The Arizona Department of Child Safety is moving its process of reviewing its compliance with child-protection policies in-house.
The Arizona Republic reports the child-welfare agency is disbanding citizen panels intended to bring an outside view on its work.
Opponents of the move, which was announced last month by Department of Child Safety Director Greg McKay, say they fear it will further insulate the agency from outside oversight.
The panels, which Congress created in 1996, in Arizona have always been coordinated through a group outside the agency. Initially it was the state Department of Health Services. It later moved to Arizona State University's School of Social Work.
Experts say it's not unusual for the citizen panels to be run by the agency they were created to advise.
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Information from: The Arizona Republic, http://www.azcentral.com
