Republicans say Pritzker failed to correct child welfare problems

[May 18, 2022] By Greg Bishop | The Center Square

(The Center Square) – Republicans at the statehouse are not buying Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s response to failures a recent audit highlights at the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services.

An auditor general report released last week of the state’s child welfare agency operations in 2020 showed various shortcomings, ranging from failures to conduct home safety checks to failure to provide adequate medical care or properly tracking possible neglect cases.

Pritzker on Monday blamed a lot of the problems of the previous administration.

“Five-hundred residential beds were done away with during the Rauner administration,” Pritzker said at an unrelated news conference. “You can’t snap your fingers and get 500 beds back.”

State Rep. Steven Reick, R-Woodstock, said on Tuesday that’s a copout.

“He’s had three years to get them back and he’s doubled the budget of DCFS so the question is where are the beds,” Reick said during a virtual news conference alongside other Republicans. “He’s deflecting, again. He’s deflecting the kind of responsibility that is his.”

The governor said his administration is adding “literally dozens of beds every month.” He also acknowledged there’s more work to be done.

Pritzker’s DCFS Director Marc Smith has now been found in contempt of court for a 10th time. After previous times of Smith being found in contempt of court over the care the agency is providing children, Republicans demanded he step down or be fired.

Pritzker dismissed the idea of changing leadership at the top of the agency.

“This idea that when you have an agency that is so challenged like DCFS that just cycling through leaders is somehow going to be helpful, not at all,” Pritzker said Monday. “You need stability, in fact, in order for an agency to improve.

State Rep. Deanne Mazzochi, R-Elmhurst, said Pritzker promised when he took office things would change.

“It hasn’t gotten better, it’s gotten worse,” Mazzochi said Tuesday. “So, if you want to actually get more stability at DCFS, maybe we need to get rid of Gov. Pritzker and go into a different direction.”

Greg Bishop reports on Illinois government and other issues for The Center Square. Bishop has years of award-winning broadcast experience and hosts the WMAY Morning Newsfeed out of Springfield.