TNOYS ED Testifies before House State Affairs Committee in Opposition to HB2637

 April 5, 2010

Greetings Chairman Cook, members of the State Affairs Committee;

My name is Theresa Tod; I’m testifying on behalf of the Texas Network of Youth Services, a statewide association that supports services to vulnerable children and youth in Texas.  I’m testifying in opposition to HB 2637.

Let me start by making clear that I’m not opposed to the intent of this bill; what I am opposed to is that this bill changes the Family Code to take funding currently committed, by law and by intent, toward child abuse and neglect prevention.  The “Children’s Trust Fund” as it is known, was established in the late 80’s or early 90’s specifically to create a dedicated fund that would be used, in perpetuity, to support child abuse prevention.  As the House budget is currently laid out, these funds support several programs in the Prevention and Early Intervention Division of the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) – namely STAR, CYD (Community Youth Development) and Other At-Risk Prevention Support; some other prevention programs currently in place are eliminated entirely in this budget.  I’ll focus on the STAR Program, as it receives the bulk of the funds that would be diverted by HB 2637.

The STAR Program currently serves all 254 Texas counties, though with current resources it’s a stretch to do so, especially across Texas’ extensive rural areas.  There is a map in your packet, listing each of the programs providing STAR services and illustrating the service areas they cover.  This is important because the program doesn’t always use the name “STAR” locally, but I think many of you will recognize these as quality organizations who are doing good work in your districts.

Each STAR program provides 24-hour crisis intervention, counseling to support and strengthen families, a shelter stay if needed, coping skills education, and parenting classes.  In addition STAR currently offers public education focused on child abuse prevention. More details about the program is covered on the fact sheet in your packet; including the very low cost of providing these services, the number of youth and families served, where these youth come from, etc.  Of great importance also is the information provided about the effectiveness of these services; this rigorously collected data gives us confidence that the program brings results and is doing what it is intended to do. 

Unfortunately, the funding for the STAR Program has already been drastically cut in both the House and Senate budgets; by 34.8%.  With the funding this bill would divert from STAR, 1/3 of the remaining funding for the program would be cut!  Funding for all the prevention programs at PEI have been cut as well; some smaller programs have been eliminated entirely.  So even without this change, we’re already taking a huge step backwards in terms of child abuse prevention, in spite of the fact that Texas lags well behind other states in this area.

The STAR program is unique among the prevention programs at DFPS, in that it is a safety net for youth and families who have already reached a crisis point. There is no other program or service in Texas like STAR. Given so many proposed cuts to other program budgets, STAR services may become more crucial than ever; cuts to mental health services will mean more youth and families will be in crisis; cuts to public education will mean fewer counselors and other administrators available to help students cope.

Funding for the prevention programs at DFPS sustains an invaluable social services infrastructure in your districts and our state. PEI services are provided by organizations, typically nonprofits, contracted by DFPS. They are organizations that engage volunteers and faith communities in their work. They use state dollars to leverage other funds, and tenaciously piece together budgets to provide quality services. Many are already facing serious financial struggles. Grant revenue and donations are down, and demand for services is up.

The PEI division at DFPS represents an investment in prevention that took roughly twenty years, and the leadership efforts of many here within the Legislature, to create. The programs in your districts are already devastated over the loss of services they expect to happen due to the cuts currently in the budget, and the children and families who will be denied services as a result. It would be a tremendous shame, and a costly mistake I believe, to wipe out an even greater part of that investment by passing this bill.

I urge this committee to either consider some alternative means of funding this program, such as perhaps increasing the marriage license fees; or delaying its start until our state revenues can support new programs.

Thank-you for the opportunity to testify, and I’m happy to answer questions or provide any follow-up information needed; including putting you in touch with the STAR Service Provider in your district.  (I know even legislative offices at times make referrals to the program, when they get a call from a parent in distress!)

Theresa Tod, Executive Director

Texas Network of Youth Services

TNOYS Testifies before Senate Finance Committee regarding Child Abuse and Delinquency Prevention Programs

Christine Gendron, Public Policy Coordinator, Texas Network of Youth Services

Testimony to the Senate Finance Committee

February 7, 2011

Good afternoon,

My name is Christine Gendron, and I am the Public Policy Coordinator for Texas Network of Youth Services. We’re a nonprofit association of organizations serving youth in at‐risk situations and their families.

Thank you for the opportunity to testify today.

Like many who spoke to you last week, I’m here to impress on you the importance of the prevention and
early intervention (PEI) programs at DFPS.

I know that you know these are crucial programs designed to prevent child abuse & neglect and juvenile
delinquency, so I am going to be brief and just hit a few key points.

First, the prevention of juvenile delinquency and the prevention of child abuse & neglect are linked. The
family and community factors that make a child at risk for delinquency are the same factors that present
risk for abuse & neglect. Last year, more than 1/3 of youth incarcerated at TYC had a documented
history of abuse or neglect. 72% came from chaotic homes. These are the worst of our state’s young
offenders, yet it’s clear that most of them are not “bad” kids, they just need stability and support. We
hope you will prioritize funding for programs that prevent both delinquency and child abuse & neglect.

Second, the STAR program is unique among PEI programs in that it is a safety net for youth and families
who have already reached a crisis point. There is no other program or service in Texas like STAR. Given
other proposed budget cuts, STAR services may become more crucial than ever; cuts to mental health
services will mean more youth and families will be in crisis; cuts to public education will mean fewer
counselors and other administrators available to help students cope.

Third, this is not about funding for a few specific programs, it’s bigger than that. It’s about sustaining an
invaluable social services infrastructure in your districts and our state. PEI services are provided by
organizations, mostly nonprofits, contracted by DFPS. They use state dollars to leverage other funds,
and tenaciously piece together budgets to provide quality services. Many are already facing serious
financial struggles. Grant revenue and donations are down, and demand for services is up. The
maintenance of PEI funding may be crucial to keeping agencies afloat. Several of you mentioned the
importance of community volunteerism and faith‐based organizations last week. These are precisely
the organizations that engage volunteers and faith communities in their work.

Last, the PEI division at DFPS represents an investment in prevention that took roughly twenty years,
and the leadership efforts of several of you on this committee, to create. It would be a real shame to
wipe out much of that investment in one budget cycle when there are alternative options available. We
know you have hard decision to make, and the decision to prioritize prevention is made even harder
when the Department’s other services are so essential. But the fact is, the Department is going to have
fires to put out until the end of time, unless we are serious about preventing child abuse & neglect
before it starts. Cutting the investment that you have already made in PEI will result in even more
caseload growth over the next 2 years, making it even harder to prioritize prevention the next time
around. For this reason, we support taking a balanced approach to the budget rather than addressing
the shortfall with cuts alone.

Thank you.

TNOYS Testifies before Senate Finance Committee reagrding Substitute Care

Feb. 3, 2011

Chairman Ogden, Finance Committee Members;

My name is Theresa Tod; I'm the Executive Director of Texas Network of Youth Services, a
statewide association of youth service providers. I also serve as a Co‐Chair of the Substitute Care
Workgroup of the Child Protection Roundtable, so I'm speaking today on behalf of that group's
priorities related to substitute care, which basically mirror those of my own organization. With one
exception, these priorities fall within the DFPS budget.

The Child Protection Roundtable's top priority for Substitute Care is to enhance services that will
achieve placement stability for children who are in conservatorship of the Department; because we
know that this one factor has a huge impact on the long term success of these children.

• We are therefore concerned that any reduction in funds for foster care reimbursements
would further impede placement stability for children in care. As Commissioner
Heiligenstein described on Tuesday, foster care rates would actually be cut 12%, and service
providers are already reimbursed at rates that are far below actual costs. Under SB1,
Residential Treatment centers would be reimbursed at 76% of costs, Basic Care at 81% of
costs, and Emergency Shelters at only 59% of costs. (See attached fact sheet).

• Furthermore, any funding cuts in this area jeopardize implementation of the changes
envisioned by the “Foster Care Redesign” initiative, which also support placement stability.
This set of recommendations, developed collaboratively by key stakeholders and DFPS,
would accomplish important improvements to the foster care system; such as keeping
children within their communities and with sibling groups, increasing the focus on
maintaining family connections, and rewarding providers for successful work, rather than
the built‐in financial disincentives that currently exist.

 • Funding for relative care payment programs (both Upfront and Permanency Care
Assistance) is another vital component for achieving placement stability. These funds
provide minimal financial support to relatives who would not be able to provide care
otherwise, and costs for less per child than foster care; so this program represents a
significant savings to the state.

• Cuts to day care for relative caregivers, as well as cuts to adoption subsidies, would create
further barriers to placing children in permanent settings.

You will hear from others who will speak on both Prevention and CPS priorities, for the Child
Protection Roundtable as well as for TNOYS. In closing, I hope that you will use everything at your
disposal – including the Rainy Day Fund and other revenue options – to take a balanced approach
to balancing our budget!