OFFICE OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES

Agency Mission

The Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) was created pursuant to Chapter 436 of the Laws of 1997. It was reconstituted from the former Department of Social Services (DSS), along with the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance. OCFS administers an array of child welfare programs, including child protective, preventive, foster care and adoption services, child care programs and adolescent pregnancy prevention programs. The agency also administers domestic violence programs, adult services programs, and services to the blind and visually handicapped, as well as the operation of delinquency prevention programs and juvenile justice facilities and programs. Among its primary objectives is the provision of a system of support to help families to achieve and to maintain self-sufficiency in order to provide children with safe, permanent homes.

Year-to-Year Change

The Executive's proposed State Fiscal year (SFY) 1999-2000 total All Funds appropriation for OCFS is $3,490,925,900, an increase of $540,871,399, or 18 percent, from SFY 1998-99. On an All Funds basis, the Executive's proposed State Operations appropriation total of $458,093,000 represents an increase of $87,066,000, or 23 percent. Aid to Localities appropriations on an All Funds basis increased by $381,955,399, or 15 percent, to a total of $2,945,883,900. Capital Projects funding of $86,950,000, proposed by the Executive for SFY 1999-2000, reflects an increase of $71,850,000, or 476 percent.

Legislative Changes

Legislative Proposals

Child Care

Child care that is safe, reliable, affordable, and helps children to develop and to learn is essential in the lives of working families. As child care is both a major concern and expense for working families, improving the affordability, accessibility, and quality of child care are goals of the Assembly. In SFY 1999-2000, the Assembly proposes $100,000,000 in additional funding for child care to be transferred to the Child Care Block Grant within the Office of Children and Family Services from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Block Grant in the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance. These funds will support additional low-income child care subsidies for families with incomes at or below 250 percent of the Federal poverty level, child care market rate enhancements and child care staff professional development. In addition, the Assembly proposes a Child Care Facilities Program for the construction, expansion, and renovation of child care centers in geographic areas with demonstrated child care need.

Family and Children's Services Block Grant

The Assembly supports the expiration of the Family and Children's Services Block Grant, effective October 1, 1999. The Assembly proposes a return to a claiming system of reimbursement for child welfare services in which the State will share equally in foster care and will provide an enhanced reimbursement for preventive services.

Achieving Permanency for Children

Providing the support necessary to achieve permanency for children is a major priority for the Assembly. The required support ranges from identifying and responding to instances of child abuse and neglect, to providing family preservation services, improving the quality of foster care, and maximizing adoption opportunities for those children who are unable to return to their biological parents.

The Assembly supports funding in SFY 1999-2000 for child advocacy centers to insure that multidisciplinary investigation teams are available across the State to respond effectively to victims of child abuse and neglect. The Assembly also supports technical assistance and start-up funding for minority foster care and adoption agencies, as well as funding for county and not-for-profit agency caseworker education and training. The Assembly also proposes additional funding for home visiting and foster care prevention services, as well as funding for the William B. Hoyt Memorial Children and Family Trust Fund, foster care rent subsidies, and settlement house programs.

Delinquency Prevention

The Assembly provides additional funding for juvenile delinquency prevention programs to prevent juvenile crime and to provide services to at-risk youth. Additional funding is also proposed for the provision of alcohol and substance abuse after-care treatment to youth who are discharged from residential facilities to ensure their continued recovery and to prevent relapse.