PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Child Safety is addressing a shortage of foster homes by significantly boosting its financial support for families that take kids in.

The state announced Thursday that DCS is raising the daily rate for licensed foster homes, including kinship families, by 50% in an effort to place more children in family-like settings instead of group homes. It’s the largest increase since the agency’s creation in 2014.

The change will bump up the rate for each child, which is based on age and need, by an average of $1,000 to $1,700 per month.

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