Big Sky Times

The number of youths in foster care in Montana at the end of fiscal year 2018 stood at 3,946, a 2.4 percent increase over the previous fiscal year, according to newly released data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Montana children in foster care in fiscal year 2012 numbered 1,937. Five years later, the number of children was 3,853, representing a 98.9 percent increase in the foster care population, the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) reported.

Nationwide, the number in foster care decreased in FY 2018 for the first time since 2011, the analysis found. It went from 441,000 at the end of FY 2017 to 437,300 a year later.

But the number of U.S. children in foster care increased 11.3 percent between fiscal years 2012 and 2017. By the end of FY 2018, the number in foster care had dipped by 0.9 percent compared to the previous year, according to the analysis.

The fiscal-year data compare children in foster care as of the last day of the fiscal year, Sept. 30, HHS reports.

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Numbers of Children in Foster Care as of Sept. 30, by State

State	FY 2012	FY 2013	FY 2014	FY 2015	FY 2016	FY 2017	FY 2018	% Change, FY 2012 to FY 2017	% Change, FY 2017 to FY 2018
Alabama	4,561	4,435	4,526	4,745	5,053	5,631	5,930	23.46%	5.31%
Alaska	1,854	1,982	2,190	2,653	2,820	2,766	2,792	49.19%	0.94%
Arizona	13,461	14,399	16,246	17,738	17,118	15,031	13,360	11.66%	-11.12%
Arkansas	3,711	3,797	3,806	4,548	4,880	4,776	4,234	28.70%	-11.35%
California	54,553	55,383	56,771	55,983	54,685	51,869	52,337	-4.92%	0.90%
Colorado	6,003	5,851	5,787	5,644	5,733	5,704	5,542	-4.98%	-2.84%
Connecticut	4,563	4,263	3,921	3,908	4,119	4,135	4,225	-9.38%	2.18%
Delaware	799	702	635	682	780	787	719	-1.50%	-8.64%
District of Columbia	1,216	1,034	871	873	826	751	707	-38.24%	-5.86%
Florida	19,536	18,040	19,712	22,364	23,810	24,641	24,404	26.13%	-0.96%
Georgia	7,671	7,607	9,005	10,935	12,381	13,146	13,793	71.37%	4.92%
Hawaii	1,079	1,085	1,221	1,360	1,605	1,607	1,687	48.93%	4.98%
Idaho	1,234	1,342	1,208	1,351	1,518	1,593	1,814	29.09%	13.87%
Illinois	16,772	16,894	17,049	16,654	16,113	15,930	16,840	-5.02%	5.71%
Indiana	11,190	12,382	14,452	17,023	19,837	20,904	18,560	86.81%	-11.21%
Iowa	6,262	6,341	5,978	5,993	5,565	5,952	6,249	-4.95%	4.99%
Kansas	6,002	6,441	6,762	7,223	7,302	7,753	8,068	29.17%	4.06%
Kentucky	6,979	7,162	7,506	7,538	7,739	8,146	9,355	16.72%	14.84%
Louisiana	4,044	3,955	4,329	4,545	4,461	4,460	4,562	10.29%	2.29%
Maine	1,512	1,787	1,864	1,873	1,837	1,584	1,768	4.76%	11.62%
Maryland	4,884	4,467	4,032	3,914	3,841	3,923	3,973	-19.68%	1.27%
Massachusetts	8,522	8,537	9,937	10,278	10,910	10,916	10,612	28.09%	-2.78%
Michigan	14,522	14,615	13,512	11,977	11,599	11,918	12,121	-17.93%	1.70%
Minnesota	5,330	5,641	6,324	7,610	8,793	9,651	9,271	81.07%	-3.94%
Mississippi	3,699	3,779	4,380	4,773	5,486	5,440	4,703	47.07%	-13.55%
Missouri	9,985	10,624	11,834	12,160	12,408	12,390	12,659	24.09%	2.17%
Montana	1,937	2,232	2,345	2,807	3,366	3,853	3,946	98.92%	2.41%
Nebraska	5,116	4,561	3,666	3,725	4,012	4,195	3,524	-18.00%	-16.00%
Nevada	4,745	4,776	4,543	4,489	4,266	4,408	4,532	-7.10%	2.81%
New Hampshire	768	850	890	1,032	1,206	1,461	1,531	90.23%	4.79%
New Jersey	6,848	6,946	7,138	6,874	6,527	5,946	5,526	-13.17%	-7.06%
New Mexico	1,914	2,077	2,366	2,471	2,610	2,657	2,508	38.82%	-5.61%
New York	23,924	22,975	22,422	20,985	17,398	17,207	16,385	-28.08%	-4.78%
North Carolina	8,461	9,036	9,859	10,324	10,561	10,756	10,543	27.12%	-1.98%
North Dakota	1,109	1,227	1,365	1,359	1,407	1,495	1,576	34.81%	5.42%
Ohio	11,877	12,223	12,519	13,205	13,725	14,961	15,730	25.97%	5.14%
Oklahoma	9,120	10,535	11,457	11,163	10,062	9,315	8,634	2.14%	-7.31%
Oregon	8,686	8,202	7,395	7,388	7,631	7,972	7,577	-8.22%	-4.95%
Pennsylvania	14,515	14,270	14,838	16,081	16,086	16,891	16,566	16.37%	-1.92%
Rhode Island	1,707	1,789	1,798	1,838	1,654	1,846	2,003	8.14%	8.50%
South Carolina	3,113	3,188	3,461	3,726	3,968	4,041	4,456	29.81%	10.27%
South Dakota	1,399	1,253	1,174	1,280	1,416	1,603	1,560	14.58%	-2.68%
Tennessee	7,440	7,763	7,342	7,599	7,694	8,558	8,929	15.03%	4.34%
Texas	29,613	29,625	30,358	29,990	30,738	32,150	32,960	8.57%	2.52%
Utah	2,813	2,709	2,960	2,704	2,838	2,954	2,611	5.01%	-11.61%
Vermont	975	971	1,123	1,332	1,323	1,270	1,308	30.26%	2.99%
Virginia	4,579	4,327	4,597	4,735	4,890	4,795	4,915	4.72%	2.50%
Washington	9,606	10,208	10,630	10,665	10,959	11,355	11,399	18.21%	0.39%
West Virginia	4,562	4,389	4,556	4,959	5,973	6,633	7,138	45.40%	7.61%
Wisconsin	6,384	6,539	6,918	7,091	7,382	7,721	7,819	20.94%	1.27%
Wyoming	949	981	985	1,082	993	1,085	1,091	14.33%	0.55%
Puerto Rico	4,310	4,197	3,696	4,190	4,264	4,539	2,231	5.31%	-50.85%
Total	396,414	400,394	414,259	427,439	434,168	441,071	437,283	11.27%	-0.86%

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services