Foster Children Housed in Hotels Costs State $25 Million
July 20, 2023 | Oregon
A federal judge this week appointed an outside expert to help Oregon end its practice of housing kids in foster care in hotels, years after the agency promised it would do so in a legal settlement.
U.S. District Court Judge Michael McShane on Tuesday took the unusual step of appointing Marty Beyer to oversee the state’s Department of Human Services, noting the agency has not figured out how to stop “temporary lodging” on its own, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported.
Oregon has spent more than $25 million housing 462 kids in foster care in hotels since the state promised to largely end the practice as part of a legal settlement in 2018.
When the state of Oregon removes a child from their home, child welfare officials are responsible for their care. Placing vulnerable youth in hotels for extended periods of time is widely recognized — even among Department of Human Services officials responsible for kids placed in state care — as an inappropriate placement. (Excerpt from Fox News.)
