House committee reviews Human Services DE1 omnibus bill as providers warn of service cuts

The House Human Services Finance and Policy Committee held a public walkthrough of the DE1 amendment to House File 2,434, the human services omnibus bill, including a line-by-line spreadsheet review and extensive public testimony. Committee co-chairs opened the meeting and nonpartisan staff presented the committee "spreadsheet" showing the House position and its changes from the governor's budget.

Why it matters: The DE1 document reconfigures Medicaid and Department of Human Services (DHS) spending across nursing facility payments, disability waiver services, behavioral health funding, housing supports and Direct Care and Treatment (DCT). Advocates, county officials and providers warned multiple proposed changes — including rate caps, removal of an "absence and utilization" factor and new county cost-sharing for certain rate exceptions — would reduce provider revenue, shift costs to counties and risk access to services for seniors, people with disabilities and people experiencing homelessness.

Committee discussion and staff walkthrough

Chair Schumacher moved the DE1 amendment onto the committee's docket and described the compressed timeline for this budget phase, saying, "We got 6 days to put an entire budget together. We were given an historic cut" and noting the amendment represented a first-phase direction rather than a final course. Nonpartisan fiscal staff then guided members through the official spreadsheet packet. Staff flagged a -$300,000,000 change in the House biennial column for 2026–27 and -$1,000,000,000 for 2028–29, and walked members through department-level line items covering DHS program integrity, nursing facility payment changes, investments in Community First Services and Supports (CFSS), and multiple…