REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
March 14, 2023
FROM
JEANY ZEPEDA, Director, Children and Family Services
SUBJECT
Title
Contract with A New Beginning Foster Family Agency for Placement Services for Commercially Sexually Exploited Children
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve Contract with A New Beginning Foster Family Agency to provide placement services for commercially sexually exploited children in an amount not to exceed $366,750 for the contract term of April 1, 2023 through June 30, 2024.
(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
This item will not result in the use of Discretionary Funding (Net County Cost). The total cost of the placement services for commercially sexually exploited children (CSEC) contract will not exceed $366,750 and is funded by the Complex Care Capacity Building State Allocation. Adequate appropriation and revenue have been included in the Human Services Administrative Claim 2022-23 budget and will be included in the 2023-24 recommended budget.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Sexual exploitation of youth has been increasing nationwide over recent years. Youth in the foster care system are at particular risk of becoming sexually exploited due to the abuse they may have endured, trauma they have experienced, and/or placement in foster care itself, specifically in Short-Term Residential Therapeutic Programs (STRTPs). Youth in foster care are vulnerable and are often easily influenced. When they are placed in congregate care, they are often influenced by other youth who reside in that placement, which can lead to recruitment into the commercial sex trade. Additionally, individuals who are involved in activities that sexually exploit youth often target STRTPs to recruit.
Once youth become involved in the CSEC lifestyle and behaviors, it is very hard for them to remove themselves. They are often influenced by outside forces that continue to pull them back into the lifestyle. It is often difficult to find placement for these youth for numerous reasons, including behaviors that derive from having been sexually exploited. CSEC behaviors include substance use, frequent Absences Without Leave (AWOLs), and sexualized behavior.
The recommended contract with A New Beginning Foster Family Agency (FFA) will provide a guarantee of 10 fully licensed CSEC beds for Children and Family Services (CFS) utilization at homes throughout San Bernardino County. A bed hold fee is paid for that guarantee. These beds will be used solely to provide specialized placements for CSEC youth while offering home-based treatment for youth with CSEC behaviors. These foster homes will provide a safe place for CSEC youth to receive needed help with minimal influence from outside sources. Access to foster homes that are trained and specialized in treating youth with CSEC behaviors and needs will increase the County’s ability to effectively provide support to CSEC youth while removing the youth from the CSEC lifestyle.
The initial program term is set at short duration, since this is a new type of placement program for the County and CFS is unsure about the number of actual placements that would be needed. CFS staff made their best estimate of the number of beds they would need for CSEC placement, attempting to balance the need for immediate availability all the time versus the risk and cost of having a surplus of empty beds. The decision was made to procure 10 bed guarantees. CFS will monitor the use of these beds over the initial 15-month term. If it is noted the program is well-used, and the number of beds insufficient, CFS will expedite a procurement for additional bed guarantees.
PROCUREMENT
The County Administrative Office approved and authorized the release of a Request for Proposals (RFP) on August 30, 2022 (RFP No. HS 22-03/ePro Bid No. HSSA22-HSSA-4461) to solicit proposals from interested and qualified agencies to provide CSEC Placement Services countywide for a period through June 30, 2024. The RFP, requesting 10 fully licensed CSEC beds, was publicly advertised through direct mailings to more than 145 community-based organizations, faith-based agencies, service providers, and other interested parties and posted on the County’s Electronic Procurement Network (ePro).
Ten agencies attended the mandatory proposal conference on September 13, 2022. The following two agencies submitted proposals in response to the RFP by the established deadline, met the minimum requirements, and continued in the evaluation process:
|
Agency Name |
Number of Available Beds |
Price When Occupied |
Price When Un-occupied |
|
Koinonia |
Up to two beds by second month; Up to six beds by eighth month |
Intensive Services Foster Care (ISFC) Rate plus $2,000 per bed |
$500 per bed plus $2,426 per month - occupied or full |
|
A New Beginning Foster Family Agency |
Up to 20 |
ISFC Rate (paid by Foster Care) |
$2,445 |
The evaluation committee, comprised of five individuals with representation from CFS, Human Services (HS) Auditing Division, HS Program Development Division, and Probation reviewed and evaluated the proposals based on the criteria referenced in the RFP. The criteria included: cost, experience and qualifications, capacity, and technical/administrative capability.
Although cost was a consideration in the evaluation process, it was not the primary consideration. Utilizing the above criteria, the evaluation committee determined that A New Beginning FFA’s proposal indicated they would provide the most adequate and appropriate services. Based on the committee’s evaluation and resulting contract negotiations, A New Beginning FFA is recommended for contract award as their proposal best meets the needs of the County with respect to CSEC Placement Services.
Agencies not recommended for contract award were notified by mail and advised they were able to submit a formal written protest to the HS Contracts Unit based on the criteria in the RFP. No written protests were received.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by Human Services Contracts (Patty Steven, Contracts Manager, 388-0241) on January 30, 2023; County Counsel (Kaleigh Ragon, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on February 6, 2023; Purchasing (Bruce Cole, Supervising Buyer, 387-2148) on February 21, 2023; Finance (John Hallen, Administrative Analyst III, 388-0208) on February 21, 2023; and County Finance and Administration (Cheryl Adams, Deputy Executive Officer, 388-0238) on February 27, 2023.