SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) - The Illinois House held a subject hearing meeting on Friday surrounding multiple Illinois Department of Children and Family Services issues. 

Amid recent reported shortcomings of DCFS, Chairwoman Camille Lilly called a public hearing to inquire about the department's ongoing financial and operational issues. 

"The goal of this hearing is very simple - to discover the truth, to ensure accountability and develop long-term solutions," she said virtually to House members.

DCFS stood before legislators to answer for issues with child placement and for worker safety. Director Marc Smith told House members on Friday he is dedicated to the agency and blames the previous administration for issues pertaining to child placements. 

"During the past administration DCFS lost hundreds of beds and thousands of foster homes, rebuilding that network is a much lengthier process than destroying it." 

There are more than 21,000 children in the state's care. Director Smith reported in 2018 there was a total of 16,660 in care. 

During his time as director, Smith said there was a complete overhaul in hotline infrastructure and online reporting. He cited in 2019 less than 40% were answered and completed in real-time. In 2021, 99% of hotline calls were answered in seconds. 

Some House members expressed concern with hiring and retention. Director Smith stated, pre-pandemic the agency had a hiring challenge, but they are continuing to make progress. 

In September 2020, DCFS changed it's recruitment and retention plan. They agency launched social media campaigns and created a streamline during the interview process. In the first half of this fiscal year, DCFS added 279 new staff. They hired 496 in the previous year and 354 the year before that. 

Rep. Kathleen Willis (D) asked the director directly the agencies capacity for employees, he replied the number is constantly changing but they could use 100 plus staff. 

"During a hiring crisis, we got in the front, but there is still work that needs to be done," said Smith. 

During the virtual hearing Rep. Tom Demmer (R) and Rep. C.D.  Davidsmeyer (R) both expressed their concern with safety for DCFS workers and children in the state's care. Rep. Demmer recalled the 2017 murder of Pamela Knight and more recently the murder of Deidre Silas. 

"We must do everything possible to have those situations never happen again," he said. 

Director Smith said in the past 2 years the agency has worked on safety for staff and workers. There is a worker safety training, where they have worked with universities and law enforcement to enhance safety trainings. 

Every staff goes through a 6-week training. During this, they learn about case management, personnel decisions and decisions around safety. Workers would learn about panic buttons, situational awareness and what to do when they are inside a home. Director Smith said, pre-pandemic they worked with the Department of Corrections to offer in-person physical training on how to respond to physical threat. However, this training isn't required. 

"When this tragedy that we most recently experienced, our hearts our broken, but it keeps you motivated to protect our staff," he said. 

When asked by Rep. Kathleen Willis (D) what more the General Assembly could do to help or be of assistance, Director Smith replied with funding for mental health services. 

"Be broad and enhance funding for mental health services," he said. "We see higher number of people in mental health crisis." 

The subject matter hearing last more than 3 hours. Other key issues members touched on where child placement, bed availability,  the recent report from the Inspector Generals Office and children who need a deeper medical attention.Â