Georgia’s child welfare system entered a crisis mode as projected budget needs outpaced available funds, with families and providers describing service slowdowns tied to changes the state’s child welfare director implemented in November. At the center of the disruption was a projected $85.7 million shortfall for the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services, which operates within the state’s Department of Human Services.
Department of Human Services director and DFCS director Candice Broce said the agency’s November actions were meant to tighten spending while still protecting children. According to Broce and her office, the measures included requiring contracted services to first receive state approval and taking other steps intended to reduce spending on services she said were duplicative, unnecessary, or could be paid for through Medicaid.
For some foster families, the changes translated into fewer supports and missed opportunities for stability and school attendance. Pamela Bruce, a foster parent, described feeling overwhelmed and said her foster son “can’t grow in survival mode,” adding that she feared surrendering the child back to the state as services dwindled. She said her household’s ability to cover costs also became strained, including paying for travel so the foster son could visit family.
Family attorney Jessica Hall told lawmakers that reunification depended on services being available and said families could not be reunified without them. Broce, in a statement to The Associated Press, said requests for services are approved within hours unless the state asks for more information, and she said the contracted services include options such as transportation, counseling, assessments and behavior aides.
Providers and placement-related organizations, however, described a sharper slowdown after the November process changes. Brittney Kleuger, chief executive of Family Menders in northwest Georgia, said her agency received 80 to 100 referrals each week before the change and now receives fewer than 10. During a phone call with DFCS, providers questioned Broce’s description of quick approvals and asked whether the agency would continue contracting with them; DFCS’s director of delivered services, Kristen Toliver, said the approval process would “look different” going forward.
Broce told lawmakers at a legislative hearing that DFCS did not have enough resources to handle the “magnitude” of behavior and mental health services required for the children that enter its care. She said she tried to focus limitations on services that were duplicative, unnecessary or potentially financeable through Medicaid. After the November measures, the projected deficit remained just below $49 million, according to the reporting.
The system’s strain also reflects broader challenges cited during the hearing, including the availability and cost of services for children with acute behavioral needs. Broce received praise for reducing the number of complex-needs children living in hotels, a practice experts said many states use as a last resort when placement is difficult; experts said finding appropriate care for such high needs can be expensive.
Broce and other witnesses pointed to multiple possible causes for the shortfall. The division has lost more than 800 beds to place children since 2019, Broce has said, and it faced a shortage of available spots at psychiatric facilities, along with the high cost of transportation and behavior aides. She also said she worked to reduce how often the agency pays for services Medicaid should cover.
Lawmakers questioned Broce’s explanations, and several speakers offered competing views about where the blame lay. Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver, a Democrat, said she had “never seen a deficit like this” and called it a “management issue.” Juanita Stedman, a former juvenile court judge and executive director of Together Georgia, disputed the framing that the agency was unable to pay for complexity, saying, “Historically, we have not paid for the complexity of the kids.” Judge Nhan-Ai Simms also testified that Broce did not improperly pressure courts, disagreeing with a claim that judges were routinely ordering services above what DFCS recommended.
Amid the debate, families expressed concern that the disruption could return. Bruce said she had never felt so unsupported by DFCS during her roughly two-and-a-half years fostering, and she said what broke her heart most was seeing her foster son miss more frequent visits with his family. The child’s father and foster-related supports were among what shifted as services tied to reunification slowed, according to accounts shared in the coverage.
Ann Flagg, former director of the Office of Family Assistance for the Administration for Children and Families, said the compounding effect was immediate: “Every day that a family or kid is not receiving the kinds of support that they need, the situation only compounds.” Other witnesses described the policy environment as an additional pressure point, including changes to federal law that made it harder for Georgia and other states to use federal child welfare funds.