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Oversight committee seeks more frequent DHHS financial reporting after sudden grant cuts
Summary
Lawmakers on the Health and Human Services Oversight Committee discussed the need for quarterly or more frequent financial and lapse reporting from DHHS after learning the department faces sudden grant terminations and potential shortfalls in lapse projections.
Legislators on the Health and Human Services Oversight Committee used testimony about the sudden termination of federal grants to press for more frequent financial reporting and transparency from the Department of Health and Human Services.
"What brought this to mind is that I got the report that we were $47,000,000 short on the laps that the departments... that that money was not all going to come in," Senator Gray said during the committee discussion, citing a recent lapse projection that raised concern about the department’s year-end position.
Committee members said earlier lapse figures had proved unreliable in some fiscal briefings and called for earlier, recurring dashboards and audit summaries. Senator Rosenwald said the committee’s fiscal counterpart receives a monthly DHHS dashboard that includes detailed caseworker counts but that the department often does not complete financial pages in that report.
Multiple lawmakers suggested quarterly reporting from DHHS that would include lapse estimates, hiring and vacancy data, and summaries of internal audits so the committee and legislators could spot trends earlier and respond to contingencies. Representative McDonald and others said more frequent information could also make the committee an effective partner and advocate for the department when legislative fixes are needed.
Chair and members discussed inviting DHHS finance and program staff to present at the next oversight meeting and requested that the department prepare an initial briefing on lapse projections, audit findings and program risks. No formal vote was recorded on a legislative requirement; at the meeting end the committee voted to adjourn.
Ending: Committee leadership asked staff to coordinate with DHHS to schedule a finance and program update at the next meeting and to discuss what regular reporting would be useful to the committee.
