St. Louis County children’s services fund outlines $50 million-a-year core grants, seeks common client ID and youth voice

Emily Koenig, executive director of the St. Louis County Children’s Service Fund, told the County Council’s budget committee on Oct. 14 that the fund collects about $52,000,000 a year in sales tax revenue and sends roughly 90% of that to nonprofit and governmental providers of behavioral and mental health services for children and youth.

Koenig said the board has approved a three‑year core funding cycle totaling $150,000,000 (approximately $50,000,000 per year), and that a new core funding opportunity for 2026–2029 is open for applications through Oct. 30. She described a separate “grassroots” funding opportunity that targets smaller community‑based organizations; that program is funding 25 agencies with a total board investment of $3,600,000 over the current grant period.

Why it matters: the Children’s Service Fund is a dedicated, voter‑established quarter‑cent sales tax created by ballot initiative in 2008 and authorized by Missouri statute. Its budget and contracting decisions affect dozens of nonprofits and thousands of children across the county, and council members pressed staff on fund balance, program distribution and measurable outcomes.

Key details and context

- Revenue and spending rules: “We collect about $52,000,000 a year in sales tax revenue,” Koenig said during her presentation. The fund is governed by state statute and local ordinance, and statute both defines eligible service areas and sets two explicit prohibitions: the fund does not pay for inpatient residential treatment (including chemical dependency or psychiatric residential placements) or for transportation services, Koenig said.

- Contracts and rates: CSF operates primarily on a fee‑for‑service reimbursement model. Koenig said agencies are reimbursed using standardized rates adopted by the fund; she gave one example rate: $148 an hour for certain counseling services.

- Current investments and timing: the fund is in the final year of a July 1–June 30 contract cycle that was aligned with the school year to avoid service disruptions. Koenig said CSF currently funds 72 agencies across 115 programs in the ten statutory service areas.

- Fund balance and reserves: in response to council questions, Koenig estimated a 2025 fund balance of about $25,000,000 and described an unencumbered board reserve. Council members noted prior historical balances that were much larger and discussed a board goal in the roughly $20–25 million range to balance reserves and disbursement.

- Program innovations and priorities for 2026: Koenig said the fund is pursuing a common client identifier so that CSF and partners can track individual children’s service journeys across different programs and providers; she described the fund’s collaboration with St. Louis City on a regional community health needs assessment; and she said CSF is establishing a youth council with stipends, developed with the Community Health Commission of Missouri, to incorporate youth voice into funding decisions and participatory grantmaking.

- Special projects and partnerships: CSF supports a range of non‑core investments, including social workers embedded in St. Louis County Library branches (seven libraries currently) and partnerships supporting school‑based services and a 24/7 crisis line through Behavioral Health Response.

Council questions and staff responses

Committee members asked how much of the current budgeted special program funding will be spent by year‑end and whether the fund is systematically reaching underserved ZIP codes. Koenig said billing is client‑level and monthly and that agencies have up to three months post‑service to submit bills, creating an ebb and flow in encumbrances. On geography she said CSF breaks out service counts by county subregions aligned to zip codes and school districts and that schools are CSF’s primary outreach partner. She also agreed to provide council members more granular breakdowns on services for children exposed to domestic violence and other specific program queries.

Questions about board composition and governance: Koenig said the adjudicating board is nine members appointed by the County Executive and confirmed by the County Council; she said the board currently has three vacancies.

What the council directed: committee members requested follow‑up materials, including (1) a more detailed breakdown of fund encumbrances and expected year‑end spend in the special programs account, (2) data on services provided to children who have experienced domestic or intimate‑partner violence, and (3) next steps and timelines for the common client ID project and youth council design. Koenig agreed to provide the requested information.

Ending note

Koenig emphasized the fund’s commitment to directing most revenue to direct services while exploring state and federal funding alignments to expand impact. “We are 1 of 10 children service funds across the state,” she told the committee, describing CSF’s role in regional coordination and its statutory limits.