Likening Idaho's foster care bureaucracy to a "tidal wave of evil," several foster parents and advocates urged lawmakers Friday in Boise to continue their efforts to reform the

system.

"If there's anything I can communicate to you today, it's that there is a gap between policy and practice," said Brian McCauley of Eagle. "The system itself isn't that bad, but the implementation, in my opinion, is a borderline disaster."

McCauley and his wife, Val, represent Idaho Foster Care Reform, a group that's working to give foster parents greater voice in the placement decisions involving their foster

children.

"I know foster parents have a reputation for being emotional," he said. "Absolutely; that's our role. Our job is to love these kids. What kills us is when we see children who aren't being treated right."

McCauley made his comments during the first meeting of the Idaho Legislature's Foster Care Study Committee.

The committee was created in response to complaints from a number of foster parents about the way the state system currently operates. It will review the statutes and provide recommendations for consideration during the 2017 legislative session.

"We're not focused on the mistakes of the past," said Rep. Christy Perry, R-Nampa, who is co-chairing the committee. "Nor is this a witch hunt against the (Department of Health and Welfare); an agency is only as good as the policies we create to guide them."

Michelle Weir, the department's family and community services program manager, said there are about 1,300 kids in Idaho's foster care system at any point in time. Most are reunited with their biological parents after several months; others end up being adopted by relatives or foster families, typically after being in the system for an average of 25 to 30 months.

Bannock County Magistrate Judge Bryan Murray said reunification is the primary goal. However, providing a stable environment for children and limiting the number of times they're shuttled from home to home is also critical, given the traumatic effect frequent moves can have on their emotional development.

"We need to keep these kids in school," Murray said. "We need to help kids who have been abused, neglected and abandoned to deal with their emotional issues, and not just drug them. A child who experiences these things and who doesn't get treatment lives 20 years less. They smoke, they drink, they go to jail and they're in and out of relationships. If we get them treatment, it helps them be resilient and be better parents themselves."

Matthew Shaughnessy, who also works with Idaho Foster Care Reform, said he's the example of what happens when the state fails to find permanent placements for these kids.

"I was in foster care from birth," he said. "I was abandoned at birth on the steps of the hospital. I was in 16 different foster homes, not counting residential treatment centers and juvenile detention. I don't comprehend trust, I don't understand security. Chaos is what I'm addicted to, so that's what I create in my life. I can't tell you what it feels like to be 8 years old, waking up in a strange house and just wanting a hug from someone you know, knowing that you're never going to get it."

Shaughnessy said he's been suicidal at times; he's also contemplated violence against others. Nearly 20 years after he "aged out" of the foster care system when he turned 18, he continues to need psychotherapy.

"I don't know what the solution is," he said. "The only thing I can tell you is the bureaucracy involved in this system is creating a demographic that's fully dependent (on public services) and mentally unstable. The evil in foster care is like a tidal wave."

The McCauleys and other foster parents said the Department of Health and Welfare has good intentions and noted that they've worked with some great social workers over the years. However, they also cited arbitrary and bureaucratic decisions that were emotionally harmful to children and to foster families.

The McCauleys, for example, were foster parents for three years. They were getting ready to adopt a 14-month-old boy they'd raised from birth, when he was abruptly removed from the home and placed with another family.

"The department will say in hindsight that was an incorrect decision, but he'll carry emotional scars into adulthood," Val McCauley said.

The McCauleys believe actions like this explain the 16 percent decline in the number of licensed Idaho foster parents over the past four years, from 1,246 in 2012 to 1,045 last year.

Weir said the Department of Health and Welfare is taking a number of steps to modify the foster care program, including improving staff communication, tracking "unplanned moves" where kids are abruptly shifted to another home and analyzing why foster parents decide to leave the system.

Whatever changes are made, though, Brian McCauley encouraged lawmakers to think about enforcement mechanisms.

"My concern is you'll come up with the best law ever, and it won't make any difference because it will be ignored," he said. "We're supposed to treat these children as our own - yet when foster parents step forward and try to protect them, there's retaliation. The department says that doesn't happen, but it does. There's no place for that in a process that's supposed to serve the best interests of a child."

The study committee will hold several more meetings before the end of the year, soliciting input from people involved in all aspects of the foster care system.

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Spence may be contacted at bspence@lmtribune.com or (208) 791-9168.