LOUISVILLE, Ky. — This week State Auditor Allison Ball, R-Ky., announced her office will investigate the State Cabinet for Health and Family Services. Her office says it received numerous complaints of foster children sleeping in office buildings, often unsupervised by trained staff.
On Tuesday, Ball directed the Commonwealth Office of the Ombudsman to investigate the issue. Saying in a statement, “The vulnerable children of Kentucky deserve to be placed in nurturing environments where they are provided with the resources, stability, and care they need.”
The auditor believes, based on received complaints of, “foster children and teenagers sleeping on cots and air mattresses in office buildings.”
“There literally is nowhere for them to go right now,” said Terry Brooks, executive director of Kentucky Youth Advocates. He added, “Kids have severe problems. They have problems that are difficult to diagnose, they’re even more difficult to address and that’s the group of young people we’re talking about. I mean, there may be a few younger kids somewhere within those hundreds, but these are teenagers whose cases are hard to handle.”
Brooks says this issue must be addressed by the state and hopes to see a multi-pronged approach. He believes it should better pay for social workers, additional youth treatment facilities, and additional resources for foster families.
“So we’re talking about a big swing on child welfare,” Brooks said. “That is not going to be easy, but I don’t think we have any other choice but to pursue it.”
A spokesperson for the auditor’s office told Spectrum News 1 they believe this has been going on for at least two years, and affects at least 300 children.
One location they believe this is happening at, a Cabinet for Health and Family Service office in downtown Louisville, in the old L&N Building at the corner of Broadway and 9th Street. The spokesperson confirms this is not only a Jefferson County issue.
Brice Mitchell with CHFS shared with Spectrum News 1 videos from inside the L&N Building. The space has bedrooms and activity rooms.
Mitchell said, "We have taken action to address the challenges that come with placing youth with severe mental and behavioral problems or a history of violence or sexual aggression with foster families or facilities. We’ve publicly addressed this many times with lawmakers and have offered more funding to secure additional safe, short-term care options for youth."
He also urged anyone interested in becoming a foster parent to visit their website.
Ball states that despite promises from the Beshear administration, the issues within the foster care system have gone unsolved.