PHOENIX — The head of the Department of Child Safety is saying the problems found in a state audit are due to “past administrations.”
Greg McKay, who took over the agency eight months ago, also is lashing out at unnamed news sources as well as groups with an interest in child safety for failing to recognize his claim that he was the one who pointed out the problems cited by the Auditor General’s Office. McKay also said that, contrary to views expressed by others, “DCS administration was not surprised by the findings, we furnished them.”
The claims, in a letter sent to House and Senate leadership, comes as McKay is finding himself and his agency on the defensive as he asks for another $65 million for the current fiscal year on top of its $515 million budget plus another $105 million on top of that for next year.
In the report, the Auditor General’s Office said there is “poor documentation and subjective decision-making by caseworkers” on whether a child should be removed from a home. The result can be removing a child from a home when that’s not really necessary.
It also found a need for better training of both caseworkers and supervisors.
In the letter, McKay essentially said that lawmakers should not be worried about the findings.
“These issues were created over time by a variety of factors and decisions of past administrations,” he wrote.
McKay also said DCS leadership “provided the auditors a pre-drawn road map” of deficiencies in how the agency assesses child safety risk. And he said work “has already begun to implement change and safeguard against subjective decision-making.”
But the timing of the report is bad for McKay.
It comes on the heels of his admission to a legislative panel that his agency has made no real progress in reducing the backlog of “inactive” cases. These are open cases where no social worker or staffer has looked at the file — or looked in on the child — in at least 60 days.
In June 2014 there were 13,024 such cases; the figure now stands at about 15,000.
And that comes after lawmakers gave DCS more than $23 million specifically to deal with that problem.
Asked about that at a legislative committee, McKay said the goal of wiping out the backlog is “not attainable because of the capacity of the organization.”
But what got the attention of lawmakers was his admission “the money was not well spent.”
All that has left some legislators frustrated — and suggesting that perhaps the agency and its $515 million budget needs someone with financial background to oversee the funding rather than a retired police lieutenant.
But Rep. Kate Brophy McGee, who co-chairs a different legislative panel, has said she believes that McKay is doing the best he can with the resources available.
Daniel Scarpinato, press aide to Gov. Doug Ducey, said McKay’s job is not at risk.
“The governor appointed Greg McKay and is confident of his leadership,” he said.
