The Latest Breaking News from DFPS

Department of Family and Protective Services Commissioner Stephanie Muth told lawmakers Friday the agency will require a different set of skills from its employees as it changes how foster children’s cases are managed.

As Judge Janis Jack continues to threaten contempt-of-court fines in a federal lawsuit against the state’s foster care system, advocates say the case has moved the needle on reform — but it has come with a hefty price tag.

Former DFPS commissioner Anne Heiligenstein was tapped by Abbott in June to serve as the agency’s executive deputy commissioner. Last month, she was out. Now she’s back.

The department is terminating the contract of Executive Deputy Commissioner Anne Heiligenstein, who was supposed to work until next June, amid a staffing crisis. The chief of staff for the agency’s top leader has also left.

Residential treatment centers are meant to be a last resort for children in the state’s care, reserved for those with histories of severe trauma caused by neglect or abuse.

Friday’s injunction applies to all members of PFLAG, an LGBTQ advocacy group with more than 600 members in Texas.

When it comes to gender identity issues, some conservatives make a mockery of liberty and parental rights.

DALLAS — An employee from the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services showed up at a 13-year-old transgender boy’s middle school to interview him as part of an investigation into his family over the use of gender-affirming medical treatments, according to newly filed court documents.

AUSTIN, Texas — Continuing to investigate the parents of transgender youth could put Texas’ child protection agency over the brink of collapse, a group of its staffers said in a new court filing.