The 2017-18 Budget

Analysis of the Human Services Budget

In this set of budget posts, we provide an overview of the Governor's 2017-18 budget for human services programs. We also describe the budget proposal in detail for the In-Home Supportive Services, Supplemental Security Income/State Supplementary Payment, and CalWORKs programs. You can use the menu on the left to navigate to the individual posts.

Overview

Background on Human Services

California’s major human services programs provide a variety of benefits to its citizens. These include income maintenance for the aged, blind, or disabled; cash assistance and employment services for low-income families with children; protecting children from abuse and neglect; providing home care workers who assist the aged and disabled in remaining in their own homes; collection of child support from noncustodial parents; and subsidized child care for low-income families.

Human services are administered at the state level by the Department of Social Services, Department of Developmental Services (DDS), Department of Child Support Services, and other California Health and Human Services Agency departments. The actual delivery of many services takes place at the local level and is typically carried out by 58 separate county welfare departments. A major exception is the Supplemental Security Income/State Supplementary Payment (SSI/SSP), which is administered mainly by the U.S. Social Security Administration. In the case of DDS, community-based services (the type of services received by the vast majority of DDS consumers) are coordinated through 21 nonprofit organizations known as regional centers.

Expenditure Proposal by Major Programs

Overview of the Human Services Budget Proposal. The Governor’s budget proposes expenditures of $12.7 billion from the General Fund for human services programs in 2017‑18. As shown in Figure 1, this reflects a net decrease of $ 356 million—or 2.7 percent—below estimated General Fund expenditures in 2016‑17. The budget reflects modest year-over-year changes in the General Fund budget for some departments and programs, while reflecting more significant changes for others, including the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS), and the non-realigned children’s programs. In general, the more significant year-over-year changes in General Fund support for these programs are in part due to various funding shifts that have occurred over the last several years. These funding shifts result in General Fund increases and decreases that are not necessarily representative of broader trends in caseloads and services costs in these programs.

A Closer Look at Total Human Services Funding. For those programs that are demonstrating more significant General Fund increases or decreases, taking a closer look at the total funding proposed for their support provides a clearer picture of their overall growth or decline. As shown in Figure 2, after accounting for total funding from all sources, growth or decline in these programs is relatively modest.

Governor’s Budget Largely Reflective of Current Law and Policy . . . Our analysis of the Governor’s human services budget proposals indicates that it is largely in line with the implementation of current law and policy. For example, the proposal adjusts for increases and decreases related to changes in program caseloads and the continued implementation of existing policy changes—such as the implementation of minimum wage increases in certain programs.

. . . With a Few Major Exceptions. Although the Governor’s 2017‑18 budget is largely related to the implementation of current law, there are a few exceptions to note. Specifically, the Governor’s budget includes the elimination of $45 million in one-time funding for a Housing and Disability Advocacy program in SSI/SSP and the termination of the Coordinated Care Initiative, which has significant fiscal implications for the IHSS program. We will discuss the Governor’s termination of the Coordinated Care Initiative and fiscal implications for IHSS in depth in a forthcoming report.

For more detailed information on the Governor’s budget proposals for SSI/SSP, IHSS, and CalWORKs, please click on the links below.