REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
December 3, 2024
FROM
JEANY ZEPEDA, Director, Children and Family Services
SUBJECT
Title
Contracts for Clinical Licensure Supervision Program Services
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve Contracts with the following agencies and individuals to provide Clinical Licensure Supervision Program services, on a fee-for-service basis, in the aggregate amount not to exceed $500,000 annually, for the total contract period of January 1, 2025, through December 31, 2030:
1. Annette Weathington (Psychotherapy Plus)
2. Bittersweet Encounters
3. Linda Villanueva
4. Nosheen Samuel
5. Olivia Sevilla, LCSW
6. True Escape Marriage and Family Therapy
(Presenter: Jeany Zepeda, Director, 387-2792)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
Pursue County Goals and Objectives by Working with Other Agencies and Stakeholders.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not require additional Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The total cost of the contracts listed in the Recommendation (Contracts) will not exceed an aggregate amount of $2,500,000 for the five-year period of January 1, 2025, through December 31, 2030, and will be funded 100% by the Child Welfare Services allocation, of which 40% is Federal and State funded ($1,000,000) and 60% is County Local Share ($1,500,000), a blend of Realignment and Net County Cost that is determined annually. Adequate appropriation and revenue have been included in the Human Services Administrative Claim 2024-25 recommended budget and will be included in future recommended budgets.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSW), Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists (LMFT), and Licensed Professional Clinical Counselors (LPCC) play a vital role in assisting the Children and Family Services (CFS) meet goals to prevent and treat child abuse and neglect through family centered programs designed to strengthen and preserve families to ensure County children have access to safe and permanent homes.
California laws governing LCSW, LMFT, and LPCC licensure require registered applicants to secure a minimum number of post-degree clinical supervision experience hours prior to qualifying for clinical licensure. CFS develops a pool of therapists by offering CFS social workers the opportunity to work toward clinical licensure through the Clinical Licensure Supervision Program (CLSP). CFS has maintained contracts for CLSP services since 1999.
Through CLSP, CFS contracts with private LCSWs and LMFTs to supervise the clinical hours of social workers who register with the California Board of Behavioral Science as licensee applicants. Private LCSWs and LMFTs provide close ongoing supervision to ensure applicants obtain the required face-to-face and group clinical psychosocial diagnosis, assessment, treatment, psychotherapy, client centered advocacy, consultation, evaluation, and research hours. Private LCSWs and LMFTs certify that applicants adhere to and comply with pertinent laws, rules, and regulations.
Each Contract is written in an amount not to exceed $416,667 for the five-year contract period. Combined spending will not exceed $500,000 annually. The Contracts are written in this manner to establish a Board of Supervisors’ approved list of qualified vendors and allow CFS the flexibility of selecting the vendor that best meets County and client service needs.
The Contracts do not include a guaranteed minimum or maximum number of referrals, and contractors will be paid on a fee-for-service basis. The Contracts may be terminated by the County with 30 days written notice to the contractor. County staff will monitor contractor invoices at both the individual and aggregate levels to ensure total payments do not exceed the authorized amounts.
Contractor performance will be monitored by reviewing monthly reports and conducting an annual site visit by County staff to ensure compliance with the administrative, program, and fiscal terms and conditions of the contract.
PROCUREMENT
The County Administrative Office approved and authorized the release of Request for Proposals (RFP) No. HSSA24-CFS-5193 with the Purchasing Department (Purchasing) on May 27, 2024, to solicit proposals from interested and qualified agencies to provide CLSP services to CFS social worker staff for a period of five years. The RFP was posted to the County’s Electronic Procurement Network (ePro).
Six proposals were received by the established deadline in response to the RFP. Proposals from the six agencies listed below met the minimum requirements and continued through the evaluation process.
|
Proposer Name |
Location |
|
Bittersweet Encounters |
Rancho Cucamonga, CA |
|
Linda Villanueva |
Los Angeles, CA |
|
Olivia Sevilla, LCSW |
Ontario, CA |
|
NoSheen Samuel |
Redlands, CA |
|
True Escape Marriage and Family Therapy |
Victorville, CA |
|
Annette Weathington (Psychotherapy Plus) |
San Bernardino, CA |
The evaluation panel, with representation from different divisions of HS, reviewed and evaluated the proposals based on the criteria listed in the RFP. The criteria included: qualifications and experience, financial review, technical review, and references.
Based on the evaluation criteria, the evaluation panel determined that all six vendors best met the needs of the County. Award letters were sent to all responsible and responsive proposers on August 20, 2024.
Purchasing supports this competitive procurement based on the formal solicitation described above.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by Human Services Contracts (Patty Steven, Contracts Manager, 388-0241) on August 23, 2024; County Counsel (Daniella Hernandez, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on October 10, 2024; Purchasing (Ariel Gill, Supervising Buyer, 387-2070) on October 22, 2024; Finance (John Hallen, Administrative Analyst, 388-0208) on November 13, 2024; and County Finance and Administration (Cheryl Adams, Deputy Executive Officer, 388-0332) on November 14, 2024.