The following statement was issued today by PCSAO Executive Director Angela Sausser upon passage of HB 96, the biennial budget, by the General Assembly:
“On behalf of county children services leaders, PCSAO thanks the Conference Committee and the General Assembly for approving a biennial budget that protects children, brings critical resources and predictability to foster care placement costs, and assures an innovative, trauma-informed alternative to children sleeping in county agency offices and hotels.
“The cost of foster care has far outpaced inflation, rising 68 percent over the past five years, and that’s why Gov. DeWine’s proposal to increase the State Child Protection Allocation was so essential. It will help offset policy changes in the budget and assist with skyrocketing placement costs until a new rate card process brings more predictability. Furthermore, restoration of partial funding and authorization for the new regional child wellness campuses means that children with complex trauma will have a place where they can be stabilized, assessed and safely supported until a suitable, longer-term placement can be secured. With the child wellness campuses, Ohio could lead the nation in addressing what many states have found to be an intractable problem.
“Thank you for restoring children services investments in HB 96.”