Committee reviews staffing, $14.1 million supplemental and lease plan to curb costly congregate care

The Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee heard Feb. 20 testimony on the Department of Health and Welfare's child welfare budget, where officials asked for new staff and a $14.1 million supplemental to respond to rising congregate care costs and a shortage of foster placements.

Alex Williamson, budget and policy analyst with Legislative Services, told the committee the division now titled Youth Safety and Permanency has 434.8 authorized full-time positions and, as of Feb. 10, 45.8 vacancies; about 25 of those vacancies were in the interview process and nine were posted. Williamson said the division expended about $117.8 million in fiscal 2024 and that foster and assistance payments accounted for roughly 60% of that total.

Why it matters: agency officials said more children are requiring specialized, higher-cost care and the state lacks community placement options and foster parents willing to accept complex cases. Director Alex Adams emphasized the fiscal and child welfare tradeoffs. "If I keep a kid in their home, in a prevention case, it's about $1.80 a day. If a child is removed and placed in foster care, it's about $16 a day. If I don't have a foster bed available to them, congregate care is $380 a day," Adams said. He and staff described prevention and increased foster capacity as the primary tools to improve outcomes and lower cost.

What was requested and why: Williamson outlined a suite of…