Arizona Politics

Livingston Condemns Hobbs' 'Reckless' Budgeting Mismanagement at Department of Child Safety

State Representative David Livingston (R-28) issued a statement condemning Governor Katie Hobbs' (D-AZ) mismanagement of the Department of Child Safety's (DCS) Congregate Care program.

Congregate Care is Arizona's program that assists in funding group homes for foster children. As ABC15 reported, it is expected to go bankrupt soon, which Arizona Republicans blame on mismanagement by Gov. Hobbs.

However, Christian Slater, a spokesperson for Gov. Hobbs, said the program will not go bankrupt, and the request for additional funds is a routine line-item diversion of funds for other programs into the DCS's Congregate Care.

Rep. Livingston, however, was not buying it.

As a press release from the Arizona House's Joint Legislative Budget Committee (JLBC) explained, DCS was supposed to use existing funds in its budget.

"Governor Hobbs's repeated failures to manage the budget responsibly have pushed agencies into crisis after crisis. Her administration's approach is to overspend, ignore reality, and then demand a last-minute bailout. That's not leadership—that's recklessness," said Rep. Livingston.

Additionally, he emphasized that the Legislature is not there to address executive mistakes and that "DCS already has the money it needs to address this failure, and today, we made sure it can use those funds."

"It should never have come to this," the Arizona Congressman continued, "Her administration had the ability to fix this months ago, but instead, they sat on it—waiting until just 19 days before bankruptcy to sound the alarm. Arizona families have to live within their budgets, and we expect the Governor to do the same."

As a result of the impending collapse, Arizona Speaker of the House Steve Montenegro (R-29) assembled an Ad Hoc Committee on Executive Budget Mismanagement on Monday, saying, "We care deeply about the children in DCS' care. That's why we acted quickly today. The JLBC's directive ensures that children in need will continue receiving care, but the Legislature will not reward fiscal irresponsibility by throwing more taxpayer dollars at a crisis of the Governor's making."

Grayson Bakich

Florida born and raised, Grayson Bakich is a recent recipient of a Master’s Degree in Political Science at the University of Central Florida. His thesis examined recent trends in political polarization and how this leads into justification of violence.

Recent Posts

Arizona’s Growing Power Needs and the Role of Nuclear Energy

By the late 2030s, Arizona's electricity consumption is predicted to increase by almost 60%. Rapid…

10 hours ago

Congress Plans to Fix Disaster Response System With FEMA Act of 2025

Lawmakers from both parties have proposed the largest reforms to emergency management in almost two…

12 hours ago

Democratic Activists Gather in Arizona as National Campaign "Won't Back Down Tour" Begins

This weekend, congressional members from a major advocacy organization began their cross-country campaign tour in…

13 hours ago

SNAKEBITE— 8.4.25— Biggs and Crane Want Justice— Gallego's Veterans' Benefits Bill— Hobbs Wants Border Reimbursement, Trump's Digital Health Plan, Much More...

Biggs and Crane Want Justice Representatives Eli Crane (R-AZ) and Andy Biggs (R-AZ) demanded accountability…

13 hours ago

Trump Administration Delays Tariff Hikes Amid Ongoing Trade Disputes

As the federal government continues to put pressure on several economic partners by imposing higher import…

14 hours ago

Crane, Biggs Demand Justice After Durham Report Annex Reveals Depth of Russian Collusion Hoax

Representatives Eli Crane (R-AZ) and Andy Biggs (R-AZ) demanded accountability and justice on X (formerly…

3 days ago