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Baltimore committee hears hours of testimony on proposed Children and Youth Fund overhaul
Summary
Councilmembers, BCYF leaders and dozens of grantees and youth testified on Bill 25-0100, a proposed update to the Baltimore Children and Youth Fund. Supporters praised BCYF’s results and urged collaboration; critics and budget offices warned that rigid statutory grant rules and mandated audits could impose unfunded burdens on small providers.
Councilman John Bullock, chair of the City Council’s Education, Youth and Older Adults Committee, convened a hearing on Bill 25-0100 to consider updates to the Baltimore Children and Youth Fund’s (BCYF) governing ordinance. Vice Chair and bill sponsor Councilman Mark Parker said the measure is intended to "ensure that our city code aligns with the organization BCYF has become" and to codify oversight and reporting structures that reflect current practice.
BCYF President and Chief Executive Alicia Lee told the committee that the fund has expanded rapidly and now supports more than 17,000 youth seats annually and partners with over 100 organizations. Lee said she supports oversight but warned that "this bill as drafted does unintentionally weaken the very outcomes that we all intend to protect through BCYF" by embedding detailed grantmaking procedures and rigid timelines into statute rather than…
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