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Program 060

DSHS - Economic Services

Recommendation Summary

Dollars in Thousands

																								FY 97 FTEs											General Fund-State					Other Funds			Total Funds
1995-97 Expenditure Authority																						3,519.7												990,799					838,164			1,828,963
Supplemental Changes
Welfare Reform Info System Impacts																																		1,361					1,364			2,725
ACES Cost Recovery																						7.0												2,215					1,812			4,027
SSPS Year 2000 Critical Maintenance																																		281					119			400
Financial Services Staff/Caseload																						(17.0)												(484)					(383)			(867)
Social Service Staff																						.7												229					79			308
GA-U for New Aliens																						.6												458					16			474
Eliminate Drug & Alcohol																						13.8												7,750					391			8,141
$50 Pass-Through																																		4,399					(4,399)
Grant Forecast																																		(12,317)					(19,910)			(32,227)
SSI State Supplement																																		(1,261)								(1,261)
Food Stamp Work Requirements																						12.5												1,337					1,139			2,476
Naturalization Assistance																																		200								200
Refine Child Care System																						.5												16					15			31
Temporary Assistance Transfer																																		(8,528)					8,528
Subtotal - Supplemental Changes																						18.1												(4,344)					(11,229)			(15,573)
Total Proposed Budget																						3,537.8												986,455					826,935			1,813,390
Difference																						18.1												(4,344)					(11,229)			(15,573)
Percent Change from Current Biennium																						.5%												(.4)%					(1.3)%			(.9)%

Supplemental Changes

Welfare Reform Info System Impacts
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act (H.R.3734) has significant impacts on the Department's information systems. Modifications must be made to the existing information systems to accommodate changes in eligibility, enhanced tracking requirements, and expanded reporting requirements. The systems affected include the Automated Client Eligibility System (ACES), the Case and Management Information System (CAMIS), the Interactive Terminal Information System (ITIS), the Financial Super System (FSS), and the Economic Services Administration Child Care System (ESA Child Care). (General Fund-State, General Fund-Federal)
ACES Cost Recovery
This item funds additional Automated Client Eligibility System (ACES) costs associated with system operation and additional contractor and state staff required to reduce problem and change request response times. The original projections in the Advanced Planning Document (APD) did not adequately maintain ACES during the conversion period. (General Fund-State, General Fund-Federal)
SSPS Year 2000 Critical Maintenance
Funding is provided for modification of the Agency's Social Service Payment System (SSPS)-Phase 1 to ensure correct date functioning through and beyond the Year 2000. This application provides authorization and payment calculation for services performed for clients, and collects social service client data required for state and federal reports. (General Fund- State, General Fund- Federal)
Financial Services Staff/Caseload
Staff and funding are adjusted to reflect the workload decrease anticipated as a result of the caseload decline projected in the November 1996 forecast. (General Fund-State, General Fund-Federal)
Social Service Staff
Staff and funding are adjusted to reflect the workload increase anticipated as a result of the additional child care caseload projected in the November 1996 forecast. (General Fund-State, General Fund-Federal)
GA-U for New Aliens
Under the new federal welfare legislation, newly-arriving legal immigrants who apply for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits after August 22, 1996 (with limited exceptions), will no longer be eligible for SSI. Under current state law, the state must provide General Assistance-Unemployable (GA-U) benefits, both cash and medical assistance, to these legal immigrants. (General Fund-State, General Fund-Federal)
Eliminate Drug & Alcohol
Public Law 104-121 will terminate approximately 2,305 individuals currently receiving federal disability benefits and tagged as drug addiction and alcoholism cases on January 1, 1997. The Economic Services Administration has initiated a three-tiered response to address the federal action: 1) A six month Supplemental Security Income (SSI) reapplication and appeal process (Clearinghouse Project) to get clients back into the federal benefit system; 2) Increase funding for the General Assistance-Unemployable (GA-U) program to cover the individuals who will no longer receive their SSI benefits; and 3) Increase field office staffing to handle the additional workload. (General Fund-State, General Fund-Federal)
$50 Pass-Through
Under the federal welfare legislation, the federal government will no longer participate in the cost of the pass-through of the first $50 of any child support paid in the month in which it is due to the client. Historically, funding for the pass-through has been shared between the state and the federal government. This item picks up the federal share of the pass-through and continues the current program as mandated by state law. (General Fund-State, General Fund-Federal)
Grant Forecast
Funding is provided for the cost of changes in the forecasted caseload in grant programs as of November 1996. The total Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) caseload is projected to decline approximately 1.7 percent from Fiscal Year 1996 to Fiscal Year 1997. (General Fund-State, General Fund-Federal)
SSI State Supplement
With the many changes in Supplemental Security Income (SSI) eligibility at the federal level, the caseload for SSI will decline dramatically beginning in January 1997. With this in mind, the decision was made to return to a standard payment level method of paying SSI State Supplement beginning on January 1, 1997. This item reflects the projected savings as a result.
Food Stamp Work Requirements
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (federal welfare legislation) requires all able-bodied adults without dependents, between the ages of 18 and 50 years old, to participate in a state approved employment program if they want to maintain eligibility for food stamps beyond 3 months out of 36 months. Workfare coordination will be contracted to community organizations. (General Fund-State, General Fund-Federal)
Naturalization Assistance
This item provides funding to assist legal immigrants initiate the citizenship process that will aid them to retain or regain their Supplemental Security Income (SSI) as early as possible. The costs of naturalization include a fee for community based organizations to hold ten week bilingual citizenship training classes, plus application fees charged by the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS).
Refine Child Care System
Funds are provided to refine the automated computer system to authorize child care payments, reduce authorization and payment errors, save staff time and create a seamless child care program. (General Fund-State, General Fund-Federal)
Temporary Assistance Transfer
With the implementation of the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) block grant, additional work and time limit requirements will be placed on families served by the federal funding. These additional requirements will be harder to track at the client level in the Division of Children and Family Services. This item transfers the TANF federal funding from the Division of Children and Family Services to Economic Services. The same amount of state funding is then transferred out of Economic Services and placed in the Division of Children and Family Services. (General Fund-State, General Fund-Federal)