Child, adult protective services still a high priority despite bad budgets

Despite the poor economic climate, Sonoma County’s Human
Services Department (HSD) continues to put child and adult
protective services at the very top of its priority list.
This list includes the many income assistance programs,
employment services, foster care, veteran’s services, senior
resources, in-home care referrals, food stamps and other family,
youth and young children’s services.
While this is one of the very worst budget years for all public
agencies and while caseloads “have risen dramatically,” HSD
Director Jo Weber said this week that Sonoma County’s “social
safety net” for the victimized, vulnerable and low income is intact
and making a difference in more lives than ever.
“We have very strong support from our board of supervisors and
it’s made a difference,” said Weber. While some county departments
have faced much deeper budget cuts, Human Services has won extra
funds from one-time federal stimulus money and the supervisors’
decision to “overmatch” some programs where state funds were cut.
However HSD staff has not been spared from the same reduced hours
and limited salary increases that all county employees must
face.
And, the 2010-2011 budget story is not over yet as new and more
severe cuts could still come from the governor and state
legislature.
Last year, the state legislature cut statewide child welfare
funding by $80 million and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is
threatening to cut another $80 million this year.
“It’s unfathomable to talk about the wholesale elimination of
our CalWORKS program or services to our most vulnerable senior
citizens,” said Weber. “In my 30 years, I’ve never seen these kinds
of program cuts.”
Sonoma County is one of several counties that belongs to
regional and statewide consortiums for deliveries of services.
“We have a very challenging mandate to be efficient and to
deliver a very high quality of service,” said Marla Stuart, HSD
director of planning and research. She applauded the many volunteer
and non-profit organizations that support and work with the many
HSD programs.
In the area of child protective services, urgent and adult
protection services alone, the HSD this year will award $127,000 in
contracts for these groups.
One of the lead groups is the YWCA which operates a domestic
violence intervention hotline at (707) 546-1234.
Calls to the HSD Adult Protective Service hotline have gone up
62 percent over the past two years.
“We know the human toll of the economic recession has been
significant,” Weber stated. “We are receiving applications every
day from people who have never before applied for public
assistance.”
The county’s nagging unemployment problem has led to the
heaviest caseloads ever at the department’s CalWORKS and Job Links
employment referral and training programs.
Ironically, child welfare and endangerment cases have not
increased during the recession, and have actually shown a slight
decrease since last year.
“We’re not sure why, but it could be because more parents are
home from work and with their children,” said Stuart. “In any case,
it doesn’t seem to track the economy like our other cases.”
The county’s Child Protective Services operates its own hotline
(707) 565-4304 while a separate Adult Protective Services Hotline
is at (707) 565-5940.
Weber and Stuart urged people to call when they witness, or are
victims of domestic violence. “We are very strict about protecting
clients’ information and confidentiality,” said Stuart.
Domestic violence takes place in good and bad economic times,
just as it takes place in families and households of all levels of
income and education.
Another top priority for HSD is a series of
“self-sufficiency” programs. Besides CalWORKS and other employment
assistance, HSD works with many community partners through the
Workforce Investment Board.
Overall the county’s HSD budget is $176 million for the current
fiscal year, including $24 million from the county’s General Fund.
In all its various agencies, HSD has a staff over 660 people.