The Impact on Foster Care and Child Welfare:

As a foster care and adoption agency, Lifespan Family Services is witnessing firsthand the devastating effects of this budget stalemate:

• Hiring freezes and layoffs : Agencies across Pennsylvania are being forced to cut staff at a time when the need for services has never been greater.
• Halted reimbursements : In some parts of Pennsylvania, reimbursements aren’t being made to foster families, and they are covering expenses out of pocket.
• Borrowing to survive : Agencies and school districts are being forced to take on debt just to maintain day-to-day operations, diverting resources away from the children and families we serve.
• Reduced services : Without funding, some organizations will have no choice but to cut critical programs that children in crisis depend on.

This Isn't New—and That's the Problem:

Some Pennsylvania counties still haven't fully recovered from the 2015 budget impasse. Now, nearly a decade later, we're facing the same crisis of being mandated to provide essential services without the funding to support them.

Who Pays the Price?

Not the politicians in Harrisburg. It's:

• Children in foster care who need stability and support
• Foster families absorbing costs they can't afford
• Social workers and caseworkers facing job insecurity
• Schools cutting programs that serve our most vulnerable students
• Seniors losing access to community resources
• Taxpayers facing potential property tax increases

What Can We Do?

This is a call to action for every professional working in child welfare, education, social services, and nonprofit leadership:

1. Contact your state legislators and demand they pass a budget immediately

2. Reach out to the Governor's office (717) 787-2500

3. Engage with the Pennsylvania Office of the Budget

4. Use your platform to raise awareness about this crisis

5. Contact local media to ensure this story doesn't go untold

Find your legislators: (http://legis.state.pa.us/)

We Are Stronger Together:

At Lifespan Family Services, we remain committed to serving Pennsylvania's children and families—but we cannot do this work alone, and we cannot do it without the resources we were promised.

It's time to hold our elected officials accountable. Our children deserve better. Our communities deserve better. Pennsylvania deserves better.

We encourage you, especially those in social work, child welfare, education, and nonprofit leadership, to amplify this message. Share your experiences. Make the calls. Demand action.

The children we serve can't wait another 100 days.

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