Human Services Committee amends 2024 public-health budget after rising special-needs and transportation costs

The Human Services Committee voted to amend Chautauqua County’s 2024 public-health budget to reconcile higher-than-anticipated expenditures, chiefly for state-mandated services for children and youth with special health needs and related transportation costs.

Diana Songer, deputy director of finance for human services, told the committee the amendment requests an increased use of fund balance of $960,920 and increases appropriation accounts totaling $2,143,913 while increasing revenue accounts by $976,725 to offset the shortfall.

Public health director Lacey Wilson described a surge in referrals and higher per-student costs for special education placements. Wilson said the county had 561 referrals in the prior year and was already at 522 referrals for the current school year as of February; she said many new referrals require 1-on-1 aides and specialized tuition, which can cost roughly $21,000 per student annually when an aide is required. She also cited rising transportation costs for sending students to specialized schools, including long daily routes to North County facilities.

Songer and Wilson said part of the 2024 variance also reflected higher contractual costs that increased from 2022 to 2023 and again into 2024; some personal-services savings and reduced medicolegal contractual costs offset portions of the increase. The committee discussed long-term solutions including encouraging local school districts to build integrated classrooms and manage transportation locally to reduce county costs.

Committee members asked about forecasting and whether 2025 budget estimates had been adjusted; Songer and Wilson said the 2025 budget was “right sized” based on 2024 experience and additional data collected since COVID-era service disruptions. The committee approved the budget amendment by voice vote.