Rural Alaska

Agreement gives Southeast Alaska tribal council control over foster care cases

JUNEAU — Jurisdiction over Tlingit and Haida child welfare cases is being transferred from the state to the tribes, a decision tribal leaders say they've been working toward for years.

The state and the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska signed an agreement Wednesday saying tribal child welfare cases previously handled by the State Office of Children's Services will now go through the tribal court system, The Juneau Empire reported.

Council President Richard Peterson lauded the move, saying Alaska Native families are still working through issues tied to historical trauma and the agreement "will begin putting our families back together." The council has fought for jurisdiction over child welfare cases for 16 years, he said.

The transition will start with the council taking over a few cases from Juneau, where most of the 24 Tlingit and Haida children in foster care live.

"This truly is a government-to-government agreement that recognizes that tribes are uniquely and supremely and ultimately qualified to be able to meet the needs of tribal families," said Valerie Davidson, Department of Health and Social Services commissioner. "That's not new. And quite frankly — if I may as an Alaska Native — we have known that for thousands of years."

Under the agreement, the council is authorized to license tribal foster homes and will be reimbursed for the costs of foster care placements.

Barbara Dude, a child welfare specialist with Central Council's Tribal Family & Youth Services, said reuniting families will be more successful under the agreement.

"Families are just more willing to work with us because we're the tribal workers," Dude said. "They're more willing to sit down with us and help their case plans."

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