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HHS budget report: April vouchers, low utilization in some lines, and placement spending monitored
Summary
Richland County Health and Human Services managers reviewed vouchers, monthly expenditures and placement fund balances. Managers said some budget lines show lower utilization because of payroll timing and billing lags for CCS; placement funds remain available though staff noted the year is young and projections may change.
Richland County Health and Human Services managers presented the department's April expenditures, budget‑to‑date summaries and placement reports at the combined HHS and Veterans Committee meeting.
Stephanie Rompelt, the county's Business and Financial Services Manager for HHS, reviewed the monthly vouchers and said the meeting packet included vouchers totaling $37,347.04 for the period. She highlighted recurring monthly charges and program costs: credit‑card charges for staff training and client services, a monthly subscription for the CARIO electronic health record (listed at $1,389.76 on the voucher report), food‑service purchases (monthly food supplies item of $7,846.85) and recurring environmental health contract payments with Grant County. Rompelt explained that some prepaid items appear on the report because vendors require timely payment to avoid late fees.
Director Tracy Thorson presented the department budget summary through April and explained utilization patterns. She noted that programs that are staff‑heavy may show lower percent utilization earlier in the year because three‑paycheck months and some insurance costs have not yet been charged; for example, administrative staff costs were at roughly 26.8% of budget through April. Child and youth services appeared low (about 20.3% utilization) largely because the unit had multiple vacancies; Birth to 3 therapy services were above expected percent utilization (about 35.2%) due to therapy costs. Thorson cautioned that CCS billing runs behind by a couple of months and that CCS (Comprehensive Community Services) expenditures were therefore understated in the April snapshots.
The committee reviewed placement fund details. Miranda Culver, Behavioral Health Services Manager, and Jessica Tisdale, Child and Youth Services Manager, walked the committee through adult and child placement figures. Managers said adult institutional and inpatient placements for March included four individuals totaling 19 days and about $25,000 in costs; crisis stabilization and community residential placements were also reviewed. Child placement reports showed group home and treatment foster care use (11 youth, 341 days in March in the group home/treatment foster category) and regular foster care placements (seven youth). Thorson and managers said the combined placement funds began the year with roughly $1,485,000 in levy set aside for placements and that the child placement fund (fund 44) showed a remaining balance of about $533,982 as of the report.
Angie Reisner, who monitors contracts, reviewed contract utilization and flagged providers where invoicing and utilization approached or exceeded expected percentages given payments through March. She cited Shay Rehabilitation and Psychological Services at about 40% utilization to date (expended $39,005.12) and said the department would seek a contract amendment to increase the cap (the committee approved requesting authorization to move the Shay contract up to $300,000 and to send that amendment to county board). Reisner also noted that some providers invoice in advance (for example, the electronic health record vendor bills ahead) and that monitoring is done on a roughly two‑month lag.
Ending: Managers said the April figures reflect early‑year timing and billing cycles; they asked the committee to continue monthly contract monitoring and to expect follow‑up if CCS or placement spending accelerates.
