Individuals with a founded finding of child abuse or neglect made by the Washington State Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) or a Washington State court may now apply to work in an assisted living facility or nursing home, provide long-term care services, or seek unsupervised access under a DCYF program such as child care or foster care.

The Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) offers support in several programs to provide housing vouchers to eligible young people in our care. We work with a variety of partners to ensure that these youth experience supported transitions into safe, stable, and appropriate housing when they leave our care.

Passed in 2018, House Bill 6160 (also referred to as JR to 25) allows young people sentenced in adult court for crimes committed under age 18 to go to Juvenile Rehabilitation (JR) until age 25. Before the bill, JR residents had to transfer to the Department of Corrections on their 21st birthday to serve the rest of their sentence.

The 2021 Legislative Session convenes virtually today, Jan. 11, and will last 105 days. While the unprecedented virtual structure presents many challenges, rest assured we will be hard at work communicating with lawmakers throughout the session.