Child placements are costly

Child placements are costly | BrainerdDispatch.com | Brainerd, Minnesota

The number of children in out-of-home placements is taking a significant bite out of Crow Wing County’s budget.

Community Services Director Beth Wilms reported year-to-date expenditures for out-of-home placements, when children are placed in foster care or other facilities outside their family home, is $1,032,523 of a $2.8 million budget. The expenses are eating up the budget at a quicker pace than planned for the year. The county had 140 children in out-of-home placements in March. The monthly average this year has been 137. The monthly average in 2010 was 133 and it was 130 in 2009.