Speak Out in Support of Florida's Guardian ad Litem Program

Guardian ad Litems are court-appointed child advocates for children who have been removed from their homes due to abuse, neglect, or abandonment. GALs fight for children to get the services they need, they push the system to get children into safe, permanent homes faster, and they provide independent information to the court and advocate for child-focused decisions. Without a GAL the children navigate the system without an independent advocate of their own.

The GAL program is in serious jeopardy due to state budget cuts. Current budget proposals reduce GAL funding by $7.6 million, meaning that over 5,700 abused and neglected children will have no one to represent their best interests in dependency proceedings. Please contact the legislatures in Tallahassee and let them know that this is unacceptable. Here is a link with some talking points to help you with your phone calls/emails - http://www.flgal.org/TP-Conference-041509.pdf. More information can be found at the Florida Guardian ad Litem Foundation site at http://www.flgal.org/index.php.