LINCOLN — State lawmakers announced plans Thursday for a legislative investigation of Nebraska's child welfare system.
State Sen. Kathy Campbell of Lincoln, chairwoman of the Health and Human Services Committee, cited continuing problems with the efforts to privatize foster care in Nebraska.
Three of five private agencies selected in July 2009 to oversee services to children and families had withdrawn from the effort by November of last year.
The lawmakers' announcement came one day after state officials said they would pump $19 million more into the controversial privatization effort, answering complaints that it has been underfunded.
Lawmakers said they have received continued complaints from foster parents who haven't been reimbursed for their expenses for caring for state wards.
Campbell said she's not trying to turn back the clock on privatization but said the Legislature needs assurance that the effort will be affordable, sustainable and in the best interests of children.
“The Legislature certainly has a role to play,” she said. “I think it's important that we continue to take a look at the reform.”
Campbell said the Health and Human Services Committee would take the lead in the investigation, with plans for a preliminary report to the full Legislature by April 7. That would allow the Legislature time to make legal changes yet this session, if needed.
Eight other lawmakers joined Campbell's announcement Thursday. Several said they plan to introduce legislative bills this session that would address the child welfare system — from better training for police officers in recognizing child abuse to more support and better pay for Nebraska's foster parents.
Sen. Annette Dubas of Fullerton, for example, said she would introduce a bill to require the Department of Health and Human Services to set standards for pay rates for foster parents.
Currently, a foster family receives $8 to $10 a day to provide care for a 2-year-old state ward.
She said people pay more than that to board a pet.
“You can kennel a dog for $15 a day or a cat for $10 a day,” she said.
Todd Reckling, children and family services director for HHS, said the $19 million is in addition to a $6 million infusion announced in October.
The $25 million total will be shared by the two private agencies that hold contracts to ensure the safety and well-being of abused and neglected children in Omaha, Lincoln and southeast Nebraska.
Kansas-based KVC will get $15 million on top of its $44.2 million annual contract. The agency serves southeast Nebraska and one-third of the cases in the Omaha area.
The Omaha-based Nebraska Families Collaborative will receive $10 million more than its $13.7 million base contract. The agency serves a third of Omaha-area cases.
Reckling said the one-time funds should help the private contractors achieve the goals of the privatization effort.
Those include reducing the number of children in out-of-home care.
“We believe these funds will help with the system shift,” Reckling said “This will allow the system the time it needs to make the changes.”
Sen. Amanda McGill of Lincoln said the department's announcement reinforces the need for legislative oversight.
“There are just so many questions still,” McGill said. “There obviously needs to be a lot more analysis.”
Chief among her questions is how a state agency could suddenly find $19 million during difficult budget times.
Several child advocates have said that underfunding of the privatization effort contributed to many of its problems.
The effort has hit one pitfall after another since kicking off in November 2009.
Three of the original five contractors have dropped out or lost their contracts, citing inadequate reimbursement and management problems.
As a result, what had been a statewide privatization effort is now active in only part of the state. State child welfare workers manage the other one-third of Omaha cases and those in the rest of the state.
Reckling said HHS will draw on federal and state sources for the funds.
An $8 million increase in federal funds for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program will free up the same amount of state dollars for child welfare.
About $4 million will come from eliminating the jobs of state caseworkers, whose responsibilities have been handed over to the private agencies.
The rest is from unspent funds found within the HHS budget, he said.
Reckling said it would be “just speculation” whether additional money could have prevented the three contractors from dropping out and staved off other problems with privatization.
He said HHS was not able to pull the money together until it went through the process of developing its budget request this fall. The request was submitted to the governor in September.
Contact the writer:
402-473-9583, martha.stoddard@owh.com
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