Foster Care Review Office warns staff cuts would reduce oversight and opposes DEI language in governor’s bill

Monica Gross, executive director of the Foster Care Review Office, briefed the Appropriations Committee on FCRO operations and budget needs, asking that the agency retain its cash fund balance and not be subject to complete elimination of the fund. Gross said the FCRO uses the cash fund to support statewide training and occasional collaborative research and that a 5% general fund reduction would proportionately lower federal Title IV‑E reimbursements and require personnel reductions because the agency has no low‑priority positions to cut.

Gross described the agency’s dual oversight role — individual case reviews and systemic analysis — and gave examples where FCRO intervention led to immediate safety actions, including a case where three siblings were moved to a safer placement the same day after local review board action. She cited Nebraska Revised Statutes governing data and board composition (statutory citations provided to the committee) and said the office requires volunteers to receive implicit bias and cultural competency training.

On statutory language, Gross said the FCRO is opposed to section 9 of LB1071 (the governor’s DEI provision) because it would conflict with other statute provisions governing how the office operates and board representation. Committee members asked for clarification about the cash fund’s inactivity (last used in 2020) and whether appointment delays to the advisory committee posed a funding risk; Gross said the advisory committee’s appointments have lapsed and the office has not received new appointments since the last administration.

Senators thanked Gross and noted FCRO’s role linking child welfare, juvenile justice, and education, and the hearing record closed for Agency 70.