Bill > SB5866

This bill aims to address staffing shortages within the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) by redistributing existing resources to increase frontline child protective services staff. The legislature acknowledges findings from a child welfare workload study that shows child protective services is understaffed, while the program support division is overstaffed by more than 100 full-time equivalents (FTEs). Specifically, the bill requires DCYF to increase direct service staff, such as social workers who receive, refer, and respond to screened-in reports of child abuse or neglect, by 100 FTEs by the end of the 2025-2027 fiscal biennium. The staffing increase will be achieved by reallocating resources from the department's program support appropriation, ensuring no additional funding is required. The bill defines "within existing resources" as using reductions in staffing from the program support budget, with the ultimate goal of improving the department's ability to provide direct services to children and families at risk.

Labor and Employment

https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=5866&Year=2025&Initiative=false