The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), a division of the Department of Health and Human Services, has initiated a public comment period regarding a crucial data collection effort aimed at comprehensively understanding the well-being of children and adolescents within the federal child welfare system. Published in the Federal Register on June 25, 2026, this notice seeks feedback on plans to recruit a new cohort of participants and gather baseline data for the National and State Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSSCAW). This initiative is designed to furnish states and the nation with vital statistics on the experiences, service needs, and overall welfare of vulnerable youth and their families, with the ultimate goal of informing and enhancing child welfare policies and practices.
Context and Purpose of NSSCAW
The NSSCAW serves as a vital tool for understanding the trajectories of children and families who come into contact with child welfare services. Its long-standing objective, reaffirmed in this proposal, is to generate reliable state and national statistics that can guide improvements in practice and policy. Specifically, the data is intended to inform efforts to strengthen child and family well-being, prevent the need for foster care intervention, and bolster the recruitment and retention of safe and stable foster homes. Previous iterations of this survey have operated under Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number 0970-0202, and this request pertains to data collection for a new cohort under that established authority.
Scope of the Current Request
The current Federal Register notice details a request for approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to undertake three primary activities for a new cohort of participants. First, ACF seeks to recruit a carefully chosen group of states and a randomly selected set of county child welfare agencies within those states. Second, the agency plans to sample specific child cases from the participating state and county agencies. Finally, approval is sought to conduct in-depth interviews with the sampled children and their primary caregivers, including both biological and non-biological foster and kinship caregivers. Deidentified data collected through this process will be archived for future research use, further extending its utility to the broader research community.
Methodology and Data Points
The data collection instruments are designed to capture a broad spectrum of information. Child welfare agency data systems staff will provide monthly sample files to ACF. Caregivers of children aged 0 to 17 and children aged 6 to 17 will complete baseline surveys, which can be conducted either in-person or online. Caregivers will also undergo a brief telephone verification interview. For ongoing tracking, caregivers and young adults aged 18 and older will complete panel maintenance contact cards. The content of these instruments will delve into child and family health and well-being, specific family needs, and various contextual factors influencing their situations. Crucially, the survey will also gather insights into the safety and stability of the child's home environment, including the motivators and challenges experienced by foster and kin caregivers. ACF estimates the total annual burden for this collection over three years to be 3,673 hours, reflecting the extensive nature of this research.
Legal Authority and Public Participation
This proposed information collection operates under the authority granted by 42 U.S.C. 628b and the Continuing Appropriations Act of 2025. This legal framework underscores the federal government's mandate to collect data essential for monitoring and improving child welfare services. The public comment period, which closes on August 24, 2026, invites interested parties to provide feedback on several key aspects. ACF specifically requests input on whether the collection is necessary and possesses practical utility, the accuracy of its estimated burden on respondents, the overall quality and clarity of the information to be gathered, and strategies to minimize respondent burden, particularly through technological means. These comments are crucial for shaping the final methodology of this important federal undertaking.
Implications for Child Welfare
The implications of a robust and current NSSCAW dataset are substantial. By collecting updated information from a new cohort, ACF aims to provide states with the empirical evidence needed to make informed decisions regarding their child welfare systems. This data can illuminate trends in child well-being, identify unmet service needs, and evaluate the effectiveness of current policies. For policymakers, researchers, and practitioners, the NSSCAW offers a unique opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of the factors that contribute to or detract from child safety, permanency, and well-being, thereby fostering a more responsive and effective child welfare infrastructure nationwide. The insights derived from this survey could directly influence resource allocation, program development, and legislative priorities at both state and federal levels.
