A longer version of this article originally appeared in the Washington State Standard.
Washington’s new Family Separation Response Task Force issued its first report this month, finding that the state faces multiple gaps in supports for separated immigrant families.
Since Gov. Bob Ferguson established the Task Force in January, the federal government has taken increasingly brazen steps to detain immigrants, including U.S. citizens, to meet the White House’s goals.
The state similarly worked to improve its policies in this area during the first Trump administration.
The task force, housed in the state Department of Children, Youth and Families, includes representatives from about two dozen state agencies and partners with groups like the Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network.
For years, Washington law has barred local police from cooperating with federal immigration enforcement. The state has created guidance on how school officials should comply with this.
For example, schools can’t reach out to immigration agents to share information about students. And schools are required to implement policy on what to do if deportation authorities show up on campus.
But the task force found such training is missing for extra-curricular activities, like parents supervising field trips and sporting events off campus. So the panel is working with the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction to develop such guidance.
The report also flagged a gap in cases when authorities detain one parent but not another. It is difficult for the remaining parent to receive sole guardianship of their child without evidence of abuse or neglect.
The Department of Children, Youth and Families gets involved if U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement can’t find anyone to care for the children. Usually, parents identify a relative or neighbor to watch them.
It is “very rare” for a child separated from their deported parents to enter foster care, said DCYF spokesperson Kortney Scroger.
The task force’s final report is due in the winter.
The Washington State Standard published a longer version of this article on June 20, 2025.
