REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
December 5, 2023
FROM
LUTHER SNOKE, Chief Executive Officer, County Administrative Office
SUBJECT
Title
Adopt a Resolution Supporting the Need for a Transitional Placement Family Campus for Youth in Foster Care and Their Families
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Adopt Resolution supporting the need for a San Bernardino County Family Campus that will serve as a transitional living facility to provide housing and services for foster children and youth with complex needs and their families.
(Presenter: Brad Jensen, Director of Legislative Affairs, 387-4821)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Operate in a Fiscally-Responsible and Business-Like Manner.
Ensure Development of a Well-Planned, Balanced, and Sustainable County.
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 result in the use of Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost) at this time. If the resolution is approved, the County Administrative Office (CAO) will work to secure $40 million in one-time State General Funds in 2024-25 to fund the construction cost to build the San Bernardino County Family Campus (Family Campus). If funding is obtained, staff will return to the Board of Supervisors (Board) to accept the funding and obtain further direction.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Continuum of Care Reform (CCR) and the Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA) are significantly changing the child welfare landscape in California and at the local level. The system reform mandates have created complex challenges, while presenting tremendous funding opportunities for the County to provide quality therapeutic residential services.
CCR is designed to ensure that foster children primarily live in family-based care with congregate care (formerly known as group homes) only used as a short-term therapeutic intervention. While FFPSA promotes prevention of child maltreatment incidences, it also sets higher eligibility and program quality standards for residential care for youth with complex needs.
The County is facing a crisis due to a lack of suitable congregate care beds and small family home placement settings for the highest needs children. Efforts to deinstitutionalize foster care have significantly reduced placement capacity and has made older children and those with higher levels of need difficult to place in family-based care. Thus, creating a critical need for a transitional Family Campus that provides appropriate transitional housing and the higher-quality services required by FFPSA for foster children with complex needs.
The Family Campus will be an unlocked supportive living facility administered by the County’s Department of Children and Family Services. It will feature substance use disorder treatment for mothers with young children for up to 18 months, allowing families to remain intact while mothers undergo treatment and avoiding the placement of children into the foster care system. It will also provide intensive care services for foster youth with complex needs, a short-term behavioral health treatment program for foster youth, and a transitional housing program for former foster youth as they transition into adulthood.
Approval of the recommended Resolution will assist in addressing the lack of transitional placement for the foster children and youth with complex needs by demonstrating Board support for a Family Campus and the goal of obtaining State funding for its construction.
PROCUREMENT
Not Applicable.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Julie Surber, Principal Assistant County Counsel, 387-5455) on October 18, 2023; Human Services (Jeany Zepeda, Director, 387-2792) on October 18, 2023; Finance (Erika Rodarte and John Hallen, Administrative Analysts, 387-4919) on October 25, 2023; and County Finance and Administration (Robert Saldana, Deputy Executive Officer, 387-5423) on November 6, 2023.