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Q&A
Council Member Ayala questions DSS officials on contract providers and payment processes
2:20:10
·
3 min
Council Member Diana I. Ayala engages in a discussion with DSS Commissioner Molly Wasow Park and DHS Administrator Jocelyn Carter about the number of contract providers, the contracting process, and payment systems within the Department of Homeless Services (DHS) and Department of Social Services (DSS). The officials explain the complex structure of contract management and discuss recent changes to provider advances.
- The discussion reveals that DHS has 85 contract providers.
- Commissioner Park acknowledges the need to streamline the contracting and payment processes.
- Details are provided on the advance payment system for human service providers, including recent increases and plans for FY '26.
Diana I. Ayala
2:20:10
How many number of contract providers do you have on the DHS?
Jocelyn Carter
2:20:14
For us it's 85.
Diana I. Ayala
2:20:16
80 five providers and how many folks are assigned to the contracts division?
2:20:23
So
Molly Wasow Park
2:20:25
the way we are structured across DHS and DSS make it that actually a remarkably challenging question to answer.
2:20:33
So DHS program staff have responsibility for engaging with providers and doing invoice review, but that's not their only responsibility.
2:20:46
We have our budget team and our capacity team are both touching the contracting process and the budget team's also touching the invoice process.
2:20:54
And then when you get over to DSS, we have our ACOs office.
2:20:59
We have in our finance shop accounts payable is obviously touching everything.
2:21:04
So we have for any payment that goes out the door, we have a lot of people who are touching it.
2:21:09
One of the things, as Administrator Carter noted, that we are looking at is whether or not there's a better way of organizing things.
2:21:17
So are working on both an emergency front of making sure that we are getting dollars out the door today, but also thinking longer term so that we should be doing things differently so that we prevent reoccurrence of the situation.
Diana I. Ayala
2:21:33
Yeah that's a lot of hands.
2:21:35
My mother used to say too many people stirring the soup you know it's not a good thing.
2:21:41
And I think that's part of the problem.
2:21:42
There's a lot of bureaucracy within the you know the agency and you know things kind of get lost.
2:21:49
Only because I hear from my constituents you know I've submitted documents and they've gotten lost and then I have submitted them again and they're still saying they didn't get them and then my staff is saying well we submitted them on behalf of the constituent and they're still saying they didn't get them.
2:22:05
That concerns me right because the system is just so large that it's difficult to keep these things.
2:22:11
Streamlining them is really important.
2:22:12
Think a more consolidated unit that deals specifically with contracts is probably the better you know alternative.
2:22:20
I mean
Molly Wasow Park
2:22:20
separation of duties and extra eyes and oversight has its place, so we do need to make sure that we are all keeping a certain level of accountability in there, but we agree that this is an area that is ripe for refreshing.
Diana I. Ayala
2:22:35
Yeah.
2:22:35
And you did mention that the contract providers receive an advance?
Molly Wasow Park
2:22:41
So traditionally a contract or DHS provider or all providers receive, human service providers receive a 25% advance.
2:22:49
This year all providers, human service providers citywide received a 30% advance and then we have worked with some of our providers to do additional advances on an as needed basis.
2:23:04
For FY '26 the city will be doing 30% advances for DHS providers with a potential for an additional 25% advance mid year to the extent that it's needed.
2:23:18
Other human service providers will receive a 50% advance at the start of the fiscal year.
2:23:24
I would also note that families with children shelter providers are paid based on what we call it care days, is essentially they certify how many people, how many bed nights were used and then we pay upfront and then do the invoice reconciliation after the fact.
2:23:41
So families with children providers are essentially receiving month by month advance process as well.