A. REDEPLOYMENT: Using the resources already in the
system.
1. Investment-based Redeployment: Where do the
savings from our activities show up? Can we get our hands on those savings?
(e.g. Family support centers increasing the immunization rate and decreasing
Medicaid utilization; family preservation decreasing foster care entries etc.)
2. Capitation: Can we take the money in a package,
instead of many individual streams and use money more flexibly across
categorical boundaries to fund prevention services?
3. Cut-Based: Can we cut something that isn't
working so well to fund something that is? Can we shave small amounts from
lots of places to generate resources for something new? (e.g. PA 1% cuts to
fund the first 27 family support centers)
4. Material: Can we use non-monetary resources
(people, space equipment) to meet needs in our plan? (e.g. outstationed
workers, donated space etc.) Can we barter for things we need?
B. REVENUE: Finding new resources.
1. Open-ended Federal Funds: Can we tap into one of
the remaining open-ended federal fund sources to pay for part of our plan?
a. Two ways to do this:
- Direct: Pay for the planned service directly with
federal funds and non-federal match funds
- Indirect (sometimes called "refinancing"):
Use open-ended federal funds to pay for something now paid with 100% state
of local funds, freeing those funds for reinvestment
b. Two principle open-ended federal fund sources
that can be used in this way. Each can pay for services and for broadly
defined "administrative" activities. (Note that they can be
politically and technically hard to access).
- Title IV-E: Foster Care and Subsidized Adoption
- Title XIX: Medicaid
2. Capped Federal Funds: How can we get a share of
capped categorical federal grant funds? These are usually fully spoken for,
but the best places to look include:
a. Funds which are increasing: (rarer but still to
be found) Head Start, Immunization, School to Work, Family Preservation and
Support Act funds
b. Funds with (new) flexibility regarding use:
Changes in federal education law make Title I and other sources more
flexible. Welfare reform has made employment and child care funding more
flexible; Waivers (like those used in the Oregon Option) have combined
funding streams.
c. Funds which are competitive: Many federal
grants are awarded competitively, either directly by the federal government
or through the states (e.g. child abuse prevention grants, family support
grants, community schools etc.)
3. State and Local Funds:
a. Fair share of revenue growth: How can we assure
that children get their "fair share" of growth in state and local
funding (or are protected in a fair way from cuts)? Children's Budgets (like
those in Los Angeles, Oklahoma and Kansas) can help make the case.
b. Competitive grants: Are there state or local
grant programs which can be used to fund the agenda? States often have their
own programs such as state-only family support or child care programs.)
4. Private Funding: How can we use the following
types of funding for parts of our plan:
a. Donations: Who are our current/potential
partners? How can they help? Businesses, foundations, private citizens (One
family support center has over 300 donors on its list).
b. Fees: Even small (sliding scale) charges can
help.
c. Third party collections: Is someone else
obligated to pay for this (e.g. health or other insurance)?
d. Loans: Can we use loans to help with program
start-up funding or help our community agencies get needed credit (e.g.
child care start-up) or help community economic development (such as the
Newark New Community Corp.)
C. RESTRUCTURING: Changing the structures and
incentives which drive the use of money.
1. Fund pools: How can we package prevention and
remediation dollars together to create an incentive to save on remediation and
invest in prevention (the idea behind managed care and Iowa's Decat program)?
2. Flexible dollars: Can we change the rules to
allow workers to use small amounts of money flexibly to respond to family
needs?
3. Incentives: can we change other incentives in the
way institutions and people work together to improve outcomes for families and
children?
