If you’re concerned about a child’s safety and wellbeing, there are more than 87 numbers to call in Minnesota. It’s up to you to find the right one.
That’s because each county and tribe has its own phone number for reporting possible abuse and neglect. Which county to call depends on where the child lives. If the child’s county is unknown, it’s difficult to make a report.
With multiple numbers to call, there can be inconsistencies in the way reports are screened and handled. In Pine County, for example, it takes workers about 90 hours to make contact with alleged victims. In Dakota County, it only takes about 44 hours, even though there are more child protection cases.
Additionally, some counties and tribes don’t have clear instructions for reporting possible abuse on their website, according to our own quick analysis. These include Clearwater, Douglas, Grant, Hubbard, Lake, and Yellow Medicine counties as well as several tribes.
Only eight other states have a county-administered child protection system. For that reason, many organizations, including Safe Passage for Children of Minnesota, have been advocating for a study to examine alternative approaches, such as a state-run system.
Recently, the legislature approved funding for a Child Maltreatment Reporting Systems Review as part of the Education Finance Omnibus bill (HF5237/SF5252).
This bill directs the new Commissioner of Children Youth and Families, Tikki Brown, to review other states’ reporting systems and provide recommendations to lawmakers by June 1, 2025.
Safe Passage for Children of Minnesota is supportive of the study and looks forward to weighing in on the results and recommendations next year. Many others are supportive as well.
Traci LaLiberte, executive director of the Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare at the University of Minnesota, told the Minnesota Child Protection Task Force that it may make sense for the state to take over the screening of maltreatment calls, resulting in greater consistency and more accountability.
“When we look across Minnesota, we want to make sure that regardless of where kids and families live, they are being assessed equally,” she said.
We couldn’t agree more.