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New Health and Social Services Ombudsman briefs committee, seeks higher personnel funding to recruit staff
Summary
Trevor Sparrow, the newly appointed ombudsman, introduced the office created by the legislature to handle complaints about foster care and residential facilities and described staffing and budget needs, including a request for higher personnel compensation to meet Department of Human Resources recommendations.
Trevor Sparrow, the newly appointed ombudsman for the Office of Health and Social Services Ombudsman, told the Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee on Jan. 15 that his office will investigate complaints and evaluate compliance related to children in state care, primarily focusing on Idaho’s foster care system.
The office was created by the Legislature (the presentation cited Senate Bill 1380) and sits administratively within the Department of Self-Governing Agencies, the Legislative Services Office analyst Alex Williamson said. The office was appropriated three full-time positions. The governor appointed Sparrow on Nov. 27; according to Williamson, Sparrow is recruiting to fill the remaining positions. The office’s fiscal 2025 appropriation was reported as $470,000 total, with $450,000 ongoing and $20,000 one-time capital outlay for start-up costs.
Williamson told the committee that the Department of Human Resources recommended increasing personnel dollars so the office can recruit and retain qualified staff, suggesting hiring levels above 80% of standard policy salary ranges. That increase is reflected in the office’s ongoing fiscal-year‑2026 request, which the governor supports.
Sparrow, who previously spent eight years as director at the Idaho Youth Challenge Academy, said the office will accept complaints from parents, foster parents and other parties with an interest in children in out-of-home care, investigate those complaints and make recommendations to state agencies. He said the office also can initiate reviews of agencies and produce investigative reports and legislative recommendations.
In response to committee questions, Sparrow said his office can investigate residential programs that house children in Idaho, including juvenile corrections facilities. He also reported conversations with Department of Health and Welfare leadership suggesting that Idaho had moved children out of congregate care settings and ended short-term out-of-state placements — statements Sparrow attributed to meetings with department leadership.
Sparrow said the office will use the U.S. Ombudsman Association standards and hopes to develop a multidisciplinary team that could include legal, nursing and social-work expertise. He also identified the citizen review panels as a potential resource for research and community engagement and suggested panels’ volunteers could help the office identify systemic issues.
No committee vote or formal action was taken during the introduction. Committee members expressed support and asked for follow-up on staffing and operational plans as the office recruits employees.
