By Sarah Knox, Senior Director of Policy and Advocacy

Every fall, the Joint Citizens and Legislative Committee on Children holds public hearing meetings around the state to listen to the concerns and ideas from people regarding a wide range of children’s issues. As in the past, Children’s Trust was proud to be represented at these meetings by several of our board members.

This year all of our board members who testified spoke with a common voice and ask: for the state to endow the Children’s Trust Fund with a legacy gift to ensure that our mission of preventing child abuse and neglect can be carried out the fullest extent possible.

At the first hearing on Sept. 30 at the Statehouse, Chairman of the Board Philip Vann spoke about the immense need for more programming.

“The data is sobering. South Carolina ranks 38th in child well-being,” Vann said. “More than 13,000 South Carolina children were in founded cases of abuse and neglect last year—enough to fill 21 jumbo jets. Yet fewer than 10 percent of eligible families can access home visiting services. We know programs like Strengthening Families reduce DSS involvement, but far too few families can benefit.”

He emphasized the need for sustained funding.  “We know that strong families are the foundation of a strong state…(our) programs work, but we cannot reach the scale required to create lasting change and secure our future without adequate state investment.”

In Greenville on Oct. 7, Board Member Tracy Lamb shared statistics with the members of the committee, noting both the need and the effectiveness of the programs that Children’s Trust supports.

“The need far outweighs our capacity,” Lamb said. “We estimate that across all home visiting in the state, only 10 percent of Medicaid-eligible mothers receive services, which means that 90 percent of families in need are not being served by home visiting services in at-risk counties.”

Responding to an earlier question about the effectiveness of these programs, Lamb shared that “Almost 98 percent of MIECHV caregivers reported reading, telling stories or singing to their children on a daily basis and 93 percent of MIECHV caregivers use safe sleep practices for their infants.”

A recently released SLED report (need link) showed unsafe sleep as the number one cause of preventable death in children, which further highlights the need for programs that teach and ensure safe sleep practices.

At the last fall meeting on Oct. 15, our newest board member, Ronnie Maxwell, spoke to the committee about the urgency in ending child abuse and neglect in our state.

“South Carolina ranks 38th in overall child wellbeing, a rank we’ve never risen above,” Maxwell said. “Nearly 40% of our children live in single-family homes and 20% of our children are living in poverty.”

“The programs that Children’s Trust support work. They strengthen the most important unit of society—the family—and create opportunities for children to thrive. We have the data to prove that. We know what works. What we need is the funding to do it.”

Peggy Ford, executive director of the Children’s Place, one of our partners and grantees, spoke to the Committee in Aiken, and called for the General Assembly to fund the Children’s Trust Fund.

The Joint Committee public hearings have wrapped up for 2025. In past years, the feedback received during these hearings in past years has led to new laws at the State House. The legislative session returns on Jan. 13 and adjourns May 7.