Office of the Child, Youth and Family Advocate seeks new intake specialist, cites federal grant and potential $1.75M drawdown

The Office of the Child, Youth and Family Advocate asked the Vermont House Appropriations Committee on Feb. 21 for an additional full-time intake specialist — a five-year position the office says would cost about $63,000 in fiscal 2026 — and described a newly awarded federal grant and a federal funding rule that could increase support for families served by the Department for Children and Families (DCF).

The request came during a roughly 35-minute budget presentation to the House Appropriations Committee. "Our office was created, we've been in existence almost 2 years," Matthew Bernstein, the Child, Youth and Family Advocate, told the committee, describing the office's mix of individual and systemic advocacy for children, youth and families who receive services from DCF or funds administered by DCF.

The nut graf: the advocates said their office's caseload has grown and that a new staff position would let them handle more intakes and manage a complex five-year federal grant they recently won. They also described a separate, existing federal funding rule they say could allow Vermont to draw down about $1,750,000 a year in federal funds that the state is currently covering with general funds.

Bernstein and Lauren Higbee, deputy advocate, told lawmakers that the office received 122 complaints or referrals in 2024 — a 63% increase over the prior full year — and that the intake workload includes birth parents, kinship providers, foster parents, youth and community providers. "The number one referral source is from birth parents reaching out to our office for support," Higbee said.

The advocates described a recently awarded, five-year federal grant called JACAMP (Judicial, Court, and Attorney Measures of Performance) from the federal Children’s Bureau. Bernstein said the grant will fund civil legal wraparound services for families involved in child welfare, produce data on outcomes, and create a pathway for Vermont to draw down the $1,750,000 federal funding opportunity. "For the first time, [the grant] provides civil legal wraparound services for Vermont families with child welfare involvement," Bernstein said. He added the grant will also "generate high quality data regarding the effects of those services on child welfare and legal outcomes."

Brenda (staff member) summarized the office budget and told the committee the office requested a 3% base increase as directed, but costs rose about 5.9% after adjustments for retirement, health and other benefits. She said the governor's budget does not include the intake specialist the office is requesting. "It does not include the position that Matthew's talking about. That was a decision item that we included, but it was not included in the governor's budget," she said.

Committee members asked how the office would measure success if the position and grant work proceed. Bernstein said the federal grant includes a Ph.D.-level data person who will track quantitative and qualitative outcomes; measurable outcomes could include reductions in the number of child-in-need (CHINS) filings or in termination of parental rights filings, as well as qualitative indicators such as family stability. "Some outcomes that can be measured... are reduction in the number of cases filed," Bernstein said.

The advocates cited several other accomplishments and priorities: helping a youth return from an out-of-state residential placement to a relative in Vermont, supporting passage of what Bernstein identified as Act 173 to allow children formerly in foster care access to their records, and starting an analysis of DCF restraint and seclusion data to identify systemic patterns. Higbee said the office is also working with DCF to improve data reporting and dashboards related to residential care and safety measures.

The presentation referenced potential funding sources including federal grant dollars, the state's tobacco fund and existing DCF funds. Bernstein noted a 2018 tobacco-fund allocation of $7 million intended in part to benefit children and families and said a request of $315,000 (as described during the presentation) would be "modest" if used to support direct services; the advocates said they will also pursue committee and human services channels for funding.

No formal committee vote on the intake position occurred during the hearing; the advocates said they would follow the regular appropriations process and bring the request to committees of jurisdiction. The office offered its printed annual report to committee members and said a digital copy is available.

The advocates asked lawmakers to consider the office's dual role: handling individual family cases while producing system-level data and recommendations. "We provide the glue to ensure that people get where they need to go and receive fair treatment," Bernstein said.

Ending: Committee members thanked the advocates, said they would follow up if they had additional questions, and the office left to make room for the next scheduled guests.