Hawaii

Hawaii has the lowest referral rate (19.2 per 1,000 children) and the lowest child disposition rate (12.0 per 1,000) in the country. That is a state-reporting fact, not a maltreatment fact — the range across states from Hawaii's 19.2 to Vermont's 169.1 per 1,000 is not a nine-fold range in child harm.

The funnel, FFY 2024

Hawaii vs. national

What happened to reports of child maltreatment in Hawaii in federal fiscal year 2024, at each decision point. Rates are what make states comparable; raw counts mostly measure population.

Stage	Hawaii	Rate	National
Referrals to CPSCounts: referrals	5,629	19.2per 1,000 children	59.3
Screened in (became reports)Counts: referrals	1,89633.7% of referrals	—	47.1%
Screened outCounts: referrals	3,73366.3% of referrals	—	52.9%
Children investigated or given an alternative responseCounts: children	3,512	12per 1,000 children	40.6
Child victims (substantiated or indicated)Counts: children	769	2.6per 1,000 children	7.2
Child fatalitiesCounts: children	4	1.36per 100,000 children	2.41

Referrals, reports, children, and victims are four different denominators and are not interchangeable. A referral may concern more than one child; a child may appear in more than one referral; a victim is a child with a substantiated or indicated disposition. National figures are the Children's Bureau's own estimates, not sums of the state rows.

Source: Child Maltreatment 2024 (NCANDS), Tables 2-3, 3-1, 3-3, 4-1

What Hawaii does not report

For the measures on this page, Hawaii reported a figure in every year covered. That is not the same as the figures being complete or comparable — see the methodology for what the federal record does not measure at all.

ReportedEvery FFY on file

Maltreatment and fatalities over time (NCANDS)

Child fatalities reported to NCANDS, Hawaii, FFY2020 to FFY2024

Source: Child Maltreatment 2024 (NCANDS)

KARA VerifiedChild Maltreatment 2024 (NCANDS)FFY 2024Counts: child fatalities

Child maltreatment victims, Hawaii, FFY2020 to FFY2024

Source: Child Maltreatment 2024 (NCANDS)

KARA VerifiedChild Maltreatment 2024 (NCANDS)FFY 2024Counts: child victims (substantiated or indicated)

Foster care (AFCARS)

Measure	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022
Adopted with public agency involvement	160	121	176	129	152	189	206	206	273	158
Entered foster care	1,022	1,076	1,189	1,163	1,179	1,224	1,272	1,029	1,037	906
Exited foster care	980	919	978	906	1,090	1,043	1,169	1,089	1,138	952
In foster care on September 30	1,085	1,221	1,360	1,605	1,607	1,687	1,706	1,593	1,418	1,340
Children served in foster care	2,065	2,140	2,338	2,511	2,697	2,730	2,875	2,682	2,556	2,292
Termination of parental rights	137	174	119	150	236	276	267	264	235	228
Waiting for adoption	154	187	142	177	247	290	278	273	244	249

Source: AFCARS state tables, FY2013 to FY2022

AFCARS 2020 rule, FFY2023 to FFY2025 (preliminary)

Collected under the AFCARS 2020 final rule, first effective FFY 2023. Counts include ages 0 to 23. Figures are preliminary estimates from submissions received by February 27, 2026, and states may still revise them. This series is not comparable with the FY 2013 to FY 2022 series, which was collected under the 1993 rule and counted a narrower population; this site does not join the two. Wyoming first submitted under the new rule for FFY 2024 and Washington for FFY 2025; earlier years for those states are shown as not reported.

Measure	2023	2024	2025
Entered foster care	642	650	666
In foster care on September 30	964	887	913
Exited foster care	855	678	593

Counts: children (ages 0 to 23)

Source: AFCARS Dashboard, preliminary FFY2025 estimates (No. 33)

Hawaii in the archive

What the numbers above cost, in KARA's own reporting.

Best & Worst States For America's Children
KARA reportingMike TikkanenJune 19, 2026
Where does your state rank in protecting children & what can you do to make improvements. These statistics tell the stories of our best and worst states around the nation
School Performance, Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow & What To Do
KARA reportingMike TikkanenMay 5, 2026
• “Since 2020, national and state test data show steep declines in foundational reading and math skills that are not bouncing back on their own. If current trends hold, by 2034 a majority of U.S. students will need remedial support, deepeni...
Best and Worst Hospitals For U.S. Children (Beckers Hospital Review)
KARA reportingMike TikkanenApril 8, 2026
Which states give kids the best chance at a healthy life? This review ranks all 50 states and D.C. on children’s healthcare, nutrition, and oral health—and the gaps are stark.
Domestic Violence to a Five Year Old (living in a house of terror)
KARA reportingMike TikkanenSeptember 18, 2025
Watching mom beaten or raped is terror. Homeless mothers and children are many times more likely to be assaulted and molested. Children of addicted and alcoholic moms and dads are beaten and raped more often too. Trauma is *torture. Watchin...
Child Abuse Stories, Statistics & Politics In America Today
KARA reportingMike TikkanenNovember 28, 2021
Kids At Risk Action gathers stories and statistics about child abuse and child welfare State By State + International)
October Is Domestic Violence Awareness Month
KARA reportingMike TikkanenOctober 4, 2021
Watching your mother being beat up or raped is the same trauma as being beaten or raped to a five or nine year old. Untreated trauma lasts forever and it changes a person forever. The United Nation's-Secretary General Antonio Guterres has w...
Recent Child Suicide Reports & Statistics (part III)
KARA reportingMike TikkanenJanuary 4, 2019
Most child suicide is under reported & obfuscated Find your state, reporting & resources here…
Child Welfare State By State for May 2018 (8)
KARA reportingMike TikkanenJuly 4, 2018
SC: South Carolina, Under Lawsuit Settlement and Needing 1,500 Foster Homes, Could Become 20th State To Create Ombudsmans' Office (Commentary) Chronicle of Social Change - April 30, 2018 South Carolina is set to become the 20th state to est...

All 21 Hawaii articles →