CYFD, governor dispute DOJ findings, say reforms already underway

New Mexico’s Children, Youth and Families Department and Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham pushed back on a damning state Department of Justice report, saying the failures it documents are problems of the past — and that Acting Secretary Valerie Sandoval’s team had already taken action on each of the eight systemic issues the attorney general identified.

CYFD said it was not given a chance to review Attorney General Raúl Torrez’s 224-page findings before their public release, which it said prevented the agency from taking “any needed immediate corrective action.” The department said the report “underplays or ignores significant, measurable progress” over the past seven months, pointing to:

• Nearly 250 new staff hired in six months, with thousands of completed cases closed to reduce caseloads
• The end of children staying overnight in CYFD offices, which stopped Feb. 12 under a governor’s executive order
• New resources for foster families, including a specialized Foster Care Plus program for high-needs children
• Statewide coordination with law enforcement to identify at-risk children

Gov. Lujan Grisham acknowledged the report’s findings but said it captures a system that has already changed. “The disturbing episodes recounted in the document occurred before our new cabinet secretary assembled a dedicated and talented new leadership team,” she said. The governor pointed to a 25% increase in foster parent payments, extension of foster care eligibility from 18 to 21, and a reform of the state’s response to drug-exposed newborns — which she said resulted in 168 children removed from dangerous homes.

CYFD disputed two specific findings directly: that it overuses congregate care — the agency said 90% of foster children are placed in family settings — and that it prioritizes reunification over child safety, which it said federal and state law requires absent aggravating circumstances.

The agency also said it has zero tolerance for retaliation, directly contradicting one of the DOJ report’s central allegations. The original report detailed a case in which a Silver City grandmother had a child removed from her care without notice after she shared court records with law enforcement to assist a child abuse prosecution.

Torrez’s lawsuit, filed in Santa Fe District Court, remains active. It seeks to bar CYFD from using confidentiality statutes to block oversight and retaliate against foster parents and caregivers.

Read the report

• Full DOJ investigative report: nmdoj.gov/publications/cyfd-report
• Report suspected child abuse: 1-855-333-SAFE (7233)
• CYFD contact: cyfd.nm.gov