Human Services Committee

September 13, 2007 at 8:30 am

           Draft Minutes

 

Committee Present: Sandy Price, Chairperson; Carol Tytler, Vice Chairperson, Merwin Armstrong,  Mike McKee, Don Spaulding, John Troy – Absent:  Kay Breed

Others Present:  Marilyn Brown, Scott Schrader, Angie Wyatt, Kristen Monroe, Carol Deloff, Judy Davison, Robin Sandwick, Manny Lann, Brittany Rood, Mary Ellen Neville, Amy Buggs, Corey Preston

The meeting was called to order at 8:30a.m. by Chairperson Sandy Price

MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE AUGUST 9, 2007 MINUTES WAS MADE BY MR. TROY – 2^ND BY MR. SPAULDING -  ALL PRESENT VOTING IN FAVOR – MINUTES APPROVED

Suggested Legislative Review:

E         - Accept Grant/Amend Budget – Department of E & T Administration-Disability Program Navigator

-         DSS:  Both Budget Transfers

-         DSS:  Statewide Welfare Management System

RESOLUTIONS:

Area Agency on Aging

1. Amend Budget Area Agency on Aging (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) – MOTION MADE BY MR. TROY – 2^ND BY MR. MCKEE – ALL PRESENT VOTING IN FAVOR – MOTION PASSES

Discussion:  Office of the Aging Director, Ms. Deloff advised the Committee that these funds are a cost of leaving increase.  They are going to replace a dishwasher and a refrigerator with some of the funds.

2.       Accept Bids/Authorize Purchase Area Agency on Aging/Nutrition Miscellaneous Groceries and Frozen  Foods – MOTION MADE BY MR. MCKEE – 2^ND BY MR. TROY – ALL PRESENT VOTING IN FAVOR – MOTION PASSES

Discussion:  Ms. Deloff explained that these are line item bids (i.e. corn may cost less from one company and the same company may have peas that would cost less).  Mr. McKee inquired if the Office of the Aging takes advantage of the Farmer’s Market.  Ms. Deloff said that they are unable to use the Farmer’s Market because there is no reimbursement for it.

Employment & Training

3. Year Round Youth Funds to provide WIA services in Cortland County – MOTION BY MR. SPAULDING – 2^ND BY MR. TROY – ALL PRESENT VOTING IN FAVOR – MOTION PASSES

Discussion:  Ms. Sandwick advised the Committee that there are no account numbers in the resolution because Employment & Training does not operate through the County’s budget system.

4. Accept Grant/Amend Budget Department of E & T Administration

Disability Program Navigator – MOTION BY MR. ARMSTRONG  – 2^ND BY MR. TROY  -  

ALL PRESENT VOTING IN FAVOR – MOTION PASSES

Discussion:  These funds are for the Disability Program Navigator for the One-Stop Centers in Cayuga County and Cortland County.  These funds cannot be used for overhead costs.  The E & T Administration Subcontracts with the Unity House in Ithaca and the J.M. Murray Center in Cortland to provide personnel for this program.

Social Services

5. Amend Budget (Transfer) – MOTION  BY MR. TROY – 2^ND BY MR. SPAULDING – ALL PRESENT VOTING IN FAVOR – MOTION PASSES

Discussion:  Ms. Monroe, DSS Commissioner explained that there was an unanticipated increase in overtime costs and less expenditures in regular payroll due to vacancies.

6. Amend Budget (Transfer) – MOTION BY MR. MCKEE – 2^ND BY MR. ARMSTRONG – ALL PRESENT VOTING IN FAVOR – MOTION PASSES

Discussion:  Ms. Monroe advised the Committee that the childcare caseload is heavy.  Mr. McKee inquired about the Juvenile Delinquent account being low.  Ms. Monroe said that the detention costs are running lower than last year.  Ms. Monroe provided a Revenue Transfer Analysis.

DISCUSSION/ PRESENTATIONS:

Power Point Presentation Youth Program- Employment and Training – A PowerPoint presentation on Summer Youth Employment Program was created and presented by youth participant Brittany Rood.  Ms. Rood and Ms. Buggs provided a hard copy of the presentation to the Committee and all others who were present.

Records Imaging Project- Social Services – Ms. Monroe and Ms. Neville provided a handout detailing the SWMS Program (Statewide Welfare Management System).  Summary of the handout is as follows:

√          The project entails the development and implementation of a centralized repository for the electronic storage and computerized access to official documents for:

• Temporary Assistance
• Food Stamps
• Medicaid
• Homer Energy Assistance Program (HEAP)
• Child Care

√          It provides local Social Services personnel throughout the State real-time, electronic access to official documents through a single, easy-to-use computer user interface.

√          A County should participate as a user because:

• Focus on customers issues and care by reducing time spent on document handling and filing.  Also eliminates duplicate submission of client documents to the district.
• With electronic access to documents, users can significantly reduce the amount of time spent looking for documents.
• Documents can be accessed simultaneously, eliminating waiting time for information.
• Welfare Management System indicators will alert users to image availability.
• Document retrieval with flexible parameters allows users to spend less time searching for documents.
• Cross District Inquiry allows customer service to be performed sooner due to availability of documents.
• Takes advantage of economies of scale for scanning services, image transmission and storage.
• Reduces the need for and the costs associated with retention of paper documents.
• Documents will be picked up weekly at the LSSD facilities, transported to the processing center for scanning.  Images will be available in 4 business days.
• Tracking and logging allows users to know where their documents are at every step in the process.
• Documents will be safe from unauthorized access.
• A permanent, secure back up for case documents.

√          New York State will provide:

• Cost of application development and all infrastructure costs for the lifetime of the project which includes all maintenance and support of software licenses
• Hardware at the State Data Center
• If the network between the State Data Center and the County network is found to be insufficient to allow for image retrieval, the State will support bandwidth upgrades
• Hot Back-up Site

√            Incentives for Participation in Phase 1:

• No costs per page associated with imaging with imaging documents (active and denials) for 12 months day forward
• No costs associated with 3 months worth of denials prior to the date of implementation

• No costs associated with for 12 months worth of documents in active case records prior to date of implementation (back file)
• For DSS Departments that are operating independent indexing/scanning and choose to participate in the Statewide I/EDR (Imaging/Enterprise Document Repository), the State will pay for conversion software to support electronic loading of documents to the I/EDR

√          Other Advantages:

• Less time searching for documents
• Shedding costs will decrease
• Approximately 60 file cabinets will be eliminated
• Decrease in staff time
• Decrease in processing time
• Quicker storage

Mr. McKee inquired if this system checks for fraud.  Ms. Monroe and Ms. Neville indicated that they are presently fingerprinting everyone to see if they have an open case in another county or state.  Mr. McKee further inquired if there is anything negative about this system.  Ms. Monroe indicated that initially the staff will be pulling records and more printers will come from the state.  Ms. Neville indicated that there is some staff resistance because they are looking at it as more work.  Ms. Tytler asked if they could use volunteers to remove staples and paper clips such as RSVP volunteers or she indicated that in Syracuse they use visually impaired people to do this sort of work.  They cannot use volunteers because of the confidential nature of the documents.

Departmental Reports

Youth Bureau:  Youth Bureau Director, Mr. Lann indicated that he has an Intern who is working to set up a conference for kids who do not want to continue their education beyond high school.  Mr. Lann advised that Committee that the PINS (Persons in need of Supervision) meeting is today in room 202 at 10:00a.m.

E & T Grant Administration:  Grant Administration Director, Mr. Davison had provided the Committee with a Department Quarterly Report.  She further advised the Committee that the lease agreement with the State to lease the offices at 99 Main Street for the One Stop Career Center will be expiring and that the State will start going to a month-to-month lease.  The State wants the County to take over the lease.  Ms. Davison indicated that E & T Grant Administration has 2 pools of money for technical up-grades in the One Stop Career Center and for marketing materials.

Social Services:  Ms. Monroe advised the Committee that the Child Protective Services Unit has 77 open cases, which is a substantial decrease from last year, which were 270 cases.  They have met and will be meeting again with the private group that would like health insurance for all the children in the County.  Ms. Monroe indicated that the State was going to increase the eligibility of the Child Health Plus but the Federal Government wouldn’t go along with it.  Ms. Sandwick advised the Committee that they have someone in their office once a week for Child Health Plus enrollment.

Area Agency on Aging:  Ms. Deloff advised that Committee of the upcoming Enrichment Day being held on October 12, 2007.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:10a.m.

Minutes taken and prepared by Angie Wyatt, Secretary to the County Administrator