Op-Ed: Thank You Speaker Blazejewski For ‘Stopping The Steal’ From Kids

By state Rep. Julie A. Casimiro

When I discovered that the Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) was taking money from kids in state care I was appalled. This long-standing department policy took federal benefits, like Social Security or veterans’ benefits, from children in state care to fund administrative costs and sustain DCYF’s bottom line.

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And for the past three years, the bureaucratic resistance from DCYF I felt after introducing and reintroducing this legislation to end this immoral practice was equally troubling. It seemed like no one cared about these vulnerable children.

But then on May 29, Speaker Christopher R. Blazejewski, Majority Leader Katherine S. Kazarian and the House Finance Committee did something extraordinary.

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They stopped the steal.

Within the new fiscal year 2027 state budget, the practice of taking these benefits away from children in state care was ended, clearly and explicitly. Now, DCYF will be required to establish segregated savings accounts for foster children receiving Social Security, Supplemental Security Income and veterans’ benefits, because this money belongs to these kids, not the state’s bureaucracy.

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These kids have gotten a raw deal in life, and all too often, their benefits are tied to additional stress and trauma that they have already experienced during their short lives. Children who have already endured extraordinary hardship, especially as they transition out of care without the safety nets most young people rely on, desperately needed these benefits that were denied to them for so long.

But now, thanks to Speaker Blazejewski, Leader Kazarian and the House Finance Committee, our children in state care will finally have access to the money that was always rightfully theirs. They will have a safety net to support them as they transition out of state care, and this will make all the difference in giving these kids a chance to have happy and productive lives.

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I am deeply grateful for this budget item. All those who had a hand in reversing this injustice deserve our thanks. I know that they have mine.

Julie A. Casimiro, a Democrat, represents District 31 in North Kingstown and Exeter and chairs the House Oversight Subcommittee on Children and Families.

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