Committee raises transparency concerns over youth secure facility funds, asks for roadmap of Woodside and related monies

The House Committee on Human Services pressed state officials on the accounting and transparency of funds tied to youth residential programs, including money originally appropriated for Woodside and an interim facility called Red Clover.

Committee members said the Red Clover short‑term secure facility did not open on its original schedule and that money previously associated with the project appears to be flowing into other components of the youth campus. Members described the movement of those appropriated funds as opaque and asked for a clear roadmap showing what was appropriated for Woodside, what remains on hand, and where funds have since been spent.

The committee recommended that the Appropriations Chair—or the chairs jointly—send a letter to the Agency of Human Services requesting that the FY26 budget presentation include a detailed accounting of these funding buckets, including amounts on hand and prior expenditures tied to Woodside and related youth initiatives. The committee said this request is for the FY26 presentation rather than immediate reallocation this week.

Members also noted related FY26 pressures, including a planned in‑state psychiatric residential treatment facility scheduled to open in Brattleboro; committee members said they want to understand how funds previously designated for Woodside are affecting present and future in‑state program costs.

The committee directed staff to include this transparency request in its memo to Appropriations and to pursue further documentation in advance of FY26 budget hearings.