Nebraska Negotiates New Contract with Foster Care Contractor

Nebraska is negotiating a new and costlier contractor with a troubled Kansas-based foster care contractor that is less than three weeks away from running out of money for operations. St. Francis Ministries interim CEO William Clark told Nebraska lawmakers Friday that the nonprofit needs another $25 million to cover its costs for this year and about $10 million to cover a shortfall for the fiscal year that ended June 30.

Dannette Smith, the CEO of the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, said the state is pursuing the new agreement to maintain continuity. She promised increased state oversight, saying, “I think we learned a bitter lesson.”