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Job & Family Services reports high caseloads and rising foster-care costs to commissioners
Summary
Randall L. Galbraith, director of Hancock County Job & Family Services, told commissioners March 17 that the number of children in county custody is high, placement costs are rising, treatment foster-care grant dollars have been exhausted and the county is projecting multimillion-dollar purchased-care costs.
Randall L. Galbraith, Esq., director of Hancock County Job & Family Services, updated the Board of Commissioners March 17 on placements, reimbursements and cost projections, saying the number of children in care is high and that placement costs continue to increase.
Galbraith presented a placements summary showing a YTD foster care placement figure of $368,034.33 and a net balance of $286,425.93 after known credits and reimbursements recorded to that date. The written material provided to the board lists 91 children in foster care as of Feb. 28, 2026 in one table and a total of 107 children in Hancock County custody as of the same date in another breakdown; the director told the board the county currently has 10 foster homes and is exploring the county home as a placement center. Galbraith said most children in care are placed in family foster homes and that group-home placement costs are increasing.
The report breaks down projected annual expenditures by placement type and shows purchased-care totals in the multimillion-dollar range when annualized across placement categories (detailed per-diem and annual projections were included in the written report). Galbraith also reported that grant dollars for treatment foster care have been exhausted and that continuing those placements will now cost the county an estimated $20,000 per quarter; he said a foster-home recruitment dinner is planned for April 25 at the Hilton Garden Inn.
Galbraith flagged uncertainty about SNAP federal reimbursement and the SNAP error rate, telling commissioners he did not yet know the budgetary impact. The report included age and county-of-removal breakdowns for children in custody and listed kinship payments and other revenue assumptions (IV-E and levy funding) used in projections.
What commissioners asked for and next steps: commissioners did not take immediate action on budget items at the meeting; Galbraith said he will continue to explore placement options (including the county home) and the department will follow up on recruitment and the fiscal impact of SNAP reimbursement changes.
