Springfield, IL-(Effingham Radio)- State Senator Steve McClure (R-Springfield) and State Senator Sally Turner (R-Beason) released the following statement following the announcement that DCFS Director Marc D. Smith is stepping down:
“Protecting and caring for our state’s most vulnerable children and families is an incredibly important responsibility of the Governor’s administration. As the recent compliance audit makes crystal clear, the issues with DCFS aren’t getting better, the situation actually appears to be getting worse. We hope the Governor takes this opportunity to finally fix the issues that plague DCFS and have led to heartbreaking stories of children waiting months for placements, or those who tragically have lost their lives.
“Unfortunately, the issues with DCFS go much deeper than one appointed leader, the problems are systemic. Governor Pritzker needs to undertake a comprehensive review of agency operations, prioritizing solutions that protect children who cannot protect themselves.”
State Senator Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet) released the following statement regarding news that DCFS Director Marc D. Smith is stepping down:
“I have no idea why this took so long, nor why Governor Pritzker put up with the arrogance and incompetence in agency leadership for so long. DCFS has been a multi-year disaster, with our state’s most vulnerable children too-often paying the price. While this agency has had serious issues for a long time, the incompetence of this director and Governor Pritzker’s failure to replace him long ago is breathtaking. I firmly believe that any other Governor in the United States would have put the kids first and cut the cord long ago. Pritzker’s refusal to take this agency’s failings seriously has done significant harm to the children and families of Illinois that will take years to recover from.”
State Senator Jason Plummer (R-Edwardsville) released the below statement following news of Marc D. Smith stepping down as DCFS Director:
“This announcement is long overdue. DCFS has been an unmitigated disaster under the Governor’s watch. While many of the issues have been going on for years, the situation has gotten significantly worse during Pritzker’s time in office, which was made clear in the agency’s most recent audit.
“I hope the Governor sees this as an opportunity to finally get this right, because he has been neglecting it for far too long, with tragic results for the most vulnerable children of our state.”
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