Nebraska Foster Care Data
Nebraska ranks #3 of 51 jurisdictions for reunification: 59.1% of FY2022 exits returned to a parent or primary caregiver, 13.9 points above the national rate.
- C
- Four-measure profile grade
- 3,873
- #30 caseload nationally
- 59.1%
- Reunification (#3)
- 21.9%
- Adoption (#38)
The verdict
Signature read: Nebraska's 59.1% reunification share is among the highest in the FY2022 corpus (#3). Nebraska held 3,873 children in foster care on September 30, FY2022 and ranks #3 of 51 jurisdictions for reunification at 59.1%, with a C four-measure profile grade that is not an overall quality verdict.
- #3
- reunification rank of 51 jurisdictions
- 59.1%
- FY2022 reunification rate
- #38
- adoption rank nationally
- 17.8 mo
- median length of stay
Nebraska sits in the upper third of the FY2022 AFCARS reunification distribution (59.1% of exits, #3 of 51). Caseload is mid-pack: 3,873 children in care on September 30 (#30 nationally). Profile grade C averages four within-release percentiles; it is not a federal quality verdict.
A within-release percentile composite of four AFCARS measures, not an overall quality verdict or a federal assessment. Reunification and adoption are each scored on their own percentile, never against each other.
Aging out of foster care vs. every US state
FY2022 AFCARS: youth who exit care at majority without a permanent family
7% Among the lowest aging-out rates lower than 63% of 51 US states
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US states. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source ACF/AFCARS state tables · FY2022
AFCARS jurisdiction row
State TAR extract NE · Nebraska C · #3 reunif
3,873 in care · 1,798 exits · FY2022
- REUN 59.1%
- ADOPT 21.9%
- AGE 6.5%
- LOS 17.8 mo
- RANK #3/51
- GRADE C
- CARE 3,873
- EXITS 1,798
- PHOTO Mississippi
- BOOK FY2022 TAR
Nearest caseload peer: Mississippi (48 children vs Nebraska)
The 10 coded stamps above and the extract ID beside them come from the same Children's Bureau AFCARS FY2022 Title-IV-E/B TAR submission, standardized so every jurisdiction's row uses identical measure definitions. Read with this state →
Reunification neighbourhood
AFCARS annual change
What changed from FY2021 to FY2022
The latest comparable state count pair from the U.S. Children's Bureau AFCARS trend series. These are reported changes, not a quality rating or an explanation of why a count moved.
-
Children exiting care
1,676 1,798
Rose by 122 (+7.3%) across the FY2021–FY2022 pair.
-
Children waiting for adoption
755 807
Rose by 52 (+6.9%) across the FY2021–FY2022 pair.
-
Children adopted
368 392
Rose by 24 (+6.5%) across the FY2021–FY2022 pair.
-
Parental rights terminations
457 433
Fell by 24 (−5.3%) across the FY2021–FY2022 pair.
How Nebraska's 1,798 FY2022 exits break down
Counts rounded from each published exit-share × 1,798 exits. Named routes do not cover every AFCARS discharge reason; the residual is other published exit routes (guardianship, transfer, and similar), not missing rows.
Two views of Nebraska's reunification-heavy FY2022 exit mix
Named exit shares for this jurisdiction beside reunification vs the national rate. Competing shares of one exits denominator, not a scorecard.
Nebraska exit routes
Reunification vs national
Same reunification rate as the bar chart; tick marks the national AFCARS rate as context only.
Nationwide peers with similar stay length or adoption share
Two AFCARS peer sets for Nebraska, nearest by metric distance rather than reunification-rank standings.
Similar median length of stay
Nearest jurisdictions by median months in care (17.8 mo here).
Similar adoption share of exits
Jurisdictions with a comparable adoption exit share (21.9% here).
Foster-family placement mix in Nebraska
Caseload is mid-pack: 3,873 children in care on September 30 (#30 nationally). Lead setting: foster family home at 42.8%.
Nebraska children returned to a parent or primary caregiver
Children exiting foster care via adoption in Nebraska
Youth exiting foster care at age 18+ without permanency
Nebraska's decade caseload trail (mid-pack AFCARS counts)
Signature read: Nebraska's 59.1% reunification share is among the highest in the FY2022 corpus (#3). AFCARS count series from FY2013 to FY2022 for Nebraska.
| Metric | FY2013 | FY2015 | FY2017 | FY2019 | FY2021 | FY2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Children Served | 7,749 | 5,956 | 6,564 | 5,643 | 5,511 | 5,671 |
| In Care (Sep 30) | 4,561 | 3,725 | 4,195 | 3,506 | 3,835 | 3,873 |
| Entered Care | 2,708 | 2,351 | 2,644 | 2,209 | 2,032 | 1,929 |
| Exited Care | 3,188 | 2,231 | 2,369 | 2,137 | 1,676 | 1,798 |
| Waiting Adoption | 705 | 709 | 771 | 689 | 755 | 807 |
| Adopted | 586 | 533 | 546 | 560 | 368 | 392 |
Nebraska FAQ - reunification-heavy jurisdiction
Signature read: Nebraska's 59.1% reunification share is among the highest in the FY2022 corpus (#3). Median stay is mid-band at 17.8 months among exits.
How many children are in foster care in Nebraska?
3,873 children were in foster care on September 30, 2022, in the FY2022 AFCARS state table.
What is Nebraska's foster care grade?
A C, based on four equally weighted AFCARS measures. It is a descriptive profile, not a judgment of overall system quality.
What is the adoption rate in Nebraska?
Nebraska adopts out 21.9% of exits, #38 of 51 nationally.
How does Nebraska compare to other states on aging out?
6.5% of youth age out without permanency, 2.7 points below the national rate. That is a lower rate than 63% of the 51 reporting states in FY2022 AFCARS.
Read our methodology - how Nebraska's FY2022 AFCARS row is sourced, computed, and verified.
U.S. Children's Bureau AFCARS FY2022 jurisdiction report for Nebraska (NE). ACF Trends in Foster Care and Adoption workbooks FY2013-FY2022; reunification share of exits stamp 59.1%.
Source: U.S. Children's Bureau (Administration for Children and Families) AFCARS workbooks and jurisdiction reports · FY2022 Nebraska rates are exits shares from the jurisdiction report; in-care counts are the September 30 stock. Caseload is mid-pack: 3,873 children in care on September 30 (#30 nationally).