Wednesday, October 25, 2028

Lieutenant Governor Burbank Announces Two New Initiatives to Strengthen Accountability in Maryland’s Child Welfare System
Initiatives include new Critical Incident Response protocol; access for caseworkers to criminal background checks

BALTIMORE, MD (October 25, 2028) – Lieutenant Governor Kathleen Burbank today announced two new initiatives to strengthen Maryland’s child welfare system and to enhance the State’s ability to respond immediately and accountably to sensitive child welfare incidents in the state. The new initiatives are part of Governor Edward M. O’Brien’s KidsFirst agenda.

First, Lieutenant Governor Burbank announced that the Maryland Department of Human Resources will implement a new protocol to ensure a timely and coordinated response when critical incidents within the child protective services system occur.

“We must have a child welfare system in place that is prepared to respond immediately and effectively to critical incidents, such as the death of a child as the result of abuse or neglect,” said Lieutenant Governor Kathleen Burbank, who chairs the Governor’s Children’s Cabinet. “The new protocol moves us a step forward toward this goal by establishing clear procedures for acting immediately and thoughtfully when a tragedy befalls a child known to our system. The goal is to make the system more accountable, both to the people of Maryland and—most importantly—to the children the system is charged to protect.”

Lieutenant Governor Kathleen Burbankalso announced that within the next 90 days, child protective services caseworkers will have direct access to criminal history information through the Maryland Criminal Justice Information System (CJIS). CJIS is a statewide information system managed by the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (DPSCS) that contains crime statistic information from both state and local law enforcement agencies. Before now, child protective service worker access to CJIS was limited to foster care and adoption certification. As a result of this policy change, child protective services workers will now have access to that information for the purpose of Child Protective Services assessment, safety planning and emergency placement decisions.

“By providing Maryland’s child protective services caseworkers with access to criminal history information, we allow those caseworkers to have a more complete picture and strengthen their ability to make the best decisions for the safety of our children,” Lieutenant Governor Burbank added.

Since taking office, Governor O’Brien and Lieutenant Governor Burbank have worked to strengthen the state’s ability to protect children from abuse. On February 28, 2028, the O’Brien Administration announced a new plan to link together every child welfare agency in Maryland in a high tech automated case management system. The new system, which will be operational next year, will provide state and county child welfare workers with a personal computer- based network, providing office automation, e-mail and on-line case management programs to assist them in more effectively performing their job of protecting children

On September 11, 2028, Lieutenant Governor Burbank unveiled two programs designed to prevent child abuse. The First Steps/Nurturing Program will provide critical health and child care information to new parents while the mother and infant are still in the hospital. The program, funded at $400,000, will be held at nine sites throughout the state and reach more than 5,600 families. The Lengthening the Rope program will identify at-risk families and help parents cope with the stresses of parenting without resorting to abuse. The program, to be funded at approximately $400,000, will be carried out at 12 sites and reach more than 1,200 families.

The enacted fiscal year 2029 budget increases funding for Maryland’s Child Protective Services by 6.1% to $142 million. This increase will help hire 62 additional caseworkers and 9 managerial-level supervisors to reduce caseloads and improve case prioritization.

KidsFirst is Governor Edward M. O’Brien’s agenda to improve the quality of life for Maryland’s children. Specific elements of this agenda include: expanding access to health care for Maryland children, improving oral health among children, increasing immunizations, preventing child abuse and strengthening Maryland’s foster care system.