TULSA, Okla. (KTUL) — An Oklahoma lawmaker is calling for a major overhaul to the state’s child welfare system and has filed a bill to create a new state department to take it over.
State Sen. Paul Rosino filed a bill that would create a new state Department of Child Safety and Wellbeing and significantly restructure oversight of child welfare and juvenile services.
The bill would create the Department of Child Safety and Wellbeing as its own agency, moving responsibilities and staff from the Department of Human Services’ Child Welfare Services Division and the Office of Juvenile Affairs into the new department.
The bill calls for a formal transition plan to guide how services, staff, and resources would be moved. Those transfers would fully take effect on July 1, 2027, and would include applicable authority, responsibilities, equipment, records and employees.
The legislation authorizes the governor to appoint an interim commissioner of the Department of Child Safety and Well-being to oversee the transition until a permanent commissioner is selected. It would also create a nine-member Board of Child Safety and Wellbeing to govern the department.
The bill comes at a time when several lawmakers have scrutinized the handling of child welfare cases at DHS, with one lawmaker calling for a grand jury investigation last year.
The bill is expected to be heard in the committee Sen. Rosino chairs this week.
