Children and Family Services, Office of

Agency Web Site: http://www.ocfs.state.ny.us/main/

Mission

The Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) serves New York's public by promoting the safety, permanency and well-being of our children, families and communities. OCFS achieves results by setting and enforcing policies, building partnerships, and funding and providing quality services.

Budget Highlights

The Executive Budget recommends $3.8 billion for the Office. This is an increase of $38.5 million from the 2011-12 budget. The increase primarily reflects the net impact of the following actions: increased General Fund support for child care to maintain the current TANF and General Fund levels; the elimination of 2012-13 COLAs and trends; closing/downsizing youth facilities; and new funding for a new 24-hour hotline to report abuse and neglect of vulnerable adults and children.

The Executive Budget recommends a workforce of 3,334 FTEs for the Department. This is an increase of 191 FTEs from the 2011-12 budget. The increase primarily reflects the net impact of the following actions: positions to improve mental health and direct care services to youth in OCFS facilities consistent with a Department of Justice settlement agreement; closing and downsizing of youth facilities and associated programming as part of a reform initiative that would allow New York City to operate a juvenile justice system; and, staff for a new 24-hour hotline to report allegations of abuse and neglect of vulnerable adults and children.

Major budget actions include:

• Increasing General Fund support for child care by $93 million to continue the current level of TANF and General Fund support.
• Providing the final year of bond support to complete CONNECTIONS Modernization, which will improve the child welfare system of record.
• Establishing a new Public/Private Partnership Pilot Program. This program would be a public-private partnership with the state contribution reflecting no more than 65 percent of program costs.
• Reforming the Juvenile Justice System by closing costly State facilities and providing more appropriate placements and services to youth from New York City within New York City-based facilities. In 2012-13 the reform would provide residential and community based services to youth that would otherwise be in OCFS non-secure facilities. The reform would expand in 2013-14 to include New York City youth that would otherwise be in OCFS limited-secure facilities. This reform would result in an estimated net cost of $3 million in 2012-13, but would result in estimated net financial plan savings of $4.4 million when fully implemented in 2014-15.
• Implementing a new 24-hour hotline to report allegations of abuse and neglect of persons involved in programs licensed or certified by the Office of Mental Health, the Office for Persons with Developmental Disabilities, the Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services, the Office of Children and Family Services, the Department of Health and the State Education Department . This reflects recommendations from the preliminary report of the Governor’s Special Advisor on Vulnerable Persons, which is expected to be released early in 2012. ($15 million in 2012-13; $30 million in 2013-14)
• Eliminating 2012-13 Cost of Living Adjustments (COLAs) and trends to providers and authorizing COLAs and trends based on performance and limits on administrative expenses beginning in 2013-14.
• Reducing State operations costs through shared services and other efficiencies.
• Reauthorizing the current child welfare financing structure for a five year period. This would maintain current State funding shares for adoption and child welfare services and the structure of the Foster Care Block Grant. Funding for kinship guardianship assistance would continue through the Foster Care Block Grant.

For more information on this agency's budget recommendations located in the Executive Budget Briefing Book, click on the following link:

Briefing Book – Human Services (PDF)

Note: Most recent estimates as of 1/17/2012

Click for additional detailed appropriation tables