This fiscal year marks a time of great change and opportunity for DCFS. During the 2025 regular legislative session, the One Door legislation was passed as Acts 477 and 478. Effective October 1, 2025, the Economic Stability program and Disability Determination Services will move to the Louisiana Department of Health. All employment and training programs will move to the Louisiana Workforce Commission. This will be an incredible shift in the way we deliver services, offering Louisianans a more effective social services delivery model that is financially sustainable and helps them move successfully from crisis to career.
The One Door legislation presented DCFS with a valuable opportunity to restructure itself as a child-centered department, dedicated to child welfare and support. The business plan is strategically designed to leverage this opportunity and drive outcome-focused improvements.
Statutory requirements and federal laws define DCFS’s responsibilities and scope of service. This includes the Child Protection Act, which authorizes the department to intervene in cases of suspected child abuse or neglect. It also includes the Louisiana Children’s Code, which outlines legal standards for child welfare cases, emphasizing the importance of family-centered approaches and timely permanency planning. Additionally, DCFS administers federal grants including the Promoting Safe and Stable Families Program, the Adoption Assistance Program, the Chafee Foster Care Independence Program, the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, Access and Visitation, and Child Support Enforcement. These legal and regulatory foundations ensure that DCFS can deliver a wide range of services while maintaining accountability and a focus on protecting the wellbeing of children and families.
The business plan for fiscal year 2026 (July 1, 2025–June 30, 2026) will lay the foundation for the work our department is doing to improve operational efficiency and ensure that Louisiana’s most vulnerable children are protected. It is also our priority to promote staff well-being and resilience so we can build a culture rooted in connection, accountability, and action. DCFS will conduct an iterative review process to ensure continuous improvement and maximize transparency for all ongoing initiatives.
Throughout this plan, there are key initiatives as well as targeted strategies to achieve the initiatives’ goals. This business plan—comprising of 12 initiatives and 36 goals—serves as a framework for tracking progress and enhancing accountability to the residents of Louisiana, our partners, and our dedicated team members at DCFS. We look forward to releasing our outcomes report in the first quarter of FY27, which will detail our successes and identify opportunities for further improvements as we move through this transformative time. We will carry out this challenging and important work at DCFS and, more importantly, we will move forward, together.