Overview

• Legislative auditors identified seven people on the state sex‑offender registry living at addresses approved as guardianship homes that housed 10 children, findings the agency first received in December 2024.
• Auditors reported disqualifying convictions among adults with access to children, including a group‑home employee convicted of sexually assaulting a minor who later faced abuse findings, and a hotel‑services vendor employee convicted of murder in 1990.
• From 2023 to 2024, 280 foster children were housed in hotels, including 82 long‑term stays of three months to two years, costing $10.4 million as auditors cited weak documentation of placement efforts and unlicensed supervision.
• Health‑care lapses were widespread, with 640 children lacking a medical exam in the past year (110 for up to six years) and more than 1,600 missing a six‑month dental exam, including 140 who had never received one.
• The audit again rated SSA’s accountability unsatisfactory and detailed financial breakdowns such as up to $34.5 million in overpayments and a $700,000 federal penalty, while DHS Secretary Rafael López acknowledged the findings and said reforms are underway as the report goes to a General Assembly committee.