Child Welfare League of America Making Children a National Priority

 

Child Welfare League of America Making Children a National Priority
About Us
CWLA
Special Initiatives
CWLA
Advocacy
CWLA
Membership
CWLA
News and Media Center
CWLA
Programs
CWLA
Research and Data
CWLA
Publications
CWLA
Conferences and Training
CWLA
Culture and Diversity
CWLA
Consultation
CWLA
Support CWLA
CWLA Members Only Content
       
 

Home > Advocacy > State Fact Sheets for 2006 > California

 
 

CALIFORNIA'S CHILDREN 2006

State Population (2004) 1   35,893,799
Population, Children Under 18 (2004) 2   9,596,463
State Poverty Rate (2004) 3   13.3%
Poverty Rate, Children Under 18 (2004) 4   19.0%
Poverty Rate, Children Ages 5-17 (2004) 5   18.0%

CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT

  • On September 30, 2003, 97,261 children in California lived apart from their families in out-of-home care, compared with 100,451 children on September 30, 2002. In 2003, 26% of the children living apart from their families were age 5 or younger, and 21.4% were 16 or older. 6
  • Of all California children in out-of-home care on September 30, 2005, 25.4% were white, 29% were black, 39.4% were Hispanic, 0.8% were American Indian/Alaskan Native, and 5.3% were of other races and ethnicities. 7

PERMANENT FAMILIES FOR CHILDREN

  • Of the 44,350 children exiting out-of-home care in 2003, 61.8% were reunited with their parents or other family members. 8
  • In 2003, 7,433 children were legally adopted through the public child welfare agency in California, a 15% decrease from 8,741 in 2002. 9
  • Of the 97,261 children in out-of-home care in 2003, 5,487 or 5.6% were waiting to be adopted. 10

KINSHIP SUPPORT

  • In 2004, approximately 248,355 California grandparents had primary responsibility caring for their grandchildren. 11
  • Of the 97,261 children in out-of-home care on September 30, 2003, 32.8% were living with relatives while in care. 12
  • Of all California children in kinship care on September 30, 2003, 21.4% were white, 35% were black, 38.1% were Hispanic, 0.8% were American Indian/ Alaskan Native, and 4.7% were other races. 13

CHILD POVERTY AND INCOME SUPPORT

  • The total number of individuals receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) in California decreased from 1,106,654 in March 2004 to 1,092,422 in March 2005, a decrease of 1.3%. The number of families receiv-ing TANF in March 2005 was 466,074, a 1.7% increase from March 2004. 14
  • In 2002, a family of three receiving only TANF and food stamp benefits in California was at 70.7% of the federal poverty guideline. 15
  • In 2004, California spent $6,177,940,510 in TANF funds, including 53.2% on basic assistance, 2.7% on child care, 1.8% on transportation, and 36.5% on nonassistance. 16
  • In 2004, California collected and distributed $2,177,842,511 in child support funds, an increase of 2.1% from 2003. 17
  • In 2004, the fair market rent for a two-bedroom apartment in California was $1,104 per month, or 102.2% of the average monthly income for a worker earning the state minimum wage of $6.75 per hour. 18

CHILD CARE AND HEAD START

  • In 2004, an estimated monthly average of 159,000 of California's children received subsidized child care; 153,600 children received subsidized child care in 2003, and 163,300 in 2002. 19
  • In 2005, to be eligible for subsidized child care in California, a family of three could make no more than $35,100, which is equivalent to 64% of the state's median income. 20
  • In 2005, California had 280,000 children on its waiting list for child care assistance. 21
  • In 2004, Head Start served 98,933 California children, a 0.2% increase from 2003. 22

HEALTH AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE

  • In 2001, 3,340,300 children younger than 19 were enrolled in Medicaid, representing 39.2% of the total number of enrollees in California. 23
  • In 2001, 143,169 children in foster care were enrolled in Medicaid, representing 4.3% of all children enrolled in Medicaid in California. 24
  • California spent $2,807 per enrollee in 2001 on Medicaid services for children in foster care. 25
  • In 2004, California had 1,035,752 children enrolled in its State Children's Health Insurance Program, an 8.4% increase from 2003, when 955,152 children were enrolled. 26
  • In 2003, the birth rate for teens 15-17 in California was 21.8 births per 1,000 girls; for teens 18-19, the rate was 68.1 births. This reflects a total rate of 40.1 births per 1,000 girls ages 15-19. 27
  • As of December 2003, 132,650 adults and adolescents, as well as 642 children younger than 13, had been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS in California. 28
  • In 2003, an estimated 260,000 children ages 12-17, and 2,301,000 adults 18 and older, were dependent on or abusing illicit drugs or alcohol. 29

VULNERABLE YOUTH

  • In 2004, 6% of California teens ages 16-19 were high school dropouts, a 40% decrease from 2000. 30
  • In 2004, 8% of teens ages 16-19 were not enrolled in school, were not working, and had no degree beyond high school. 31
  • In 2003, an estimated 144,000 children ages 12-17 in California needed but had not received treatment for illicit drug use in the past year. 32
  • In 2003, an estimated 159,000 children ages 12-17 needed but had not received treatment for alcohol use in the past year. 33
  • In 2002, 139 children younger than 20 committed suicide, a rate of 1.34 per 100,000 children in the population. 34

JUVENILE JUSTICE AND DELINQUENCY PREVENTION

  • In 2002, 157 children under age 18 were killed in firearm homicides in California, a 1.9% increase from 154 in 2001. 35
  • In 2004, 204,602 children younger than 18 were arrested in California, a 7.1% decrease from 220,348 arrests in 2003. Of the arrests in 2004, 14,205 were for a violent crime and 7,729 were for possession of a weapon. 36
  • A 2001 census of juvenile offenders showed 18,145 children in juvenile correction facilities in California. 37

FUNDING CHILD WELFARE SERVICES FOR CALIFORNIA'S CHILDREN

  • In 2002, California spent $3,969,123,381 for child welfare services. Child welfare services refer to all direct and administrative services the state agency provides to children and families. Of this number, 45.2% was from federal funds, 32.1% was from state funds, and 22.6% was from local funds. 38
  • In 2002, of the $1,795,256,381 in federal funds received for child welfare, 70.8% was from Title IV-E Foster Care and Adoption Assistance, 4.2% came from Title IV-B Child Welfare Services and Promoting Safe and Stable Families, 1.8% was from Medicaid, 9% came from the Social Services Block Grant, 13.1% was from TANF, and 1% came from other federal sources. 39
  • Out of 97,261 children in out-of-home care in California on September 30, 2003, only 56,007 children, or 57.6%, received Title IV-E federal foster care assistance. 40

CALIFORNIA'S CHILD WELFARE WORKFORCE

  • A 2003 General Accounting Office (GAO) report documented that staff shortages, high caseloads, high worker turnover, and low salaries impinge on delivering services to achieve safety, permanence, and well-being for children. 41
  • The federal Child and Family Service Reviews have clearly demonstrated that the more time a caseworker spends with a child and family, the better the outcomes for those children and families. 42
  • According to the 2003 GAO report, the average caseload for child welfare/foster care caseworkers is 24-31 children and that these high caseloads contribute to high worker turnover and insufficient services provided to children and families. CWLA recommends that foster care caseworkers have caseloads of 12-15 children. 43

REFERENCES

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program. (2004). Annual Population Estimates and Estimated Components of Change for the United States and States: April 1, 2000, to July 1, 2004. Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved online October 7, 2005. back
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program .(2004). Special calculation of 18+ Population Estimates: July 1, 2004. Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved online October 7, 2005. back
  3. U.S. Census Bureau. (2004). Annual Demographics Survey: March Supplement. Poverty Status by State: 2004 Below 100% and 125% of Poverty-All Ages. Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved online October 7, 2005. back
  4. U.S. Census Bureau. (2004). Annual Demographics Survey: March Supplement. Poverty Status by State: 2004 Below 100% and 125% of Poverty-People Under 18 Years of Age. Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved online October 7, 2005. back
  5. U.S. Census Bureau. (2004). Annual Demographics Survey: March Supplement. Poverty Status by State: 2004 Below 100% and 125% of Poverty-Related Children 5 to 17 Years of Age. Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved online October 7, 2005. back
  6. Special tabulation of the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis Reporting System (AFCARS) by CWLA. back
  7. Ibid. Other races and ethnicities includes Asian, Pacific Islander, Hawaiian Native, unknown or unable to determine, missing data, and two or more races. back
  8. Ibid. back
  9. Ibid. back
  10. Ibid. back
  11. U.S. Census Bureau. (2004). American Community Survey-Data Profile. Selected Social Characteristics: 2004. Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved online October 11, 2005. back
  12. CWLA, Special AFCARS tabulation. back
  13. Ibid. back
  14. Administration for Children and Families. (2005). Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, Separate State Program, Maintenance of Effort, Aid to Families with Dependant Children, Caseload Data. Washington, DC: HHS. Retrieved online October 11, 2005. back
  15. Calculations by CWLA, based on Administration for Children and Families. (2004). Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Program: Sixth Annual Report to Congress. Retrieved online October 13, 2005. Washington, DC: HHS.
    Food and Nutrition Service. (2005). Food Stamp Program-Annual State Level Data-State Level Participation. Food Stamp Program: Average Monthly Benefit Per Household (FY 2002). Washington, DC: Author U.S. Department of Agriculture. Retrieved online October 13, 2005.
    Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation. (2002). The 2002 HHS Poverty Guidelines. Washington, DC: HHS. Retrieved online October 13, 2005. back
  16. The breakdown of expenditure data may reflect adjustments for prior years. This may result in negative expenditures for the current year or, in certain expenditure amounts exceeding 100%. Negative percentages are not displayed here. For more information about these adjustments, as well as specific data, see Administration for Children and Families. (2004). Combined Spending of Federal and States Funds Expended in FY 2004 Through the Fourth Quarter. Washington, DC: HHS. Retrieved online October 13, 2005.. back
  17. more information about these adjustments, as well as specific data, see Administration for Children and Families. (2004). Combined Spending of Federal and States Funds Expended in FY 2004 Through the Fourth Quarter. Washington, DC: HHS. Retrieved online October 13, 2005 back
  18. Pitcoff, W.; Pelletiere, D.; Crowley, S.; Treskon, M.; & Dolbeare, C. (2004). Out of Reach 2004. Washington, DC: National Low Income Housing Coalition. Retrieved online October 20, 2005.
    Employment Standards Administration, Wage and Hour Division. (2004). Minimum Wage Laws in the United States-August 1, 2005. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved online October 13, 2005. back
  19. Administration on Children and Families, Child Care Bureau. (2005). FFY 2002 CCDF Data Tables and Charts: Children Served. Washington, DC: HHS. Retrieved online October 14, 2005.
    Administration on Children and Families, Child Care Bureau. (2005). FFY 2003 CCDF Data Tables and Charts: Children Served. Washington, DC: HHS. Retrieved online October 14, 2005.
    Administration on Children and Families, Child Care Bureau. (2005). FFY 2004 CCDF Data Tables and Charts: Children Served. Washington, DC: HHS. Retrieved online October 14, 2005. back
  20. Schulman, K. & Blank, H. (2005). Child Care Assistance Policies 2005: States Fail to Make up Lost Ground, Families Continue to Lack Critical Supports. Washington, DC: National Women's Law Center. Retrieved online October 14, 2005. back
  21. Ibid. back
  22. Administration for Children and Families, Head Start Bureau. (2004). Head Start Program Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year 2003. Washington, DC: HHS. Retrieved online January 19, 2006.
    Administration for Children and Families, Head Start Bureau. (2005). Head Start Program Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year 2004. Washington, DC: HHS. Retrieved online January 17, 2005. back
  23. Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. (2005). 2001 State and National Medicaid Enrollment and Spending Data (MSIS) (Table 1). Menlo Park, CA: Author. Retrieved online October 25, 2005 back
  24. Geen, R.; Sommers, A.; & Cohen, M. (2005). Medicaid Spending on Foster Children. Washington, DC: Urban Institute. Retrieved online October 17, 2005. back
  25. Ibid. back
  26. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. (2005). FY 2004 Number of Children Ever Enrolled in SCHIP by Program Type. Baltimore: Author. Retrieved online October 17, 2005. back
  27. Martin, J.A.; Hamilton, B.E.; Sutton, P.D.; Ventura, S.J.; Menacker, F.; & Munson, M.L. (2005). Births: Final Data for 2003. National Vital Statistics Reports 54 (2). Retrieved online November 17, 2005. back
  28. National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention, Divisions of HIV/AIDS Prevention. (2005). Reported AIDS cases and annual rates (per 100,000 population), by area of residence and age category, cumulative through 2003-United States. Atlanta: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Retrieved online October 18, 2005. back
  29. Office of Applied Studies, National Surveys on Drug Use and Health. (2005). State Estimates of Substance Use from the 2002-2003 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health (Table 18). Retrieved online October 18, 2005. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). back
  30. Annie E. Casey Foundation. (2005). Comparisons by Topic: Teens who are high school dropouts: Percent: 2000. KIDS COUNT State Level Data Online. Baltimore: Author. Retrieved online October 18, 2005.
    Annie E. Casey Foundation (2005). Comparisons by Topic: Teens who are high school dropouts: Percent: 2004. KIDS COUNT State Level Data Online. Baltimore: Author. Retrieved online October 18, 2005. back
  31. Annie E. Casey Foundation (2005). Teens not attending school and not working: Percent: 2004. KIDS COUNT State Level Data Online. Baltimore, MD: Author. Retrieved online October 18, 2005. back
  32. Office of Applied Studies, National Surveys on Drug Use and Health. (2005). State Estimates of Substance Use from the 2002-2003 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health (Table 19). Rockville, MD: SAMHSA. Retrieved online October 18, 2005. back
  33. Office of Applied Studies, National Surveys on Drug Use and Health. (2005). State Estimates of Substance Use from the 2002-2003 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health (Table 20). Rockville, MD: SAMHSA. Retrieved online October 18, 2005. back
  34. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. (2004). Injury Mortality Reports, 1999-2002. Atlanta: CDC. Retrieved online October 18, 2005. back
  35. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. (2005). Injury Mortality Reports, 1999-2002. Atlanta: CDC. Retrieved online October 18, 2005. back
  36. Federal Bureau of Investigation. (2003). Crime in the United States 2003 (Table 69). Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved online October 18, 2005.
    Federal Bureau of Investigation (2004). Crime in the United States 2004 (Table 69). Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved online October 18, 2005. back
  37. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. (2004). Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement Databook. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice. Retrieved online December 10, 2005. back
  38. Urban Institute. (2004). The Cost of Protecting Vulnerable Children IV: How Child Welfare Funding Fared During the Recession. Retrieved online, December 10, 2005. Washington, DC: Author. Examples of direct services include child abuse/neglect investigations, foster care, communitybased programs, case management, and all such services required for the safety, permanency, and well-being of children. Examples of administrative services include management information systems, training programs, eligibility determination processes, and all services that provide the infrastructure supports for the public agency. back
  39. Ibid. back
  40. CWLA, Special AFCARS tabulation. back
  41. U.S. General Accounting Office. (2003). Child Welfare: HHS Could Play a Greater Role in Helping Child Welfare Agencies Recruit and Retain Staff. Retrieved online December 12, 2005. Washington, DC: Author. back
  42. Ibid. back
  43. Ibid. back




 Back to Top   Printer-friendly Page Printer-friendly Page   Contact Us Contact Us

 
 

 

 


About Us | Special Initiatives | Advocacy | Membership | News & Media Center | Practice Areas | Support CWLA
Research/Data | Publications | Webstore | Conferences/Training | Culture/Diversity | Consultation/Training

All Content and Images Copyright Child Welfare League of America. All Rights Reserved.
See also Legal Information, Privacy Policy, Browser Compatibility Statement

CWLA is committed to providing equal employment opportunities and access for all individuals.
No employee, applicant for employment, or member of the public shall be discriminated against
on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, or
any other personal characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.