Crow Wing County says public-assistance processing improved, child-welfare caseloads down and prevention work saved costs

Kara Griffin, division manager for Family & Children's services in Crow Wing County, told the county board that a 2024 reorganization of intake and processing cut average application-processing time from about four weeks to about two weeks and produced other service and budget improvements.

Griffin said those operational changes improved customer service and staff workload: "Since they reorganized the work, they're averaging about 2 weeks out in processing." She also noted child-care assistance applications are now being processed in about one week.

The changes followed a decision to split intake duties from processing duties: a core group focuses on intake and interviews while the rest of the team concentrates on back-office processing. Griffin said the arrangement reduced backlog, phone volume and walk-ins and made the work more client-focused.

Why this matters: faster processing affects families waiting for benefits and provider reimbursements, and the county recorded measurable performance gains under state timeliness targets. Griffin said, "We averaged 91% of timeliness in 2024," exceeding the Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) timeliness benchmark; she added the county processed expedited SNAP applications and health-care applications above state expectations.

Support services and contracting: Griffin said the county contracts with CareerForce Center (sometimes referred to as Rural Minnesota SEP) to provide employment services required for MFIP cash-program participants. She said the county expects to open bids for that professional services contract in July and to present a recommendation to the board in October or November.

Child-support and performance: Karen Holt's child-support team reported high statewide comparisons, Griffin said: paternity establishment was 102% for the county (state average about 96%), and timely orders were 94% (state 86%). Current collections were 74.69% (county goal 75%), with arrears collections at 72% compared with statewide 69%.

Child protection and prevention: Griffin said the county receives roughly 1,600 child-protection reports annually. She described ongoing state work considering a centralized intake and screening model and said local stakeholders have expressed concerns about potential downsides, including higher state administrative costs and loss of local relationships with reporters. "Right now, our we record every single report that we receive," Griffin said, noting that local entry of all reports helps the county see a full picture of families and do earlier outreach.

Workforce and caseloads: Griffin said intake and assessment teams face turnover: about 75% of child-protection social workers have three years or less of experience, which required substantial onboarding. At the same time, the county has been able to grow prevention work by reclassifying program specialists to social workers so staff can pivot between prevention and investigations as demand shifts.

Out-of-home placements and budget impacts: Griffin said the county had 65 children in out-of-home care at the time of the report, down from a November 2017 peak of about 195. She said the out-of-home placement line came in roughly $1,000,000 under budget for 2024 and that the 2025 out-of-home placement budget is set at $2,800,000. She cautioned one unusually high-cost case can change projections: "There's 1 in particular that's actually in a placement right now that it's $4,000 a day," Griffin said, describing a youth placed in a waiver home who requires two staff at all times and specialized care.

Prevention programs and grant-funded services: Griffin credited investments in family-preservation and evidence-based in-home therapies for reducing placements and costs. She said Crow Wing received a Systems of Care grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) in the past to fund collaborative intensive-bridging services (CIBS) and systemic family therapy (SFT). She said those programs reduced out-of-state residential placements and have been part of the county's strategy to reduce detention and residential rates.

Other program notes: the county has a crossover worker who focuses on youth engaged in criminal activity to reduce time in detention; county staff have also trained an LICSW internally to provide SFT when community providers leave. Griffin said the county will continue to monitor placement costs monthly and review the rolling 18-month average when setting future budgets.

Board questions and next steps: commissioners asked about the timeline for state decisions on centralized intake; Griffin said a contractor will present a recommendation to the state in June and any rollout would likely be 2026 or later. She reiterated the county will open the employment-services contract to bids and bring a recommendation to the board later in the year.

The presentation closed with board members thanking Griffin and staff for the reorganization and the prevention work that helped lower placements and budgetary costs.