DATE: October 9, 2018
TO: Board of Supervisors
SUBMITTED BY: Kirk Haynes, Chief Probation Officer
SUBJECT: Retroactive Revenue Agreement with Fresno County Superintendent of Schools for two Deputy Probation Officers for the Truancy Intervention Program
RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):
TITLE
Approve and authorize Chairman to execute a retroactive revenue Agreement with the Fresno County Superintendent of Schools for services provided by two Deputy Probation Officers for the Truancy Intervention Program effective July 1, 2018 through June 30, 2019 ($139,688).
REPORT
There is no additional Net County Cost associated with the recommended action. Fresno County Superintendent of Schools (FCSS) will provide a total of $139,688 in funding toward the total cost of $285,214 for two existing Deputy Probation Officer (DPO) positions providing services to the Truancy Intervention Program (TIP) five days a week. The remaining direct costs for these two positions will be paid for with Youthful Offender Block Grant (YOBG) funds. The Fresno County Probation Department, along with the FCSS, recognizes a correlation between chronic school absenteeism and criminal activity, drug abuse, and incarceration, and, therefore, believes a coordinated collaborative effort will reduce school absenteeism. This item is countywide.
Due to the collaborative nature of this agreement, the Department recommends your Board deviate from the County policy requiring full cost recovery (including indirect costs). This practice has been applied in the past and is similar to agreements with other schools.
ALTERNATIVE ACTION(S):
If your Board does not approve the recommended action, the Probation Department will not have sufficient funding to continue services to the Truancy Intervention Program.
RETROACTIVE AGREEMENT:
The Probation Department has been in discussions with FCSS regarding continuing TIP. The final costs for the positions associated with this program were finalized in June 2018, at which time they were presented to FCSS. FCSS approved the amount and began collaborating with individual school districts that participate in TIP. FCSS provided a breakdown of each district’s contribution to the TIP on August 27, 2018, at which time FCSS began formalizing commitments through Memorandum of Understandings (MOUs) with the individual districts. FCSS would not sign the agreement until the district commitments were made. On September 5, 2018, FCSS signed the agreement, signaling completion of district commitments, allowing Probation to proceed with bringing the agreement before your Board on the next available Board date within established County deadlines.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no increase in Net County Cost associated with the recommended action. The total salary and benefit cost for the existing DPO positions to provide services to TIP is $267,714. In addition, vehicle and radio costs associated with these positions are estimated at $17,500. FCSS will provide a total of $139,688 towards these costs for the two DPOs, including services and supplies, with the remaining $145,526 being funded with YOBG funds. This is a decrease in funding of approximately $4,300 from the prior year due to the placement of staff that is at a different position level. The Probation Department’s current indirect rate of 25.96% of salary and benefits is $69,499. It is recommended FCSS’s portion of the indirect not be included due to the collaborative nature of the agreement, which has the potential to not only reduce absenteeism, but is also a prevention program that has shown to deter students from engaging in future criminal activities. Appropriations, estimated revenue and Probation indirect costs for these positions are included in Probation’s FY 2018-19 Adopted Budget Org 3430.
DISCUSSION:
On July 18, 2006, your Board approved a revenue agreement with the Fresno County Superintendent of Schools (FCSS) for implementation of a pilot program titled the “Truancy Intervention Program” (TIP). Subsequent annual agreements approved by your Board have continued to fund this program, which is no longer considered a pilot. The recommended TIP agreement has two DPOs providing services five days a week. The previous agreement expired on June 30, 2018 and the approval of the recommended action will allow this program to continue.
The TIP is a collaborative program to help decrease truancy, improve attendance, increase learning opportunities, and raise financial revenue for school districts throughout the County. The success of this program is determined through an increase of the average daily attendance levels at each school district with TIP participation. The FCSS has obtained separate agreements with the representative Districts to fund TIP for FY 2018-19.
The duties of the DPOs will include, but are not necessarily limited to, providing support to the TIP system as developed by the districts and Probation, participating in school site meetings with parents/guardians and attending School Attendance Review Board meetings when possible, assisting schools in supervising identified chronic truants, as well as participating in training school district personnel.
The agreement with the FCSS differs from the County's model contract in that it contains a mutual hold harmless clause. This has the effect of making each party responsible for losses arising from their own negligent acts.
REFERENCE MATERIAL:
BAI # 45 - December 5, 2017
ATTACHMENTS INCLUDED AND/OR ON FILE:
On file with Clerk - Agreement with FCSS
CAO ANALYST:
Samantha Buck