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29.

Meeting Date:	01/13/2015
New FTE Position for Juvenile Services
Submitted By:	Robyn Murray, Juvenile Services
Department:	Juvenile Services
Agenda Category:	Regular Agenda Items

Information

Agenda Item

Discuss, consider, and take appropriate action on creating a new FTE position for Juvenile Services.

Background

Juvenile Services is respectfully requesting a FTE slot be added for a Department Counselor position that would provide counseling services in our residential programs. This FTE does not require additional funds to or from the county budget and should have no fiscal impact on the department’s current county budget.

Currently, we have a counselor position doing this particular job funded 50% by state funds and 50% by Bluebonnet Trails Community Services. We have provided office space and computer, training etc…. from our budget since the beginning of this partnership which began several years ago. Bluebonnet is no longer able to continue funding this specific position because they are no longer able to bill Medicaid for reimbursement for services provided to youth residing in the juvenile justice facility. They do however want to continue to partner with our department, so they have agreed to provide a part-time counselor in our field offices. This new arrangement will allow for Bluebonnet to bill Medicaid for the services they provide while continuing to support youth we are supervising in the community.

We are requesting one FTE , which would be funded by using the original 50% state funds (previously applied to the Bluebonnet Counselor position) combined with additional state funds provided through TJJD’s Grant N, required to be used for mental health services and are currently set aside for mental health placement but may be used to fund FTE’s as well. The combination of these funds will cover the full cost of the new FTE slot, if approved. We anticipate not needing the funds for additional placement due to opening the new female facility. Further we anticipate receiving these funds for the foreseeable future. If the funds for some reason were to be reduced we could also use funds from our counseling line in the county budget that will be offset by Bluebonnet. This additional FTE will allow us to maintain the level of counseling services provided in our residential treatment programs.

Fiscal Impact

From/To	Acct No.	Description	Amount

Attachments
No file(s) attached.

Form Review

Inbox	Reviewed By	Date
County Judge Exec Asst.	Wendy Coco	01/05/2015 02:12 PM
Form Started By: rmurray		Started On: 01/02/2015 11:19 AM
Final Approval Date: 01/05/2015