Lawmakers gathered on Wednesday to hear testimony from state auditors and representatives of the Department of Children and Families about a recent report which found that the number of children going missing from DCF care rose rapidly in recent years. During the meeting, lawmakers also said goodbye to DCF Commissioner Jodi Hill-Lilly, who is leaving the department for a new position at a national nonprofit.

The June audit found that children went missing from DCF care about 3,700 times from fiscal years 2021 to 2023. Over that time period, the number of incidents increased by 42%. The audit also found that DCF hadn’t followed the law in some cases and had failed to implement internal controls to make sure children stayed safe. The vast majority of the cases were teenagers, with fewer

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