New Jersey
New Jersey is one of four states (with New York, North Dakota, and Pennsylvania) whose screening data was excluded from national estimates in Child Maltreatment 2023 because both screened-in and screened-out referral counts could not be provided. New Jersey's victim rate — 1.2 per 1,000 children — is the lowest in the country. That number describes the state's reporting practice, not the underlying maltreatment rate.
The funnel, FFY 2024
New Jersey vs. national
What happened to reports of child maltreatment in New Jersey in federal fiscal year 2024, at each decision point. Rates are what make states comparable; raw counts mostly measure population.
| Stage | New Jersey | Rate | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Referrals to CPSCounts: referrals | 61,859 | Not reported | 59.3 |
| Screened in (became reports)Counts: referrals | 61,859100.0% of referrals | — | 47.1% |
| Screened outCounts: referrals | Not reported | — | 52.9% |
| Children investigated or given an alternative responseCounts: children | 79,120 | 38.7per 1,000 children | 40.6 |
| Child victims (substantiated or indicated)Counts: children | 2,466 | 1.2per 1,000 children | 7.2 |
| Child fatalitiesCounts: children | 14 | 0.68per 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 New Jersey does not report
A figure New Jersey did not report is shown as a labeled gap everywhere it would appear on this site — never as a zero, never as a blank cell. A state that does not report a number has not achieved zero of it.
- Referral rate · counts per 1,000 childrenNot reportedFFY 2024
- Screened out · counts referralsNot reportedFFY 2024
Maltreatment and fatalities over time (NCANDS)
Child fatalities reported to NCANDS, New Jersey, FFY2020 to FFY2024
Source: Child Maltreatment 2024 (NCANDS)
KARA VerifiedChild Maltreatment 2024 (NCANDS)FFY 2024Counts: child fatalities
Child maltreatment victims, New Jersey, 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 | 927 | 1,024 | 1,072 | 1,185 | 1,106 | 1,054 | 1,162 | 788 | 639 | 569 |
| Entered foster care | 5,361 | 5,056 | 4,594 | 4,271 | 3,726 | 3,540 | 2,679 | 1,832 | 1,534 | 1,468 |
| Exited foster care | 5,136 | 4,742 | 4,760 | 4,506 | 4,196 | 3,863 | 3,700 | 2,426 | 2,100 | 1,844 |
| In foster care on September 30 | 6,946 | 7,138 | 6,874 | 6,527 | 5,946 | 5,526 | 4,430 | 3,788 | 3,188 | 2,786 |
| Children served in foster care | 12,043 | 11,847 | 11,617 | 11,019 | 10,131 | 9,382 | 8,116 | 6,202 | 5,287 | 4,625 |
| Termination of parental rights | 762 | 869 | 959 | 990 | 963 | 998 | 792 | 600 | 512 | 444 |
| Waiting for adoption | 2,443 | 2,593 | 2,698 | 2,567 | 2,479 | 2,267 | 1,895 | 1,588 | 1,372 | 1,061 |
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 | 1,621 | 1,566 | 1,542 |
| In foster care on September 30 | 2,785 | 2,800 | 2,846 |
| Exited foster care | 1,597 | 1,506 | 1,456 |
Counts: children (ages 0 to 23)
Source: AFCARS Dashboard, preliminary FFY2025 estimates (No. 33)
New Jersey in the archive
What the numbers above cost, in KARA's own reporting.
- Childhood Trauma and Lifelong ACES Impact
KARA reportingMike TikkanenJune 24, 2026
Children’s mental health crisis post COVID is no longer invisible. California’s Surgeon General Nadine Burke Harris has declared adverse childhood experiences a public health threat, while foster children across the nation are being overpre...
- America’s Child Abuse Emergency: 546,000 Victims, 2,000 Deaths, and a System That Chooses This
KARA reportingMike TikkanenJune 6, 2026
Child abuse in the United States is not rare or random — it is the predictable outcome of policy choices. In 2023, about 546,000 children were confirmed victims of abuse or neglect and an estimated 2,000 were killed, roughly five children e...
- 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.
- From Classrooms to Homeless Shelters: How Our Choices Hurt Children
KARA reportingMike TikkanenMarch 24, 2026
Compared to other advanced nations America treats children and the people who care for them as an afterthought and then acts surprised when our schools and child‑welfare systems are overwhelmed with troubled children suffering from health a...
- New Jersey Recent Child Abuse Death, Egregious Harm & Child Protection Issues
KARA reportingMike TikkanenFebruary 21, 2026
New Jersey’s recent child abuse tragedies—from Ne’Miya Duncan’s death days after a welfare visit to two brothers killed in Hillsborough—show deep failures in DCPP’s ability to protect children. This post highlights specific deaths, lawsuits...
- The Importance of Foster Youth Rights (find your State here)
KARA reportingMike TikkanenOctober 22, 2025
This article is derived from Hana Ikramuddin's excellent Imprint News Article about Fosters not being notified of their rights - Read the Imprint article here. Hana tells us the story of AIayna Ghost’s years in Foster Care from ages 7 to 18...
- Child Abuse Sad Stories (4 days in November)
KARA reportingMike TikkanenNovember 24, 2024
37% of children overall and 44% of Black children are reported to child protection services in America by the time they turn 18. (American Journal of Public Health 1.17) 7.8 million children a year are reported to child protection services.
- America's CHILDHOOD TRAUMA and ACES Impact
KARA reportingMike TikkanenMarch 14, 2024
California’s Surgeon General Nadine Burke Harris has declared Adverse Childhood Experiences a public health problem and public school crisis in her state.