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Supervisors press DPH on $63.7M-plus contract slate and school-based services amid Seneca role changes
Summary
The committee approved several public-health contract amendments but continued two large DPH items for more detail after questioning about program changes, including whether Seneca Center’s SOAR classroom-based services were being reduced and how school-based supports will be maintained.
The Budget & Finance Committee reviewed a slate of Department of Public Health (DPH) contract amendments on May 11 and forwarded most items to the full Board while pausing two large items for further detail.
DPH requested multiple amendments to extend terms and increase not-to-exceed amounts across behavioral health contracts with nonprofits and university partners. Michelle Ruggles (DPH) summarized six items including amendments for Alternative Family Services, Project Open Hand, Homeless Children's Network, Seneca Family of Agencies (Seneca Center), Community Forward SF (medical respite/sobering center fiscal intermediary) and the Regents of the University of California for behavioral health services. Several amendments extend terms through mid-2020s and add tens of millions of dollars in total across agreements.
Nick Menard (BLA) recommended approval of many items but flagged monitoring gaps (some monitoring reports were from FY 2019–20) and recommended removing COVID-specific funding amounts from proposed totals where appropriate. The committee approved items 13–15 and amended item 17 to reduce its not-to-exceed total by $1,418,177 before forwarding it to the full Board.
Supervisors focused extensive questioning on item 16 (Seneca Center). Supervisor Ashita Safaie and Chair Ronan sought clarity about whether the SOAR in-school/classroom program was ending and what would replace it. DPH representatives said Seneca chose to end that specific classroom-based SOAR work because of staffing and fit challenges and that other providers (for example, Oaks Children’s Center and GRAMs) or mobile response teams would continue school-based services. DPH said SOAR funding had not been active since FY 2018–19 and that mobile response capacity has grown, supported by a recent four-year state grant and SFUSD contributions; supervisors asked DPH to return with a fuller presentation including SFUSD representatives and a list of which schools and classrooms are affected.
The committee voted to continue items 16 and 18 to the May 18 meeting for more detailed follow-up; item 17 was amended and forwarded as amended.
