Gov. Little signs bill directing the largest ever investment into Idaho’s foster care system
BOISE, Idaho (KIFI) - Governor Brad Little signed Senate Bill 1208 Wednesday, directing a major investment to improve Idaho’s foster care system.
"We all agree, children deserve to live carefree lives, free of abuse and neglect," said Gov. Little in a press release. "We want Idaho’s children to grow up healthy, well adjusted, and safe. Yet, Idaho has struggled to meet the needs of its most vulnerable children --- those who end up in the child welfare system. That stops today."
Senate Bill 1208 directs the investment of $23.2 million and 63 new workers at the Department of Health and Welfare.
The bill's sponsor, Senator Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, says the legislation requires a significant budget increase; however, the investment would provide support to safely prevent children from entering the foster care system in the first place, which would "decrease costs in the end."
"We're going to invest in keeping families whole and positive outcomes up river and spend less money," said Wintrow.
The move comes after a lack of available foster care created a crisis for state lawmakers, requiring the state Department of Health and Welfare to send 64 children to out-of-state facilities during the 2023 fiscal year, according to an investigative report by CBS affiliate Idaho News 2.
Governor Little has charged DHW Director Alex Adams with improving the state foster system. Since then, DHW has worked to increase the number of foster homes per foster child and partnered with businesses and religious groups to find appropriate foster homes and support Idaho's foster parents.
“There is no category of children more in need of protection than those in the child welfare system. Through no fault of their own, children in foster care in Idaho face enormous challenges. They need our support, and so do the foster families who step up to care for them, love them, and provide them safety,” Governor Little said.
