The dog pile on Governor Katie Hobbs just got a little heavier due to the addition of State Representative David Livingston, Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee.
Livingston announced on Wednesday that he is renewing his warning to the Governor over what he says is the “imminent insolvency of the state’s Developmental Disabilities (DDD) program.”
Livingston says he is “calling out” the Governor and her administration for its “fiscal mismanagement and lack of legislative consultation.”
In his letter to Hobbs, Livingston claimed that the Hobbs’ administration has failed to control costs, noting that the program’s supplemental funding needs have ballooned from $109 million to $122 million in just weeks – jeopardizing critical services as soon as April.
“This administration has made major financial commitments without consulting the Legislature, and now families are staring down the consequences of an unsustainable program. Governor Hobbs must explain why her agencies are making decisions without oversight and what her plan if this program collapses.”
In his letter, Livingston outlined what he says are “three key drivers of the cost overruns: increasing eligibility, rate hikes, and the continuation of the COVID-era Parents as Paid Caregivers Program (PPCG). He raised concerns about the lack of cost controls and oversight, questioning whether the eligibility criteria are strict enough and whether service coordinators are under undue pressure to approve excessive hours.”
Livingston pointed out that the Governor’s FY26 budget proposal seeks an additional $328 million in General Fund spending for the program – doubling its General Fund costs over the past four years.
“Under Governor Hobbs’ watch, the cost of this program has exploded from $750 million to $1.5 billion,” Livingston said. “The Legislature was blindsided by these numbers, and we need immediate answers on how the administration plans to rein in spending before Arizona families are left with nothing.”
Livingston is calling on the governor to provide a clear plan for capping hours in the PPCG program, preventing service duplication, and ensuring spending decisions are made with appropriate oversight.
“The state must act now to fix this before families pay the price for this administration’s failure,” said Livingston. “We can’t afford more of the governor’s last-minute budget negotiations while programs Arizonans depend on collapse.”
Too sad. People voted for an incompetent, woke disaster.
There goes the CMS waver! The paid parents program is full of the appearance of fraud, waste, and abuse. Yes, there was unwritten pressure from DDD management to give parents anything they requested. All of this falls back on DES.
“‘Under Governor Hobbs’ watch, the cost of this program has exploded from $750 million to $1.5 billion,’ Livingston said. ‘The Legislature was blindsided by these numbers […]”
A 100% cost increase without consulting the legislature? How is this not an impeachable offense?
Could be that there needs to be an audit of where all of the $$$ is really going.
Everything this witch does is financially irresponsible.
Finally, there is a “man” in the mushy, incompetent, and uniparty type Republican ranks. But why is it a single person? Where the Senate President and the House President? Where is media on looking out for the citizens’ interest?
Don’t blame me. I voted for Kari.
I completely support the idea of holding the governor responsible for living in a budget. Everyone has to live with a budget or go bankrupt. The governor is lacking both transparency and is failing to follow guidelines for the program.
Hobbs (theoretical response) why didnt you abort DDD when you had the chance.. “D”way