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County and state negotiating scope and protections as ODDS prepares to centralize licensing for care homes
Summary
Multnomah County staff said the Oregon Department of Human Services will centralize licensing for adult care homes and some children’s certified programs; county staff are negotiating interagency agreement language to protect service quality, clarify roles and preserve legal remedies and provider supports.
Multnomah County Department of County Human Services (DCHS) staff briefed commissioners on the state’s plan to centralize licensing and certification of adult care homes and certain children’s programs under the Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) and the Office of Developmental Disabilities Services (ODDS).
DCHS staff said the state intends to take over licensing functions and that five county licensing positions are proposed to transfer to state employment. County staff are working with the state on intergovernmental agreements (IGAs) to address protections for clients and providers, clarify the separation between licensing and county protective services and ensure continuity where county funding or enforcement currently supports local programs.
Alexis Alberti, division director for intellectual and developmental disabilities, said county staff are negotiating to ensure providers continue to receive operational support and to preserve the county’s ability to respond quickly to provider crises; DCHS is also discussing benefit parity and transfer terms for affected employees. DCHS staff said they had prepared a cost‑benefit analysis showing how civil penalty revenues (about $50,000) and other county funds have funded local provider supports and that the county will press the state to make allowances or to amend IGAs so the provider supports and enforcement practices that the county currently funds are maintained or replaced.
Commissioner Moyer asked about the state’s plan to track effects on quality and capacity; DCHS staff said ODHS leadership had assured them the state would assume liability and responsibility and that the county would work to include quality and accountability language in IGAs. Commissioners asked staff to secure written commitments and to return any revised IGA language before transfers occur.
DCHS said eight staff are participating in statewide work groups to design policy and operational details and that county counsel will review IGAs to add protective language. Commissioners and staff agreed that any formal transfer should include explicit, enforceable terms about provider supports, licensing timelines and data reporting so the county can monitor impact on care‑home capacity and client safety.
