"Child Welfare Outcomes 2002-2005: Report to Congress" (Child Welfare Outcomes Report) is the seventh in a series of annual reports from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (the Department). The reports are developed in accordance with section 479A of the Social Security Act (as amended by the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997) and provide information pertaining to State performance on the following national child welfare outcomes: (1) Reduce recurrence of child abuse and/or neglect; (2) Reduce the incidence of child abuse and/or neglect in foster care; (3) Increase permanency for children in foster care; (4) Reduce time in foster care to reunification without increasing reentry; (5) Reduce time in foster care to adoption; (6) Increase placement stability; and (7) Reduce placements of young children in group homes or institutions. The outcomes reflect widely accepted performance objectives for child welfare practice. They were established by the Department in consultation with state and local child welfare agency administrators, child advocacy organizations, child welfare researchers, State legislators, and other experts in the child welfare field. The Child Welfare Outcomes Reports are designed to inform Congress, the states, and the public about state performance on key child welfare outcomes and change in performance over time. The underlying goal of the reports is to promote continuous improvement in the outcomes experienced by children served by child welfare systems throughout the nation. Five appendixes are included: (1) Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997 (Public Law 105-89), Section 203(A); (2) Child Welfare Outcomes and Measures; (3) Data Sources and Data Elements; (4) Highlights of "Child Maltreatment 2005"; and (5) Annual AFCARS (Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System) Report. (Contains 67 footnotes and 17 tables. Additional references, footnotes and tables are included on a state-by state basis.)