When signing the budget revision in July, the governor vetoed hundreds of millions of dollars worth of services the Legislature fought to protect.
Across the state, counties are reporting that must adapt to these cuts by eliminating positions of Child Welfare Services (CWS) workers who protect children. Consider these examples:
• Contra Costa County is holding 70 CWS positions vacant agency-wide and closing offices.
• Tulare County laid off 55 CWS workers; and
• Sacramento County is considering eliminating 212 positions in CWS.
How much protection will the most vulnerable children in California lose? Counties are only now beginning to sift through the details of how the cut will impact each local county department and then we will find out how many children will fall through the cracks.
