Legislative Appropriations Request for FY 14-15 Joint Budget Hearing

Legislative Appropriations Request for FY 14-15Joint Budget Hearing Presented to the Governor’s Office of Budget, Planning, and Policy and the Legislative Budget Board September 13, 2012 Howard Baldwin, Commissioner

The mission of DFPS is to protect children and people who are elderly or who have disabilities from abuse, neglect, and exploitation by involving clients, families, and communities. DFPS Mission

FY 12-13 Major Budget Issues • FY 13 Additional Needs • LAR includes the following additional projected expenditures but DFPS would need approval during FY 13 prior to expending: • $3.1 million for CPS foster and relative day care • Rider 30 requires approval to spend more than the appropriated amounts for CPS day care • Additional funding is from foster care surplus which requires approval to use the surplus for other needs, and from other unrestricted surplus funds within DFPS • $3.1 million for relative caregiver payments • Additional funding is from foster care surplus which requires approval to use the surplus for other needs

FY 12-13 Major Budget Issues • FY 13 Federal Funding Uncertainty • Budget Control Act (BCA) of 2011 • Estimated Cut: 7.8% • DFPS receives federal award: • Title IV-B part 1 - $1.8 million – used for CPS staff and CPS purchased client services • Title IV-B part 2 - $2.5 million – used for CPS staff, CPS purchased client services, and PEI • Chafee Education and Training Vouchers - $0.3 million – used in the PAL program for former foster youth attending college or training programs • Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention (CBCAP) - $0.2 million – used for child abuse prevention services • Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) state grant - $0.1 million – used for specific purposes outlined in grant application; funds certain DFPS staff • Other state agency receives federal award and DFPS receives funding through them: • Title XX Social Services Block Grant - $2.6 million - used for SWI, APS, and CCL staff and for APS purchased client services • Child Care and Development Block Grant - $2.3 million – used for CCL staff and CPS day care services • Refugee Assistance - $0.5 million – used for unaccompanied refugee minors

FY 14-15 Key Budget Issues Foster Care Payments Caseload Updated June 2012

FY 14-15 Key Budget Issues Children Receiving Adoption Subsidy Payments Updated June 2012

FY 14-15 Summary of Request

Summary of Exceptional Items

There is a decline in Federal IV-E financial participation due to: continuing erosion in IV-E eligibility An increase in relative placements that are not verified foster homes. As the federal IV-E financial participation decreases for CPS direct delivery staff, more state funds are needed to maintain the existing appropriated number of positions. Additional funds are needed to maintain the FY 13 FTE cap for CPS direct delivery staff in FY 14-15. Without this funding, 269.3 currently authorized direct delivery FTEs would be reduced by FY 15. Exceptional Item 1Maintain CPS Staff Due to Erosion of IV-E Eligibility

Based on forecasted caseload growth, DFPS will need additional direct delivery staff to maintain the following: Projected FY 13 caseload per worker for CPS Conservatorship of 28.8 Projected FY 13 caseload per worker for APS In-Home of 31.2 Appropriated FY 13 hold time at Statewide Intake call center of 8.7 minutes Without additional funding, caseloads would increase by FY 15 as follows: 29.5 for CPS Conservatorship 33.2 for APS In-Home 11.4 minute hold time at the call center Exceptional Item 2Direct Delivery Staff to Maintain Caseloads

This item requests the funding for forecasted caseload growth in the Relative and Other Designated Caregiver Placement Program. $3.9 million GR provides monetary assistance of a one-time payment of $1,000 per sibling group and an annual reimbursement of expenses of $500 per child $1.9 million GR for provides day care for relative caregivers who work full time Without this financial support, many relatives would be unable to provide a placement option, and the children would be placed in paid foster care which is more expensive. Exceptional Item 3Caseload Growth for Relative Caregiver Program

This item requests the funding to address the forecasted caseload growth for foster day care and protective day care. $0.9 million GR for the biennium is needed for foster day care for foster parents who work full time. Ensures adequate foster family home capacity which helps keep children close to their siblings, school, and friends. $1.9 million GR for the biennium is needed for protective day care which is used in the Family Based Safety Services (FBSS) stage of service as a means to ensure safety while the child continues to live at home. Exceptional Item 4Caseload Growth for Foster and Protective Day Care

This item requests funds to keep the applications contained in the agency's automated casework systems - IMPACT for APS and CPS and CLASS for Child Care Licensing - current and consistent with state and federal laws and agency policies. Both systems provide complete casework management for APS, CPS, and Child Care Licensing. All client records are electronic and case documentation is done via sophisticated software and equipment. Applications on both systems support the mobile technology needs of tablet PCs used by all three programs. Exceptional Item 5Upgrades to Casework System Applications

This item contains two initiatives to enhance the retention of direct delivery staff in APS, Child Care Licensing (CCL), CPS, and Statewide Intake (SWI). $4.3 million GR for the biennium is needed to modify the worker certification program to provide pay increases sooner. $3.7 million GR for the biennium is needed to address salary compression issues by reclassifying the direct delivery supervisor series up one pay group and by having a higher level manager classification in certain DFPS program for the direct delivery program administrators. Exceptional Item 6Enhance Staff Retention – APS, CCL, CPS, SWI

Additional kinship staff are requested to lower caseloads per worker and to reduce the supervisor span of control. The number of children placed with relatives has grown by 18% since FY 10. Staffing to support kinship placements has not grown since FY 09. The current caseload per worker is 47.2 and is projected to be 53.8 by FY 15. The current worker to supervisor staffing ratio is 12 to 1. This means that each supervisor will be responsible for 646 kinship cases on average each day in FY 15 using the expected average daily caseload per worker of 53.8. This request is for a caseload per worker of 40 and a supervisor span of control of 7 workers to 1 supervisor. Both of these improvements would drop the average number of cases a supervisor is responsible for each day to 280 by FY 15. Exceptional Item 7Strengthen CPS Kinship Services

This item includes two initiatives for updating the casework system, IMPACT, due to changes in casework practice. $1.2 million GR for the biennium to integrate the new APS risk assessment and decision making tool that is currently being developed. This new tool will identify the level of client risk and help guide decision making regarding the level and intensity of services needed in all APS in-home cases. $1.5 million GR for the biennium to create a new stage of service for CPS investigations where there is less immediate risk of serious harm. The new model for resolving these allegations of child abuse and neglect is referred to as “differential response.” Differential response provides for the use of a less adversarial approach to ensure child safety than the traditional investigative model. Exceptional Item 8Update Casework System to Improve Assessment and Service Delivery Processes

This initiative seeks resources to improve the way providers pay their licensing fees and to improve the tracking and reconciliation process for DFPS. The public provider website would be upgraded to allow for online fee payments using Texas.gov. Through this initiative, DFPS will be able to record in a database who the payment is from, for what fee type, how much and what time period. This request includes 2.0 FTEs to manage and support the system. Exceptional Item 9Improve the Collection of Licensing Fees

IMPACT infrastructure has not changed in 17 years, yet its functionalities and capabilities have increased as the system has been modified to keep up with law and policy changes over the years. This has led to its current state where maintenance and modifications take longer, system management is too complex, system performance is affected and skilled resources to maintain legacy code is costly and hard to find. This improvement would directly affect the caseworker's job. From an end user perspective the new IMPACT will be easier to use, more intuitive, with reduced training time. These time efficiencies lead to more caseworker time with clients, thus improving services for clients. Exceptional Item 10Increase Performance and Usability of Casework System

This item establishes a lower supervisor span of control for two CPS stages of service – Investigations and Conservatorship. Low supervisor span of control was a key component in CPS Reform funded by the 2005 Legislature. It was instrumental in strengthening services by providing more support for the caseworker. The current supervisor span of control for Investigations is 6 workers to 1 supervisor. This request is for $17.0 million GR for the biennium for a ratio of 5 to 1 which would be a 17% improvement for supervisor caseloads. By FY 15, a supervisor would be responsible for an average of 109 cases each day instead of 131. The current supervisor span of control for Conservatorship is 7 workers to 1 supervisor. This request is for $14.4 million GR for the biennium for a ratio of 6 to 1 which would be a 14% improvement for supervisor caseloads. By FY 15, a supervisor would be responsible for an average of 173 cases each day instead of 202. Exceptional Item 11Reduce Supervisor Span of Control – CPS Investigations and Conservatorship

Funding was reduced for prevention and early intervention (PEI) services in FY12-13. This item is to restore funds reduced from FY11 appropriation levels as follows: 13% for STAR 36% for CYD 37% for Texas Families; Together and Safe 74% for Other At-Risk programs As a result of the reductions, PEI services to youth and families have been substantially decreased and contracts for the Family Strengthening and Youth Resiliency programs were eliminated. Exceptional Item 12Restore Prevention and Early Intervention Services

This item replaces local match with state funds for three DFPS programs funded with federal block grants: Preparation for Adult Living (PAL) Life Skills Training requires a 20% match purchased adoption services require a 25% match post-adoption services require a 25% match Contracted providers of these services are now required to provide the match, and have found the means to comply with this requirement in the short term. However, many providers have communicated that they do not have the financial means to sustain the match requirement beyond the current biennium. Exceptional Item 13Restore State Match for CPS Purchased Services

FY14-15 Target: $74.6 million Reduction Items Program support and administrative cost savings ($1.5 million) Eliminate prevention services and staff ($58.4 million) Exceptions are the 100% federally funded Child Abuse Prevention Grants to community-based organizations (Strategy 3.1.4) and the Runaway Hotline Reduce the number of Special Investigators through attrition ($2.2 million) Reduce APS and CPS Purchased Client Services ($12.5 million) 10% GR Reduction Schedule

Legislative Appropriations Request for FY 14-15 Joint Budget Hearing