Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
35 <br /> <br />will be engaging with the community for discussion and planning on how the community can <br />improve its overall impact on families, particularly those most at risk for child abuse or neglect. <br /> <br />Nancy Coston said some of the goals outlined in the item are very difficult to meet. She <br />said there is a timeframe in which the federal government wants to see these goals <br />accomplished, but the State is working with the County to make the process manageable and <br />more successful. She said negotiations are ongoing, and most counties are willing to sign the <br />MOU and move forward from there. She said nothing in the MOU is new, but it has a tone that <br />is difficult for those managing social services departments. <br />Janet Sparks, Child Support Services, said all the items in the MOU are things they want <br />to do, but are mandated in such as way that it feels punitive. She said all staff will do the best <br />they can for children regardless. <br />Commissioner McKee said he is the DSS Board Representative, and he said the <br />processes and challenges their staff faces are tremendous. He said he views this MOU as <br />medicine he does not want to take, and is unsure that it will cure him. He said he has extreme <br />reservations that the Department cannot meet these parameters, but he does not see how the <br />Department can avoid signing the MOU. He said there are efforts underway to amend this <br />going forward. <br />Commissioner Jacobs said he sent an email John Roberts asking if the BOCC could <br />write an accompanying letter that expresses concern over the MOU, and its onerous nature. He <br />suggested the following: <br />“The seemingly punitive mandate includes goals that our conscientious and caring staff <br />identify as seemingly difficult to meet despite their best efforts.” And to point out that 2/3 of the <br />counties across the State are going to have difficulty meeting those goals. <br />Nancy Coston said she believes that no county can meet all of these requirements, and <br />Orange County performs well in comparison to other counties; so if Orange County finds these <br />goals difficult to meet, other counties certainly will. She said so many variables affect their <br />work, but are completely out of their control: economy, court time, etc. <br />Nancy Coston said another piece is that there is an issue with the State not yet having <br />valid data, and some of the measures cannot be given benchmarks yet. She said some of the <br />measures have never been put in place, so some things still need to be put in place for the next <br />six months, with valid data not being available until January 2019. <br />Commissioner Jacobs suggested that these two department heads write a letter to <br />accompany the BOCC’s vote of approval. <br />Chair Dorosin clarified that the targets are ones that the DSS already has in place. <br />Nancy Coston said the items in the MOU, before the BOCC, are the federal <br />requirements. She said North Carolina is a corrective action plan with the federal government <br />for child welfare, and has been for years, as are many other states. She said when a state is in <br />corrective action, there are overarching goals, but specific targets are created each year to <br />move the state up. She said the target number is less than the federal requirement, and this is <br />what the departments are measured against, once these targets are established with each <br />county. She said some counties may get specialized targets as well. <br />Chair Dorosin asked if the federal targets are unchanged. <br />Nancy Coston said that is correct. She said the document was much longer, but the <br />State has cut many of the performance measures due to the lack of valid data. <br />Commissioner Rich asked if the targets will be the same for all counties across the <br />State. <br />Nancy Coston said child support is already individualized, but DSS’s are not. She said if <br />a county goes under corrective action then it may receive individualized targets. She said the <br />federal requirements are very tough, and have been so for 15 years. <br />Janet Sparks said child support has had these measures for years, but does not have <br />any input in what makes up the child support services’ measures.