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Graham County ratifies limited-representation contract for dependency alternative program
Summary
The Graham County Board of Supervisors ratified a fiscal year 2026 renewal contract to provide limited representation for the county's dependency alternative program (DAP), with the court estimating cost savings and a split of payments from county and federal funds.
Mindy, a Superior Court staff member, asked the Graham County Board of Supervisors on July 7 to ratify a fiscal year 2026 contract renewing limited legal representation for the county's dependency alternative program, commonly called DAP.
The program assigns a single attorney to mediate certain dependency matters so families can reach guardianship or settlement agreements without full dependency proceedings. "Instead of paying a dependency attorney for every single parent child involved in a dependency case, there are certain situations where ... Shannon ... does mediation with everyone, as long as they all agree to a settlement, then he files the paperwork same day and he just charges a flat rate of $1,700," Mindy said during the meeting.
The Superior Court staff member told the board she tracked the prior year's use and found five successful cases under the program. "Even if we only had mom, dad, and the child, that was a savings of $17,000 to the county to do the DAP program," she said. Mindy explained the per-case payment is split: $1,500 from the county general fund and $200 from Title IV-E federal funds.
Supervisors expressed support for the program, noting both cost and time savings. One supervisor said it reduces scheduling delays and the number of participants involved in resolving cases and called it an efficient alternative to protracted hearings.
A motion to ratify and approve the limited-representation agreement with the attorney identified in the meeting passed by voice vote. The board did not record individual roll-call votes in the public transcript; members present responded "aye" and the chair declared the motion passed.
Officials did not provide the contractor's full, unambiguous last name consistently in the record; the contract and motion as presented to the board referenced the attorney by the name provided in the meeting record. The board was told the service is a renewal and the county budget includes the expected costs for the program.
The contract renewal takes effect for fiscal year 2026 and was entered on the consent of the board pending final ratification recorded at the meeting.
Details the board noted at the meeting: the county recorded five successful DAP cases in the prior year, the contractor charges a $1,700 flat fee per qualifying case, and the payment per case is split $1,500 general fund / $200 Title IV-E federal funds.
