Georgia's Child Abuse Prevention & Treatment Act (CAPTA) Citizen Review Panels

In 1996, the US Congress amended the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) requiring states to establish Citizen Review Panels to examine the policies, procedures and practices of the state's child welfare system and the extent to which it effectively discharges its child protection responsibilities in accordance with its state CAPTA plan. CAPTA, through its state eligibility requirements, has influenced law, policy, and practice changes in state child protective services.

As the recipient of a CAPTA state grant, Georgia, is required to establish and maintain a minimum of three citizen review panels. To fulfill this mandate, Georgia is currently transitioning the work of its Citizen Review Panels to a district framework, including representatives from the state’s youth advisory board, to promote transparency in the child welfare system, provide opportunities for community involvement, and better protect children from abuse and neglect.  Each year, the panels publish a report on their activities and recommendations for the improvement of Georgia's child protection system.

The Division of Family and Children Services is required to respond annually to the panels’ recommendations in writing.  The annual reports, which include DHS’ responses, can be accessed electronically on the Division’s website.

FFY2027 Funding Opportunity Announcement

Georgia’s Department of Human Services, Division of Family and Children Services (DHS/DFCS), is seeking proposals for innovative projects and activities that help improve the child protective service system in Georgia. Proposals should be responsive to Georgia’s CAPTA Citizen Review Panel goals identified in Georgia’s 2025-2029 Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) Citizen Review Panels’ State Plan . The CAPTA State Plan goals support several items within the federal Child and Family Services Review (CFSR), including Child Well-Being Outcomes (items 12, 17, 18), and Systemic Factors (items 26, 27, 29, and 30). The Plan goals also align with the goals of Georgia’s 2025-2029 Child and Family Services Plan (CFSP), which are to build workforce and staff competencies, increase front-end supports for families, and improve information technology and data sharing tools, and with #6, 7, and 13 of the CAPTA statute (§5106a). Proposal submission requirements are provided in the funding announcement.

Contract Period: October 1, 2026 – Sept 30, 2027

Release Date: March 2, 2026

Award Amount: The maximum amount available in FFY2027 is $1,000,000. The maximum funding request per applicant is limited to $200,000. This funding opportunity is not open to for-profit agencies or individuals

Proposal Submission Deadline: April 13, 2026, by 12 p.m. (EST)

All application materials and any questions concerning these instructions, the application process, proposal requirements, or programmatic issues should be submitted by email to:

DFCS CAPTA Contracts
Email: [email protected]

Please note: If the project is approved, all required contractual documents must be submitted within 14 days of the approval notice.