Vigo County moves to use juvenile nonreverting funds to reopen group homes, approves two ordinances

VIGO COUNTY, Ind. — The Vigo County Board of Commissioners voted to approve two ordinances that let the county direct some juvenile-justice nonreverting revenue to repairs, supplies and training at the county’s group homes for children.

Norman Lotembroke, director of the Vigo County Group Homes, told the commissioners the homes have obtained state licensing and have been inspected by the Indiana Department of Child Services but need capital repairs and supplies before children can be placed. “There’s just no capital to spend at the group homes,” Lotembroke said, listing broken bunk beds, a leaking furnace and a lack of kitchen appliances and furniture. “My target open date is Valentine’s Day.”

The actions matter because county officials say the program can leverage daily placement fees paid by the state to cover most operating costs and fund repairs, reducing pressure on the county general fund. Lotembroke and commissioners described a plan to use a portion of revenue captured in a nonreverting juvenile justice fund — fees charged for housing out-of-county detainees — for group-home infrastructure and training, subject to County Council appropriation.

Lotembroke said the Department of Child Services (DCS) allows a daily fee of $1,100 per child. “If you multiply that times eight kids, times 365 days, that’s $3,200,000 a year,” he said, and contrasted that with the group-home budget, which he described as about $1.4 million. He proposed a 75/25 split in which three-quarters of the revenue would go to the county to offset costs and 25% would remain in a nonreverting fund for the homes. “Once again, we’re leveraging state DCS money to do local projects,” Lotembroke said.

Commissioners stressed that the funds cannot be spent without further approvals. Lotembroke confirmed that the commission must still seek County Council appropriation before using money from the nonreverting fund. “Anything that the commissioners do that deals with finances, I still have to go to the county council for either appropriation of that money to do a project,” he said. The commissioners and Lotembroke agreed the approach is intended to avoid relying on tax dollars while rebuilding residential capacity for emergency placements.

Board discussion acknowledged past lapses in maintaining the homes. One commissioner said, as an elected official, he “dropped the ball on group homes over the last four years” and described one home as “completely dilapidated” and another as unused for about two years. Commissioners described personnel restructuring and other administrative changes designed to reduce operating cost once homes reopen. Lotembroke said that in the first 24 hours after DCS learned the homes were staying open, his office received 24 requests to place children, underlining the demand for placements.

Two related ordinances were presented and approved in the meeting. One ordinance amends a 2020 nonreverting fund ordinance for the Juvenile Justice Center to permit using some of that revenue for group-home projects. A second ordinance establishes or clarifies a nonreverting fund specifically for the Vigo County group homes and outlines permitted uses (maintenance, repairs, supplies, training and safety/security items). Both ordinances bar using the funds for salaries or overtime. Commissioners voted to approve both ordinances during the meeting; the motions were seconded and carried by voice vote.

Lotembroke and commissioners said next steps include obtaining quotes, preparing a spending plan and presenting appropriation requests to the County Council. They emphasized that any expenditure from the nonreverting fund will require council approval before funds are released. The county will also continue to pursue DCS partnerships and other revenue sources to sustain operations.

The commissioners and Lotembroke expressed optimism that reopening and stabilizing the group homes will reduce the number of children sleeping in DCS offices and provide local emergency placement options for children experiencing trauma or crisis.