognizing
that this Administration has an obligation to fix the broken
DYFS system, and create a child welfare system that is
accountable to the most vulnerable children it serves,
Governor McGreevey has already taken aggressive steps this
year to meet that obligation:
·
Settled the
Children’s Rights litigation, and, backed by the Annie Casey
Foundation, brought together a panel of national child welfare
experts to reform DYFS top-to-bottom.
·
Increased DYFS
funding by $30 million, to help obtain basic essentials like
new computers.
·
Conducted
comprehensive safety assessments for over 7,000 children in
foster care.
·
Moved the
Institutional Abuse Unit out of DYFS.
In addition
to signing the Child Advocate Bill, Governor McGreevey today
also signed two bills which will provide for additional
protections for our children. S2695 requires background checks for criminal
convictions and child abuse for all residential childcare
facility current staff administrators and employment
applicants at State residential childcare facilities.
And S2655 allows for the sharing of child abuse background
check information with police, hospitals, doctors and day care
centers.
The Governor
was joined by Child Advocate bill sponsors, Senator
Byron M.
Baer, Senator Paul A. Sarlo, Assemblywoman Mary Previte,
Assemblywoman Nellie Pou, Assemblyman Herb
Conaway, Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein, Assemblyman
Gordon Johnson, and Senator Joseph Coniglio, for the bill
signings.
"Children are one of
society's most valuable assets, and with the signing of this
bill into law today, they will have a strong voice for
children's issues in Trenton," said Senator Byron M. Baer,
D-Bergen, who had first proposed creating the office in a bill
he introduced nearly two years ago. "If the tragedies
that have recently been revealed in New Jersey's DYFS system
have taught us anything, they have taught us that this is
necessary to ensure that all of the State's children have a
chance at a happy, safe childhood."
"The sad story of Faheem
Williams earlier this year, and every report that has come out
since about the failings of DYFS are proof-positive that we
owe our children more," said Senator Paul A. Sarlo, D-Bergen,
Essex and Passaic. "A strong child advocate in our
State's capital will remind each and every person involved in
government that one of our most important duties is to protect
our State's youth."
"We can and must do more
to protect young, vulnerable children from danger," said
Assemblywoman Mary Previte (D-Camden), chairwoman of the
Assembly Family, Women and Children's Services
Committee. "By setting up the Office of Child Advocate,
we are ensuring that abused and neglected children get the
attention they need and deserve."
"It makes sense to have
one central agency focus on the problem of child abuse and
neglect," said Assemblywoman Nellie Pou
(D-Passaic). "Despite tough budget times, there is no
money better spent than on protecting young children who
cannot help themselves."
"This is a major step
forward in transforming our current child protection
system into one that truly protects children and provides for
their well-being," said Assembly Deputy Speaker Herb Conaway
M.D. (D-Burlington). "The new Office of Child
Advocate includes proper oversight by the Governor and
Legislature, ensuring it really helps the children it's
charged with protecting."
"We are delivering on
our commitment to fight for better protection of our state's
most precious commodity -- our children," said Assembly
Assistant Majority Leader Linda Greenstein
(D-Middlesex). "We must investigate abuse and neglect
thoroughly and develop ways to prevent them in the
future."
"The new Office of Child Advocate is a
good balance between protecting children and keeping the
public informed about findings and investigations," said
Assemblyman Gordon Johnson (D-Bergen), an undersheriff in the
Bergen County Sheriff's Office. "Precautions will be
taken to ensure the office's actions do not compromise the
safety of the youngsters."
"If we're
ever going to improve the DYFS system, we must introduce
accountability into that system," said Senator Joseph
Coniglio, D-Bergen, a prime sponsor of the new law which
requires criminal background checks at child care
facilities. "Laws that establish an office of the child
advocate and ensure that those with checkered pasts are not
responsible for the welfare of our children are needed to
bring real reform to this agency charged with protecting
vulnerable youth and make DYFS an agency that New Jersey can
be proud of."
