TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The incoming Kansas governor will face a large task dealing with a struggling child welfare system recently hit with a class-action lawsuit alleging that conditions were so poor that children suffered mentally or ran away from foster homes.

The Wichita Eagle reports that the class action lawsuit filed in federal court this month alleges that children have been trafficked for sex, sexually abused inside adoptive homes or reportedly raped inside a child welfare office.

Lawmakers, experts and advocates say Democratic governor-elect Laura Kelly must significantly invest in the state’s Department for Children and Families to improve the system.

Kelly says the department will be “a high priority” for her administration. She says the agency has lacked resources for almost a decade.