New bill would force DCFS to disclose details on missing children
[January 22, 2026]
By Cat Barker | The Center Square contributor
(The Center Square) – An Illinois state senator has introduced
legislation requiring the Department of Children and Family Services to
publicly account for every foster child who goes missing while under
state care, citing a lack of reliable data that lawmakers say has
hampered oversight and child safety efforts.
Senate Bill 2869, introduced by Sen. Darby Hills, R-Barrington Hills,
would require DCFS to submit an annual report to the General Assembly
beginning June 1, 2027, detailing how many youth in state care were
reported missing, how many were later found or recovered, and how many
remain missing.
“Policymakers can’t fix what they don’t know, and this legislation
ensures that information is no longer hidden or inconsistent,” Hills
told TCS.
The bill follows months of reporting by The Center Square, which found
that DCFS could not initially provide basic information about how many
foster children had gone missing. After further investigation, The
Center Square published data showing hundreds of children classified as
missing while in state care, information that Hills said was not readily
available to lawmakers or the public.
“If there’s one missing child, it alarms me,” Hills said. “Let alone if
there’s 193. And we don’t even know if that’s necessarily accurate
either.”
Hills, the Senate minority spokesperson for child welfare and a former
Cook County prosecutor, emphasized that transparency is a prerequisite
for accountability.
“Without reliable data, we as lawmakers and the public can’t identify
patterns,” she said. “We can’t figure out if there are gaps in care, and
we can’t identify opportunities to prevent children from going missing
in the first place.”
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The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services building is
shown in Springfield. Photo: Greg Bishop / The Center Square
When asked who should ultimately be held accountable if children
disappear from state care, Hills said the question cannot be
answered without first understanding the scope and causes of the
problem.
“We’d have to see how they went missing, where they’re missing from,
to be able to find out why they went missing,” she said.
Hills also raised concerns about the risk of human trafficking among
missing foster youth, noting that children in state care are
particularly vulnerable.
“We need to find out where these children are,” she said. “Are they
being trafficked? Are they being harmed? This is the point of this.”
Hills said she supports additional training and resources to help
caseworkers identify youth at high risk of running away or going
missing.
“If we can’t locate 193 children, that is very alarming,” she said.
“One child going missing is bad enough. And we don’t even know if
there’s more.”
She said DCFS should be working closely with law enforcement,
including federal agencies, when children go missing, though she
acknowledged the agency’s staffing challenges.
“We know DCFS is stretched thin,” Hills told TCS. “We appreciate how
much they do, but we do need transparency and to be able to help and
make sure that we’re protecting children.”
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