House Republicans are calling for solutions after an audit showed horrible failures and mismanagement at the Department of Children and Family Services.
The latest incident involving DCFS follows the case of an 18-year-old who died last year, despite having been on DCFS’s radar. Mackenzi Felmlee died in May 2024, which led to her foster mother and her foster mother’s mother have been charged in her death.
The agency has not released additional information, and lawmakers have instead heard about this tragedy and countless others through investigative news reports.
The Auditor General’s latest report showed that 29 of 34 failures are repeat findings, or about 85% repeat failures.
In response, House Minority Leader Tony McCombie issued a strong message to the Governor, who oversees DCFS:
“Enough excuses. Investigate. Report. Reform. Fix DCFS—or get out of the way.”