PHOENIX — The state agency that protects Arizona’s children has been audited again and again over the past decade.
Despite finding lots of problems, only a fraction have been fully fixed, according to a 2023 audit that found persistent problems within the agency tasked with protecting the state’s most vulnerable children.
The report found the Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS) had not fully implemented 42 of 58 recommendations from six special audits that were issued between 2016 to 2021. The unaddressed issues included recommendations to help find missing children and late reports that caused judges to postpone court hearings.
Since becoming a standalone agency in 2014, DCS has undergone numerous audits.
FULL COVERAGE - 'DCS: State of Failure' investigative series
Despite this extensive scrutiny, Arizona Auditor General Lindsey Perry told lawmakers last year that there has never been a completed audit of one of the department’s most important roles: investigating child abuse and neglect.
"The office has never, ever conducted an in-depth review of complaint investigations,” she said during a meeting of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee in September 2024.
That gap is now being addressed as a current audit is examining whether DCS is doing enough when reports of abuse or neglect come in. The first of two reports is expected to be released on or before September 30.
Lawmakers expressed frustration with DCS in January 2024 when the state agency came up for an in-depth review known as a Sunset Review. Many lawmakers had such little trust in DCS that they voted to review the agency again in four years, rather than waiting the typical 10 years.
"The issues we're talking about have been [a] continuation from the beginning and infancy of this agency,” said Rep. Julie Willoughby, (R-District 13), during a committee hearing.
Sen. Theresa Hatathlie, (D-District 6), was also highly critical.
"I, myself, find it egregious that people in places of trust are not ensuring the safety, the health, and the welfare of our vulnerable children,” she said.
At that same hearing last year, State Sen. Sonny Borrelli, (R-District 30), said lawmakers need to step in and take a “tighter rein.”
"When there's no improvement by some of these directors, that person needs to be held accountable,” he said.
David Lujan was the DCS director at the time of the 2024 legislative hearing.
"Our process is to go back, look at those auditor general reports and see where we can make changes,” he told lawmakers.
Lujan later resigned in January 2025 to become the executive director of a charter school.
ABC15 asked current DCS Director Kathryn Ptak why so many audit problems have gone unfixed.
As part of the 'DCS: State of Failure' series, ABC15 sat down exclusively with DCS Director Kathryn Ptak to talk about the agency. Watch her response and full interview here or in the video below.
“Some of the findings in the audit we have not agreed with,” she said. “We think it’s wrong, and we are not going to comply.”
In other instances, such as the audit recommendation to improve the quality of reports made to the court, she said: “Quality isn’t defined, so it’s difficult to comply with.”
She also said change takes time.
“We are working very closely with our partners at the Auditor General’s Office to the extent that we can implement them and implement them quickly and show proof that we have implemented them.”
Email ABC15 Investigator Anne Ryman at: anne.ryman@abc15.com, call her at 602-685-6345, or connect on X, formerly known as Twitter, and Facebook.
