Los Angeles County DCFS Audits Finds Timeliness Issues With Abuse & Neglect Investigations

An audit of child abuse or neglect investigations by the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) during the 2013-14 through 2017-2018 fiscal years found that only one-third of the samples in the audit were completed within the 30-days allotted. State law allows up to 30 days from the initial in‑person response to complete an investigation. In a review of 30 child abuse referrals, DCFS investigations adhered to the 30-day window for 19 referrals. In this sample, six of the investigations lasted for more than 90 days. One investigation lasted more than . . .