Lawmakers Approve $81 Million To Relieve Georgia Child Welfare Agency’s Deficit

By Jordan Anderson, The Imprint

Georgia lawmakers have struck a bipartisan deal to fill the state child welfare agency’s budget hole, following months of scrutiny and a looming deficit that compromised critical social services.

Last Wednesday, the Georgia House and Senate finalized the amended Fiscal Year 2026 budget — a sweeping plan that steers an extra $81 million to the Department of Human Services.

The revised spending plan, which re-balances funds for state agencies and runs from July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026, now heads to Gov. Brian Kemp for signature. Its finalization signals the possibility that child welfare services that had been reduced to address an $85 million projected deficit could soon be restored after four months of widespread disruptions.

Candice Broce, who leads the Department of Human Services and its division of Family and Children Services, has been in the hot seat in recent months over the agency’s troubles. During several legislative hearings this winter, she defended widespread service rollbacks that she implemented in November in order to scale back spending. Contracts that supported specialized care for youth, worth an estimated $5 million, were also cut. Service providers and prior agency leaders decried the moves for putting providers and vulnerable families in jeopardy.

The Legislature’s proposed rescue funds come with some contingencies, though. The budget document directs the agency to prioritize reunification services, assessments and specialized services. The agency must also use almost $925,000 in appropriated funds to restore the cancelled contracts.

To date, the Division of Family and Children Services has not publicly provided specific numbers and expenses explaining the $85 million deficit figure. Even so, lawmakers and the governor have sought to minimize the agency’s financial pressures. In January, the governor met the department halfway with a proposed $41 million boost, while the House proposed a more than $82 million bump and the Senate went slightly further with an $83 million increase.

Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver, who voted in favor of the House proposal despite being frustrated with the agency’s anecdotal explanations for its financial troubles, explained her reasoning to The Imprint last month — plug the budget and restore services first, then dig deeper. She is calling for an audit.

Separately, a proposed House bill also seeks to create stricter limits around the agency’s spending practices and require an annual review. And a Senate resolution would create a joint committee to evaluate “escalating costs in Georgia’s foster care system,” which, according to the legislation, have increased by 159% since 2022.

Other highlights from the amended budget, unrelated to child welfare, include adding $2 billion in income and property tax relief and creating the state’s first needs-based college scholarship. It also calls for providing a $2,000 salary supplement for full-time state workers and allocating $45 million to the State Housing Trust Fund to address rising homelessness.

Last week, Kemp voiced support for the approved amended budget without mentioning child welfare specifically.

“Today, we saw major legislative action on my top priorities — saving taxpayers money and investing in a safer, more prosperous Georgia,” Kemp wrote on X on Wednesday.