| Delays in Contracting and Payment Theaten Services and Providers |
 |
 |
 |
| Monday, 06 April 2009 08:38 |
|
Last week, Mayor Michael Blomberg rightfully took pride in the fact that eight of his administration’s initiatives were selected to be among “The Top 50 Government Innovations for 2009”. Less innovative, however, is the continuing problems which many nonprofits experience due to extended delays in processing the contracts under which they provide City-funded services. At a March 25th City Council budget hearing, providers focused on the problems facing nonprofits which contract with the City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Particularly problematic, said providers, were contracts funded through City Council initiatives. “Unfortunately the City’s contracting process continues to be problematic, causing significant delays in executing contracts and funding allocation, disrupting the delivery and scope of services to consumers,” said Jason Lippman, Senior Associate for Policy and Advocacy at the Coalition of Behavioral Health Agencies in testimony jointly submitted with United Neighborhood Houses of NY, the UJA Federation of New York, and the Mental Health Association of New York City. “At this moment, two-thirds of the way into the fiscal year, the majority of providers have yet to receive their executed contracts, nor have they been allocated any funding. Many community-based nonprofit service providers are dependent on timely funding allocations in order to fully operate their programs, and therefore are forced to hold off on service provision until funding is finally distributed.” In his own testimony, DOHMH Executive Deputy Commission Adam Karpati effectively acknowledged the problem. “As of March 20, 2009, 27 contracts have either been registered, are pending registration with the Comptroller’s office or are being reviewed by the Mayor’s Office of Contracts; 22 contracts are pending vendor action either signature or submission of additional documentation, and 22 are pending completion by DOHMH,” he said. “DOHMH is committed to effectively administering these contracts by improving our administrative processes as well as the quality of the scopes and budgets for each contract.” The City’s late contract processing and delayed payments have always been a problem for nonprofit human service providers. Programs which are only funded on a year by year basis through Council initiatives – rather than “baselined” in the budget with multi-year contracts – have been particularly problematic. “This year, we were hopeful that when agencies were identified in the Adopted Budget for Fiscal Year 2009 for the Geriatric and Children Under Five Mental Health initiatives, that this would enable a more efficient process with positive results. This was not the case,” said Lippman. The implications of contracting delays for nonprofits and the clients they serve are serious. Typically, nonprofits must weigh a combination of factors including the relative risks and/or certainty that allocations and contracts will ultimately be forthcoming and their own cash flow capabilities to cover the upfront costs of services not yet paid for by the City itself. “They may have to wait to hire staff or only hire one social worker instead of two,” says Pat Goldstein of the Coalition of Behavioral Health Agencies. Ironically, this failure of the City to pay for its own mandated services can ultimately become a “Catch 22” for providers who increasingly are subsequently penalized for failing to meet contract requirements in terms of performance or levels of service during the term of the contract. Ultimately, however, it is clients who suffer. “Beyond the challenges faced by the provider community, the delays mostly impact consumers in need of these essential services indicators,” said Lippman in his testimony.
Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites           |
Comments