Cayuga County DSS reports vacancies, rising high-cost foster and emergency housing expenses

Department of Social Services staff told the county’s Ways and Means Committee on April 9 that staffing vacancies and mandated, high-cost placements are the largest near-term risks to the county’s 2025 operating budget.

DSS presented a first-quarter budget snapshot showing full-time salary spending about 18% below budget through March because of multiple vacant caseworker and accounting positions, but overtime is higher than expected as remaining staff cover work. Staff said the vacancies have increased caseloads and that higher overtime is concentrated in services units covering adult protective services, child protective services, foster care and preventive services.

The presentation highlighted two mandated program areas with the highest risk of exceeding budget: safety net (emergency housing) and foster care. Safety-net payments are reimbursed at roughly 29% by state sources, meaning the county carries most of the cost for hotel and shelter placements. DSS reported safety-net spending at about 27% of its annual budget as of the first quarter but warned that long hotel stays raise the potential for large overruns as the year progresses.

Foster care was identified as a larger potential cost driver. DSS staff said complex placements — including residential treatment — can exceed $1,000 per day in some cases. Reimbursement rates for foster placements vary depending on eligibility determinations driven by state standards; some placements are 100% funded, others are 100% local share. The county receives a capped foster-care block grant; once the cap is exceeded, the county bears the local cost.

DSS also noted delays between when county expenditures occur and when state and federal reimbursements are settled. Presenters said monthly claiming for March expenses typically posts in April, and the state can take two to three months to settle claims; some balances therefore lag the expense side of the ledger and affect short-term cash flow reporting. Staff said they book anticipated revenue and accruals so year-end accounting reflects expected claims, but cautioned that some claims may not be finally settled for months.

Committee members pressed DSS on staffing and retention. DSS said turnover — including eight caseworkers moving to other county departments over the past two years — has removed experienced staff who trained others. Presenters described recruitment as feasible but retention difficult, citing pay and nonwage factors (workload, quality of life) and competition from private employers and other county departments. DSS said filling vacancies and stabilizing caseloads would help both case outcomes and control costs by improving continuity of supervision and timeliness of placements.

Committee members asked whether one-time upfront equipment and furniture purchases for DSS’s new space at 63 Genesee Street had skewed early-year budget percentages. Staff confirmed many of those line-item purchases are one-time costs (IT, wiring, security and furniture) and said they expect those particular lines to normalize as the year progresses.

Discussion and directions DSS staff emphasized that mandated services limit the department’s ability to cut costs and that early warning on high-cost placements will be brought back to the committee. Committee members asked staff to continue monthly reporting on the specific high-risk lines (safety net, foster care and state training school invoicing) and to provide a clearer monthly reconciliation of claims receivable so the committee can monitor accruals and cash-flow timing.

Ending DSS staff will continue to bring quarterly budget reports to Ways and Means and provide additional monthly detail on high-risk mandated lines; the committee did not take a separate formal vote specific to the presentation on April 9.