Fulton County Audit 2007

The Georgia Office of the Child Advocate (OCA) reviewed 284 child protective services (CPS) investigations and 182 ongoing CPS cases at the Fulton County Division of Family and Children's Services (DFCS) between December 8, 2006, and March 14, 2007. Forty of the cases reviewed required additional emergency staff to assess immediate child safety; nine were investigations and 31 were on-going cases. The OCA sought to assess case handling procedures and to assess DFCS as an organization.

The OCA found that while the agency responded consistently and reviews of family history were made, the target response time was unmet in one-third of the cases although the appropriate contacts were eventually made. This response gap was linked to high employee turnover and high caseloads. Inconsistent supervision was found in about 25% of cases, and the OCA investigators disagreed with the case dispositions 30% of the time.