Administration tells committee it cannot support current homelessness redesign bill as written

Interim Commissioner Sandy Hoffman of the Department for Children and Families told a legislative committee Friday that the administration "does not support the bill as currently drafted," arguing the committee draft diverges from the Agency of Human Services' partner-informed plan and introduces operational and fiscal risks.

The testimony, given during a committee briefing on the homelessness committee bill, focused on three central objections from the administration: the draft does not guarantee reductions in hotel and motel use, it broadly expands eligibility without defined limits or appropriations, and it imposes ambitious operational deadlines — including a one-year rate-setting timeline — that the department says could destabilize providers and services.

The committee chair, who opened the meeting and led much of the questioning, said the bill is not finished and that…