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Health and Human Services Agency, Social Services Division, recommending the Board consider the following:
1) Adopt Resolution 232-2014 amending the Authorized Personnel Allocation Resolution for the Health and Human Services Agency to add 1.0 FTE Social Worker I/II/III/IV allocation for Social Services Child Protective Services with no impact to Net County Cost.
FUNDING: Federal, State and County required match utilizing Realignment.
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Fiscal Impact/Change to Net County Cost
There is no change in Net County Cost associated with this item. The funds for the allocation have been included in the FY 2014-15 budget and will be included in future budgets.
Background
HHSA, Child Protective Services (CPS) strives to ensure safe, permanent and nurturing families for children by protecting them from abuse and neglect while attempting to preserve the family unit through regular mandated face to face visits and crisis response. CPS helps prevent further harm to children from intentional physical or mental injury, sexual abuse, exploitation or neglect by a person responsible for a child's health or welfare. CPS also helps protect children who have no parent, guardian, or custodian to provide care and supervision, or whose parents, guardians or custodian are unable to provide for the care or supervision and lack an appropriate alternative child care arrangement.
In South Lake Tahoe (SLT), CPS has high client caseloads assigned to Social Workers and many of these require mandated out-of-area travel due to a lack of foster homes and services providers to the region. In order to meet State mandates, CPS Social Workers are required to conduct face to face visits with these children on a monthly basis. Over the last three years, the total number of open cases and child abuse or neglect investigations in the SLT region averaged approximately 30 cases per Social Worker, compared to an average of 22 cases per Social Worker on the West Slope for the same time peri...
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