Headlines: ICE and Child Welfare, State Spending Woes and More

On this week’s episode we review some interesting research on kinship diversion, emergency placements and the nexus between child welfare systems and immigration under Trump. Then we discuss some local headlines on state child welfare spending and the result of two recent legal challenges.

Reading Room

How Are Heightened Deportation Efforts Affecting Child Welfare Agencies?https://shorturl.at/AqJ4K

 State Tracking of Kinship Diversion Can Inform the Field
https://media.childtrends.org/media/StateTrackingofKinshipDiversion_ChildTrends_July2026.pdf

‘Dehumanizing’ Placements in Hotels and Offices: First-Ever National Survey Finds Thousands of Foster Youth Are Sent to Substandard Emergency Placements
https://imprintnews.org/top-stories/dehumanizing-placements-in-hotels-and-offices-first-ever-national-survey-finds-thousands-of-foster-youth-are-sent-to-substandard-emergency-placements/276268

‘When I Had No One, I Had Them’: Young Moms Lose FSU Foster Care Program Liifeline
https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article316580993.html

Citing Siders Case, Ohio Lawmakers Urge Max Foster Care Rates
https://www.statenews.org/government-politics/2026-08-19/citing-siders-case-ohio-lawmakers-urge-max-foster-care-rates

Some Lawmakers Frustrated by Morrisey’s Hidden Details of Federal TANF Spending
https://westvirginiawatch.com/2026/08/21/some-lawmakers-frustrated-by-morriseys-hidden-details-of-federal-tanf-spending/

State Lawmakers Gave Louisiana Foster Parents More Money — or So They Thought
https://lailluminator.com/2026/08/21/foster-care-money/

High Court: Maine Wrongly Terminated a Mother’s Parental Rights Because She Couldn’t Find an Affordable Home
https://themainemonitor.org/maine-wrongly-terminated-parental-rights-affordable-home/

Once Again, NY Appeals Court Rules CPS Cannot ‘Unlawfully’ Investigate Parents With Abusive Partners
https://imprintnews.org/top-stories/once-again-ny-appeals-court-rules-cps-cannot-unlawfully-investigate-parents-with-abusive-partners/276699