The first of a series of legislative committee hearings related to the proposed restructuring of the existing departments of Aging, Health, Human Services and Drug and Alcohol Programs into a single Health and Human Services agency was held in the Senate the last week of March.

 

The joint hearing of the Senate Health and Human Services, Aging and Youth, Intergovernmental Operations, and Appropriations committees heard from the leaders of the existing agencies, as well as Budget Secretary Randy Albright, Policy Secretary Sarah Galbally, and Office of Administration Secretary Sharon Minnich. Committee members were particularly interested to learn more about the timing, leadership and potential structure of the consolidated department, as well as any transition plans that are being developed.

 

Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs Acting Secretary Jen Smith told the committees that the naming of the new agency secretary would be a gubernatorial decision, and would not come until the General Assembly provides the statutory authority to consolidate the four agencies. She indicated that the administration is currently drafting that enabling legislation as well as the transition plan. Their goal is to complete the drafts in April, and at that time they will be sharing both with the legislature.

 

During the hearing, several Senators emphasized the importance of stakeholder input and the need to assure that provision of quality services remains the focus. Sen. Lisa Baker (R-Luzerne), chair of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, specifically shared her belief that counties and those who will be impacted are central to this process, noting that she had been part of the legislative panel at CCAP's Spring Conference the day before where she heard about both concerns and opportunities.

 

The House Human Services, Health, and Aging and Youth committees are scheduled to hold a similar hearing on April 5 at the Capitol. Both the House and Senate have also planned hearings with stakeholders throughout the month of April.

The House Human Services Committee recently advanced legislation sponsored by committee chair Rep. Gene DiGirolamo (R-Bucks) that will provide for continued human services funding in the event of a future state budget delay. The bill, HB 398 , specifically defines "essential services" to include the line items in the Human Services Block Grant, as well as county child welfare funding and any other funds for which the county provides services on behalf of the commonwealth. The bill requires funding for essential services to continue at current levels if a state budget is not enacted by July 1 in any given year. The bill was also amended to clarify the inclusion of child welfare funding as essential services, and to further allow the governor to designate other essential services related to the health and safety of the commonwealth.

Assuring that state funds are provided without interruption for critical human services in the event of future budget delays is part of counties' 2017 priority on human services funding and system reform. County human services were pushed to the breaking point during the FY 2015-2016 budget impasse by covering the state's funding obligations to avoid directly impacting clients. CCAP's full report on county impact related to the FY 2015-2016 budget impasse can be found here.

In mid-March, President Trump released a proposed $1.1 trillion federal budget proposal for FY 2018, which could have major implications for counties if enacted by Congress. Trump's proposal, called the "skinny" budget, follows the tradition of first budgets from newly elected presidents that typically contain fewer details than a normal budget request - thus referred to as a skinny budget.

 

The largest proposed cuts would be felt by the Environmental Protection Agency, whose budget would be reduced by nearly a third; of note for Pennsylvania, this includes a proposal to completely eliminate $73 million in funding for Chesapeake Bay cleanup programs as well as cuts to the Clean Water Act's nonpoint source grant program. In addition, the President is requesting elimination of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, with community and economic development activities to be devolved to the state and local level. Substantial cuts to state and local grants administered under the Federal Emergency Management Agency, such as the Pre-Disaster Mitigation Grant Program, are also proposed, as is the elimination of the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and the TIGER discretionary grant program for local transportation safety efforts.

 

The largest proposed increases would be directed to the Pentagon and the departments of Homeland Security and Veterans Affairs. An increase of $500 million is also recommended to expand opioid treatment and recovery services, intended to help implement the 21st Century Cures Act, which in 2016 authorized but did not appropriate $1 billion to help states and counties address the opioid epidemic.

 

The National Association of Counties (NACo) has done a complete analysis of the president's proposed budget impact on counties, which is available at www.naco.org.

 

In the meantime, Congress must also address the looming expiration of the continuing resolution (CR) adopted in December to provide short-term appropriations to federal agencies while a long-term budget is negotiated; that CR is set to expire April 28.

U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently delivered remarks indicating that local governments will be required to certify compliance with U.S. law 8 U.S.C. Section 1373 to receive Justice Department grants, and that the Justice Department will use all lawful steps to claw back funds awarded to a jurisdiction that willfully violates Section 1373. In January, President Trump signed an executive order that gives the Attorney General and Secretary of Homeland Security the authority to "ensure that jurisdictions that willfully refuse to comply with 8 U.S.C. 1373 (sanctuary jurisdictions) are not eligible to receive Federal grants, except as deemed necessary for law enforcement purposes."

 

NACo has noted in response that the Attorney General's remarks raise serious legal issues; Section 1373 refers only to the exchange of information related to immigration status between local and federal officials, and does not require local governments to honor immigration detainers, which is a separate matter. Further, counties are already cooperating with federal immigration officials per various federal court rulings, while also meeting the requirements of the Fourth, Fifth and 10th amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

 

In addressing both federal and proposed state action regarding immigration detainers, CCAP has also noted that the federal courts (see Galarza v. Szalcyk, involving Lehigh County) have clearly established that ICE detainers are voluntary requests, not mandatory orders. Counties currently follow all of the procedures required under state and federal law regarding communications with ICE in circumstances relating to questions of immigration status but could be exposed to costly lawsuits if they detain a bail-qualified individual in a county prison pursuant to a detainer request.

The House Children and Youth Committee recently gave its approval to legislation that would examine the impact of the opioid epidemic on children. House Bill 235, introduced by committee chair Rep. Kathy Watson (R-Bucks), would create a task force comprising the secretaries of Human Services, Health and Drug and Alcohol Programs, as well as ten other legislative and gubernatorial appointees with experience in medicine, behavioral health treatment, early intervention programs, county children and youth offices and child advocacy. The task force would examine the existing laws and practices related to diagnosis and treatment of substance-exposed infants, as well as permanency and placement of children at risk due to parents' substance abuse disorders. By Jan. 31, 2018, the task force would provide a report identifying strategies and recommendations to address these matters.

 

Following the unanimous vote of the committee, HB 235 is now before the full House for consideration.

Throughout the month of June CCAP policy committees will be holding their annual conference call meetings to consider resolutions amending the PA County Platform, in anticipation of a membership discussion and vote in conjunction with the CCAP Annual Conference in early August. County officials are encouraged to begin reviewing the Platform now and to send any proposed resolutions to CCAP Government Relations staff at PACountiesGR@pacounties.org, or to discuss them with CCAP policy committee chairs.