1-27-12, LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The head of Nebraska's child welfare services says a proposal to reclaim case management duties from private contractors would destabilize the system that serves abused and neglected children.
 
Scot Adams told a legislative panel Thursday that the agency opposes the measure (LB961) to end a major part of Nebraska's move toward privatization. Adams says the effort could prompt the state's two contractors to withdraw before their agreements expire in 2014.
 
His comments followed more than three hours of committee testimony from foster parents and child advocates who say the state's privatization effort has worsened child services.
 
Foster parents recounted stories in which young children were left to sit in filthy clothes and their own waste for hours after they were removed from homes.