Print Minutes Minutes Packet Return

FAMILY AND HUMAN SERVICES
COMMITTEE

  RECORD OF ACTION FOR

November 13, 2019
 
Supervisor Candace Andersen, Chair
Supervisor John Gioia, Vice Chair

Present: Chair Candace Andersen  
  Vice Chair John Gioia  
Staff Present: Julie DiMaggio Enea, Senior Deputy County Administrator
Attendees: David Lopez, AlCo Medical Assoc; Jaime Jenett, HSD Homeless Programs; Kristin Sherk, DCD; Douglas Holmes, Multifaith Action Coalition; Rebecca Darnell, EHSD; Carolyn Foudy, EHSD; Kelley Curtis, ESHD; Anthony Macias, EHSD/AAS; Rochelle Soriano, EHSD/WDB; Linae Young, HCH; Larry Sly, CC Food Bank; Cassidie Bates, CC Food Bank; Caitlyn Sly, CC Food Bank; Laleesha Norton, CC Food Bank; Colleen Kauth, Bay Area Legal Aid; Douglas Dunn, MH Commission; Kate Walsham, Bay Area Legal Aid; Kathy Gallagher, EHS Director; Gabriel Lemus, DCD; Joseph Mega, HSD; Tracy Murray, EHSD; Jill Ray, BOS District II Representative; Dan Peddycord, CCHS
             
1. Introductions
  Chair Andersen announced that Vice Chair Gioia was delayed, called the meeting to order at 10:30 a.m. and invited attendees to introduce themselves.

Vice Chair Gioia arrived at 10:42 a.m.
             
2. Public comment on any item under the jurisdiction of the Committee and not on this agenda (speakers may be limited to three minutes).
  No one requested to speak during the public comment period.
             
3. RECEIVE and APPROVE the draft Record of Action for the October 7, 2019 Family & Human Services Committee meeting.
  Approved as presented.
 
AYE: Chair Candace Andersen
  Vice Chair John Gioia
  Attachments:
  DRAFT FHS Record of Action for 10-7-19
 
             
4. RECOMMEND to the Board of Supervisors the re-appointment of Jagjit Bhambra to the At Large 11 seat, Dennis Yee to At Large 14 seat, Brian O'Toole to At Large 16 seat, and Jill Kleiner to At Large 19 seat, with terms expiring September 30, 2021, on the Advisory Council on Aging, as recommended by the Council.
  Approved as recommended.
 
AYE: Chair Candace Andersen
  Vice Chair John Gioia
  Attachments:
  Re-Appointment Memo
  B. O'Toole Application
  D. Yee Application
  J. Bhambra Application
  J. Kleiner Application
 
             
5. RECOMMEND to the Board of Supervisors the reappointment of Guita Bahramipour to the Member at Large #4 seat on the Alcohol and Other Drugs Advisory Board  to a new term that will expire on June 30, 2022.
  Approved as recommended.
 
AYE: Chair Candace Andersen
  Vice Chair John Gioia
  Attachments:
  AODAB Transmittal Memo
  AODAB Roster
  Candidate Application_Guita Bahramipour_AODAB
  Candidate Application_Madison Gunn_AODAB
  Candidate Application_Edward Salaiz_AODAB
 
             
6. RECOMMEND to the Board of Supervisors the appointment of Dan Peddycord (Concord) to the Health Care Representative seat to complete the current term expiring on December 31, 2021; and Shawn Ray (San Pablo) to the Public Safety Representative seat and Patrice Guillory (Antioch) to the Reentry Representative seat to complete the current terms expiring on December 31, 2019 and to new two-year terms expiring on December 31, 2021.
  Approved as recommended.
 
AYE: Chair Candace Andersen
  Vice Chair John Gioia
  Attachments:
  Council on Homelessness Transmittal Letter_Recommendations for Appointments
  Candidate Application_Adams, Roshawn_Homeless
  Candidate Application_Broussard Eric_Homeless
  Candidate Application_Guillory, Patrice_Homeless
  Candidate Application_Peddycord, Dan_Homeless
  Candidate Application_Poe, Adam_Homeless
  Candidate Application_Ramirez, Leonard_Homeless
  Candidate Application_Ray, Shawn_Homeless
  Candidate Application_Richards, Avery_Homeless
  Candidate Application_Serrano, Kristina_Homeless
  Candidate Application_Teshager, Adey_Homeless
  Candidate Application_Trowbridge, Linda_Homeless
  Candidate Application_Walker, Michelle_Homeless
  Candidate Application_Worley, James_Homeless
 
             
7. RECOMMEND to the Board of Supervisors the appointment of Joshua Anjar to the Workforce #2 seat on the Workforce Development Board to a term ending June 30, 2020, as recommended by the Employment and Human Services Department and approved by the Workforce Development Board Executive Committee.
  Approved as recommended.
 
AYE: Chair Candace Andersen
  Vice Chair John Gioia
  Attachments:
  WDB Attendance Roster
  J. Anjar Application
  WDB Transmittal Memo
  Contra Costa County Labor Council Nomination Letter
 
             
8. 1.  APPROVE recommendations for the 2020-2025 Consolidated Plan priorities as recommended by staff or amended by the Committee.

2.  DIRECT the Department of Conservation and Development to prepare a staff report on the Committee’s recommendations, for consideration by the Board of Supervisors on November 19, 2019 as a “Consent” item.
  Kristin Sherk presented the staff report and recommendations, which the Committee accepted and approved.  Gabriel Lemus verified that staff would present the final consolidated plan to the Committee in April 2020.
 
AYE: Chair Candace Andersen
  Vice Chair John Gioia
  Attachments:
  Draft 2020-2025 Consolidated Plan Priorities for Federal Housing Program Funding
 
             
9. 1.  Accept this report from the Health Services Department; and
 
2.  Forward this report to the Board of Supervisors for acceptance; and
 
3. Direct staff to continue to report on an annual basis to the FHS Committee regarding health status of the homeless population in Contra Costa County by the Health Care for the Homeless Program.
  Joseph Mega presented the staff report.  He noted that patient visits are on an increasing trend, male patients outnumber female patients 2:1, and the median age of patients is 45.  He described the four service models:  ambulatory clinics, street outreach, mobile clinics, and shelter-based care, noting that the mobile clinics operate mostly in central and east county where fixed services are scarce.  He clarified that two mobile vans rotate on a consistent schedule across seven locations.

He identified key ongoing challenges including the aging homeless population and the reticence of certain jurisdictions to provide appropriate sites for permanent and mobile clinics.  He clarified that once housed, the County may provide health services for up to one year.

Vice Chair Gioia was interested in knowing through which avenues homeless people are accessing health services, what is the main cause of deaths among the homeless population, and whether or not the County has a protocol for issuing N95 respirator masks.

Joe estimated that 80% use field (mostly mobile clinic) services and 20% use clinic services.  He verified that the County will issue N95 masks when the air quality is deemed harmful.

The Committee accepted the report and requested the Health Services Department to report back in one year.


 
 
AYE: Chair Candace Andersen
  Vice Chair John Gioia
  Attachments:
  Healthcare for the Homeless Powerpoint
 
             
10. 1. Accept this report from the Health Services Department; and
2. Forward this report to the Board of Supervisors for acceptance; and,
3. Direct Staff to continue to report on an annual basis to the FHS Committee regarding progress of the effort to end homelessness and the activities of Contra Costa Council on Homelessness.
  Jaime Jenett presented the staff report.

Vice Chair Gioia complained that we are too dispassionate about homelessness, as if it is no longer a crisis.  He observed that Contra Costa County frequently gets overlooked for HUD funding in favor of counties with large cities.  He asked staff to research opportunities to work with builders to obtain discounts for homeless housing projects.

Chair Andersen commented that San Francisco is leasing housing in East Contra Costa County to house some of its homeless population, thereby exacerbating Contra Costa's problem.

The Committee accepted the report and acknowledged that homelessness will be a topic scheduled for discussion at the Board retreat in 2020.



 
 
AYE: Chair Candace Andersen
  Vice Chair John Gioia
  Attachments:
  HSD Homelesss Continuum of Care Annual Report
  Homeless Continuum of Care Annual Report 2018
  Homeless Continuum of Care FHS Presentation
  Contra Costa Homeless Services System Map
  Homeless Services Race & Ethnicity Assessment
 
             
11. ACCEPT status report from the Employment and Human Services Department on the department's implementation of the CalFresh benefits expansion, and its CalFresh Outreach Plan and staffing needs.
  Kathy Gallagher introduced Kelley Curtis, who presented the staff report.  Kelley reported that the County had denied 718 of 6,300 CalFresh SSI applications and that only two applications have been pending for more than 30 days.  She acknowledged that the County shows a low participation rate overall and a low dual (Medi-Cal and CalFresh) enrollment rate.  She outlined the department's outreach plan, the objectives of which are to increase and retain CalFresh participation.  She also highlighted new legislation aimed at reducing barriers and increasing access to CalFresh.  Kathy described additional staffing that she is pursuing to implement the outreach strategies and said she is working with HR to develop a new job classification for one of the positions.

Douglas Holmes suggested that that the County support AB 942, the Access to Safe Food Choices and Food Security Act of 2019, which would, to the extent permitted by federal law and in consultation with various stakeholders, permit the establishment a statewide Restaurant Meals Program for CalFresh recipients. His testimony is attached to these minutes.

Bay Area Legal Aid representatives reiterated demands previously made for a dialogue about the County's CalFresh SSI enrollment compliance rate, saying the federal standard is 100% compliance, not the 90% deemed acceptable by the State of California.  Vice Chair Gioia suggested that Bay Area Legal Aid take into consideration the County's gradual improvement in compliance.  He commented that the threat of litigation has been a barrier to open dialogue.  He explained that Contra Costa County is not similarly situated with the counties cited for comparison purposes by Bay Area Legal Aid in terms of dedicated tax revenue, and that resources allocated by the Board to one program come at the detriment to other County programs.  He commented that he did not have to worry about such dilemmas as an attorney representing a single interest but must balance competing needs as a County Supervisor.  

Larry Sly commented that the County is not being aspirational about CalFresh and that we have lost our sense of urgency.  He committed to ongoing assistance with the County's outreach efforts but thought the outreach plan was dubious.  Caitlyn Sly requested that a timeline be applied to the County's outreach plan.  She said there is an inverse relationship between participation rates and timeliness:  as more applications are received, the higher the backlog.

A letter, attached, from Mariana Moore was read into the record.

The Committee accepted the report and Chair Andersen requested EHS to report back to the FHS Committee in January/February with a status update.

 
 
AYE: Chair Candace Andersen
  Vice Chair John Gioia
  Attachments:
  CalFresh Status Update, Outreach Plan, and Staffing Needs
  Public Comment_Doug Holmes
  Public Comment_Mariana Moore
 
             
12. The December 23, 2019 meeting of the Family and Human Services Committee has been canceled due to the Christmas holiday.  No additional meetings are currently scheduled for the 2019 Family & Human Services Committee.
             
13. Adjourn
  Chair Andersen adjourned the meeting at 12:22 p.m.

 

For Additional Information Contact:

Julie DiMaggio Enea, Interim Committee Staff
Phone (925) 335-1077, Fax (925) 646-1353
julie.enea@cao.cccounty.us

AgendaQuick©2005 - 2024 Destiny Software Inc., All Rights Reserved