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Tulsa mayor’s office seeks $115,000 supplemental appropriation for new Office of Children and Families; larger FY26 funding planned
Summary
Councilors received details about the proposed Office of Children and Families, a contractor model with Impact Tulsa to manage the office and cabinet, a $115,000 supplemental appropriation request for this fiscal year and a planned FY26 general-fund request of about $2.75 million for a full year of operations.
Tulsa city staff on Thursday outlined the proposed Office of Children and Families and asked the council to approve a supplemental FY24–25 appropriation of $115,000 to support initial operations through June 30.
Deputy mayor Reyes and mayoral staff explained the office will be staffed through a contract arrangement: the city will contract with a nonprofit to run the office and the children’s cabinet, and the contractor will coordinate with philanthropic and community partners to implement programs and services. Impact Tulsa — a local nonprofit network discussed in the meeting — was described by the mayor’s office as the organization selected to fulfill that convener/contractor role.
How it will be funded: For the current fiscal year the mayor’s office said the $115,000 supplemental appropriation would come from vacant positions in the finance department; those savings are not expected to recur in future fiscal years. The mayor proposed funding the Office of Children and Families in the mayor’s FY25 budget at approximately $2.75 million for a full year; staff said that larger, recurring appropriation will appear in the formal budget proposal that comes to council.
The mayor’s office and councilors discussed how philanthropic investments would interact with city funding. Staff said private and philanthropic dollars would mostly fund community-facing programs and services rather than be given directly to the city; the city’s $2.75 million would establish the office and core staff and help coordinate the larger partner-funded efforts.
Several councilors asked about competitive procurement and evaluation. Mayor’s staff said the city executed a sole-source contract with Impact Tulsa because of that organization’s local partnerships and experience in cradle-to-career, place-based initiatives; the mayor characterized the choice as based on the organization’s national network, local partnerships and prior work rather than a simple preference. Councilors requested quarterly reporting on outcomes and suggested Impact Tulsa data products and district-level heat maps be made available to council members.
Administrative timing: The mayor’s office said the office is currently operating administratively inside the mayor’s department for the remainder of FY25 and that a formal budget-line and potential reorganization will be reflected in the FY25–26 budget documents that the mayor’s office will submit to council.
