In a rare and urgent appeal, a group of former Georgia child welfare leaders have called on Gov. Brian Kemp to rectify what they describe as an “accelerating” crisis in child welfare funding.
A letter signed by four previous heads of the state’s Division of Family and Children Services describes the agency’s $85 million budget shortfall as a threat to thousands of families’ stability by actively eroding the network of providers contracted to serve them.
“Across the state, essential child welfare service providers are reducing capacity, suspending programs, or closing altogether due to funding shortfalls,” states the letter signed by former division directors Bobby Cagle,Virginia Pryor, Sharon Hill and Tom Rawlings. “Family preservation services, foster care supports, therapeutic interventions, transportation, and in-home services are disappearing at a pace that is already affecting children and families.”
The directors go on to state that they “are deeply concerned that this crisis is accelerating and that additional provider losses are imminent.”
And they warn: “Governor, the consequences of inaction are immediate and measurable.”
“Family preservation services, foster care supports, therapeutic interventions, transportation, and in-home services are disappearing at a pace that is already affecting children and families.”
— JAN. 14 LETTER TO GEORGIA GOV. BRIAN KEMP
In an email, a spokesperson for Gov. Kemp’s office told The Imprint that the Division of Family and Children Services “has experienced exponential cost increases in a very short time span.”
The statement added that the governor is addressing these “rising costs” in his recent budget proposal through a $41 million funding increase for the department for fiscal year 2026 and a more than $21 million increase in 2027.
Problems first surfaced publicly in early November, when the agency notified contracted providers that they could no longer initiate new services for families without direct approval from state agency leaders. The email cited fiscal challenges due to the federal government shutdown andnoted exceptions for court-ordered or emergency services. The agency also terminated contracts that funded services for children with intensive health needs. But the cuts persisted even after the historic shutdown ended — disruptions the letter calls “profound and not easily reversed.”
The matter came to a head during a contentious joint legislative committee meeting on Dec. 18, during which Family and Children Services Director Candice Broce faced questioning from lawmakers about the agency’s finances and decision-making. She listed several challenges burdening the agency, including the cost of care, particularly for children with complex mental health needs. She also said the agency has had difficulty accessing federal funds since the government shutdown.
“When providers disappear, children enter foster care who might otherwise have remained safely at home. Once in care, children remain longer because the services needed to stabilize families, support reunification, or maintain placements are no longer available.”
— JAN. 14 LETTER TO GEORGIA GOV. BRIAN KEMP
In the letter dated Tuesday, the former child welfare directors call on Gov. Kemp to authorize “emergency stabilization funding” from the state’s surplus to “immediately shore up child welfare providers and prevent further loss of capacity” while longer-term funding solutions are being pursued. They also want the governor to publicly reaffirm his “commitment to maintaining Georgia’s child welfare provider network and its critical role in protecting vulnerable children and families.”
“As former Directors of Georgia’s Division of Family and Children Services, we have lived through periods when the provider network eroded. We know the long-term consequences,” the four wrote.
“When providers disappear, children enter foster care who might otherwise have remained safely at home. Once in care, children remain longer because the services needed to stabilize families, support reunification, or maintain placements are no longer available. Caseworkers have fewer options. Judges face constrained choices. Foster parents burn out. Congregate care increases. Costs rise. Outcomes worsen.”
Next Wednesday, Broce is scheduled to present her budget priorities and requests as the state embarks on a three-day budget appropriations process.
