Lawmakers in the Senate Appropriations Human Resources Division on April 3 discussed multiple Human Services budget items, including foster care funding, personal needs allowances for long-term care residents, a proposed community cultural center grant, and provider-rate inflation adjustments.

Two bills received formal committee recommendations:
- House Bill 1468 (adolescent residential psychiatric services): Senator Davison moved a due-pass recommendation; the motion was seconded and the division voted to recommend a due pass. Members noted the bill had multiple prior hearings and that proponents said the facility would reduce out-of-state placements for adolescents.
- House Bill 1485 (personal needs allowance for residents in nursing facilities, basic care, ICFs and PRTFs): Senator Cleary offered an amendment to raise the monthly personal-needs allowance modestly above the House version. The amendment lowered the Senate committees prior $50 proposal to $15 monthly (a $5 increase over the House bill). The division adopted the amendment and then voted a due-pass recommendation on the bill as amended (roll call: Senator Clary: Yes; Senator Davidson: Yes; Chairman Deaver: Yes; Senator Magrum: No; Senator Matherin: Yes). The amendment was described by the sponsor as a compromise to reduce the fiscal note while giving additional allowance to residents.

Foster care projection and base-budget discussion
Senator Davison pressed for a lower foster-care projection in the Human Services base, saying he wanted to "reduce that down to about 65,000,000" (later discussed as a reduction target near $60.5 million). Donna Auckland of the Department of Human Services explained foster care funding was treated as an entitlement and is funded about fifty-fifty with federal funds; she told the committee the services would continue even if appropriation adjustments require a deficiency request later in the biennium: "That is an entitlement type of a program. So we do have to provide those services. So if for some reason foster care increased more than what our appropriation is... we would ask for a deficiency appropriation."

Community cultural center grant
Committee members debated a requested $1 million facility appropriation for a community cultural center. Several senators objected to including a capital facility appropriation in the Human Services bill; others supported programming to sustain services for the high-risk population that the applicant serves. The committee agreed to remove the $1 million facility appropriation and instead provide $300,000 for cultural programming and services, with language to confine the appropriation to programming rather than land purchase. The committee asked staff to draft amendment language that limits funds to cultural-programming activities and to consider intent language rather than a capital appropriation.

Provider-rate inflator and basic care debate
Members discussed provider inflators and whether to carry forward prior-session increases. Senator Matherin and other senators argued for higher rates for basic care to preserve access to beds, while appropriators warned that different inflators for different provider groups would complicate an already large budget package. The division did not complete final inflator decisions but identified the matter for continued negotiation in conference.

State hospital and capital items
Senator Mather said the committee should consider deferred maintenance and potential repurposing of the LaHog (state hospital) building; members asked staff to provide prior assessments and campus plans and to work up options for Monday's meeting. Department staff said they could supply the assessment and noted the department keeps capital flexibility in its base budget for small projects.

Next steps and context
Committee members said they will continue deliberations Monday and in the full appropriations committee. Several items (foster-care projection, community-cultural-center language, inflators and state-hospital planning) were left for additional drafting and for potential conference negotiation with the House. The committee also noted the executive Human Services budget and current division numbers were close and emphasized the need to balance policy priorities against a tight general-fund outlook.