Agencies Cuts Fall Short in Rhode Island

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- At the Rhode Island Department of Human Services, the list of cost-cutting ideas for the coming year includes an efficiency audit, better background checks on Medicaid applicants and a slight staff reduction.
All told, these steps and more than a dozen others would reduce state spending by more than $17 million. Those savings would amount to just a fraction, less than one-seventh, of what the state Budget Office has asked Human Services to cut.
Also falling short in their cost-saving efforts are the Department of Children Youth and Families and the Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals.
The message from state social-service departments, which consume more than a third of the state’s tax dollars, is clear: There are some savings to be had, but not the 15 percent requested by the state Budget Office.