PHOENIX — In a report conducted by the Arizona Auditor General on the state department of child safety, it was concluded that some required documentation practices are going undone.
The report compared the Arizona Department of Child Safety practices for classifying and locating missing children with those from the Child Welfare League of America.
Some caseworkers failed to document cases properly, including failing to document that all required notifications were made, or failing to document efforts to locate children within 10 days of making those efforts, according to the report.
Findings suggested that the department lacks clear expectations for the type and frequency of caseworker efforts to find missing children.
It also found that the department and law enforcement have no formal expectations for their roles and responsibilities for locating missing children, the report said.
Although valuable, the department said that establishing a formal agreement with 150 law enforcement agencies would be 'impractical.'
The auditor general recommended that the department revise its policies on notification and documentation practices.
They also recommend formalizing expectations with local law enforcement about their responsibilities for locating missing children.
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