Policy Committee Calls for DHS Accountability Following Hearing on Youth Shelter Closure
November 13, 2026
HARRISBURG— The Pennsylvania House Republican Policy Committee, chaired by Rep. David Rowe (R-Snyder/Union/Juniata/Mifflin), is calling on the Department of Human Services (DHS) to provide records explaining its emergency closure of Leading Youth for Excellence (L.Y.F.E.), a youth shelter in Steelton, and the arrangements made to protect the 25 young people required to relocate.
The committee’s Nov. 9 hearing, “Protecting Vulnerable Youth: Accountability in Emergency Placement Decisions,” examined how DHS determines when emergency closure is necessary, coordinates with counties and courts, secures appropriate placements, and monitors children after they move.
“And we are here because the authority to close a facility carries a responsibility to protect the children who are forced to leave,” Rowe said. “Those children needed stability. Those children needed safety.”
L.Y.F.E. served approximately 20 counties and, according to witnesses, accepted children whose behavioral and clinical needs made other placements difficult to secure. The background presented to the committee described substantial improvements and restoration of the shelter’s regular license in February 2025, followed by an emergency closure order a year later. The allegations supporting the closure remain disputed.
Co-owner and Chief of Operations Bilal Hasan testified that L.Y.F.E. voluntarily requested continued monitoring after its regular license was restored. He said requests for written clarification of the department’s concerns went unanswered before the revocation notice. During the hearing, testimony clarified that the facility received only two days for residents’ removal.
Hasan and co-owner James Ellison, who also testified, questioned the consistency of enforcement across youth residential providers and described concerns about youth residents leaving subsequent placements.
Ellison also recounted a May meeting during which, according to his testimony, Deputy Secretary for the Office of Children, Youth, and Families, Laval Miller-Wilson questioned the shelter’s provision of additional therapeutic services. Ellison defended those services as necessary support for children awaiting suitable longer-term placements.
Fred Clark, chairman of Clark Resources and a community advocate involved in establishing L.Y.F.E. at the former Schaffner Youth Center, described the county’s need for a local provider willing to serve children with complex behavioral needs. He urged lawmakers to pursue clearer, objective enforcement standards.
A former resident testified remotely about the importance of trusted staff and consistent support during two stays at the shelter.
“When you feel lost in the system, having people like that around you helps you remember that you actually matter,” the former resident testified.
“They don't stop caring about you just because you're having a hard time. They treat you like you are one of their kids.”
At the hearing’s conclusion, Rowe called for DHS to provide documentation supporting its closure decision, communications with counties and courts, transition plans, and follow-up records concerning the relocated children.
“Those answers must guide our next steps,” Rowe said. “Because providers must answer for the care that they deliver, and government must answer for the consequences of its own decisions.”
Full hearing and testimony can be found at policycommittee.com.
Representative David H. Rowe
85th Legislative District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Nancy Nilson
nnilson@pahousegop.com