The Boulder County Department of Housing and Human Services (DHHS) announced Thursday that it is facing a budget shortfall of about $4.5 million and is planning a host of staffing and service reductions, many of which will hurt the county’s neediest families.

The cuts come after a year in which the department has been serving thousands more county residents than usual, due to the economic downturn, and had successfully secured federal stimulus funding to extend its services to meet that need.

DHHS Director Frank Alexander told Boulder Weekly Thursday that the cuts will primarily affect the Family and Children Services Division and Temporary Aid to Needy Families (TANF), which used to be more commonly known as “welfare.”

“We simply can’t stave off the cuts any more,” he says. “But we’re trying to do it in a way that minimizes the effects on the community.”

The budget reductions could mean staff layoffs, depending on how many employees take advantage of early retirement incentives by March 22. Alexander says the department needs to reduce staffing by the equivalent of 25 full-time positions, and any layoffs that are necessary will be announced in early April.

“I understand that staff would like those answers now,” he says, adding that the department must wait until the employee retirements are identified to determine where the staffing gaps exist and what adjustments will be made to address them.   

He lauded his staff for their hard work during a period in which the department has been helping so many more people in the community experiencing financial hardship.

“I think the staff have performed heroically during the downturn,” Alexander says, adding that the department has seen a 50 percent increase in the number of families seeking help over the past year. “They have been doing tremendous work in the community during a difficult time.”

The county residents who will feel the pinch of the cuts include those participating in job training programs with Workforce Boulder County, Alexander says, since DHHS is reducing its TANF funding for that contract by 20 percent, or $400,000. The department had seen a 40-percent increase in those participating in such programs over the past year, he adds.

The department is also eliminating the TANF funding that has been supplementing child welfare core services, which Alexander says contributes to efforts such as re-unifying families and keeping children out of foster homes.

In addition, childcare subsidies will be reduced by $613,000, and the department is enacting a hiring freeze.

According to a news release, the department is also converting contracts into fee-for-service agreements, placing a moratorium on the purchase of non-essential equipment and “reducing the length of stay and levels of care provided to children in the department’s custody where appropriate.”

According to the release, the department will continue to maintain a level of service consistent with national standards for providing assistance to children and families.

To generate $1 million in savings in the last year, DHHS left staff positions unfilled and enhanced efficiencies. In addition, the department reduced childcare subsidies effective Jan. 1.

“It has been a difficult process to come to the decisions we had to make this week knowing the essential safety net role we have in the community,” Alexander said in the release. “Every measure taken from here on out to reach our savings target will be even more difficult.”

Alexander told Boulder Weekly that the need to make the cuts was caused by a variety of factors related to the recession, including a reduction in state funding and an increase in the number of clients needing services. In addition, he points to SB 177, a bill passed in 2008 that forced the county to spend down its federal funding reserves.

Still, Alexander says he is proud that the department gained stimulus funds over the past 12 months to boost resources for childcare, food stamps, weatherization of homes and homelessness prevention. He says the DHHS has been aggressively helping people gain access to health care and food.

Unfortunately, he concludes, “We have to live within our means.”