TO: Board of Supervisors
FROM: Jennifer Yasumoto, Director of Health and Human Services Agency
REPORT BY: Jennifer Ivancie, Staff Services Analyst I
SUBJECT: Agreement No. 230363B with Marin County (Youth Acceptance Project)
RECOMMENDATION
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Director of Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) requests approval of and authorization for the Chair to sign Agreement No. 230363B with Marin County for a contract maximum of $41,046 for the term of April 1, 2023 through June 30, 2024, to provide services through Family Builders, Inc., and the Youth Acceptance Project (YAP) to assist lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, and more (LGBTQ+) children/youth and their families with preservation or reunification.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Approval of today’s action will formalize an agreement between Napa County and Marin County to share the services and costs of a YAP social worker. The following counties are sharing these services: Napa, Marin, Solano, and Sonoma; Marin County will serve as the lead agency. A designated YAP social worker will provide technical assistance to counties to improve the care and outcomes for LGBTQ+ and gender expansive children/youth in foster care.
FISCAL & STRATEGIC PLAN IMPACT
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Is there a Fiscal Impact? |
Yes |
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Is it currently budgeted? |
Yes |
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Where is it budgeted? |
Health and Human Services Agency Child Welfare Services |
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Is it Mandatory or Discretionary? |
Discretionary |
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Discretionary Justification: |
YAP will provide CWS with the needed support, training, and consultation to serve LGBTQ+ children/youth and their family. |
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Is the general fund affected? |
No |
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Future fiscal impact: |
Appropriations have been included in the approved Fiscal Year 2022-2023 budget and future fiscal years will be budgeted accordingly. |
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Consequences if not approved: |
If not approved, there would be no supportive services from YAP for LGBTQ+ children/youth and their families in Napa County. |
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County Strategic Plan pillar addressed: |
Collaborative and Engaged Community |
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION: The proposed action is not a project as defined by 14 California Code of Regulations 15378 (State CEQA Guidelines) and therefore CEQA is not applicable.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
Family Builders’ YAP is designed to work with families who have children/youth already in, or at risk of entering, the child welfare system due to family stress resulting from their child’s sexual orientation, gender identity or expression (SOGIE). The project utilizes family engagement services through a social worker to keep children/youth with their families and reunify them when child welfare involvement is related to their SOGIE.
Family Builders previously provided this service through California Department of Social Services (CDSS), free of charge, however, CDSS stopped providing these services in September 2022. HHSA’s Child Welfare Services (CWS) used the YAP services in the trial period twice and found them to be very effective in working with LGBTQ+ children/youth and their families.
This agreement, in which the costs are split with four neighboring counties based on prior usage ratios, is the most efficient use of funds to support these services. Obtaining access to the YAP Social Worker would have been much more costly for Napa County to pursue on its own.
YAP has a specialty focus and will be providing training and support to child welfare social workers. YAP’s intervention serves as a family preservation or reunification tool, assisting families who are struggling with the sexual orientation, gender identify/expression of their child. YAP services are designed to keep LGBTQ+ children/youth safe in their family homes and to advocate for safe and equitable permanency of LGBTQ+ children/youth when reunification is not possible. The program is designed to reduce the time that children spend in foster care and reunite children with their families.