Commissioner's Office

Client Contact Number:
607.778.8850

Unit Description:
The Commissioner's Office is responsible for planning, organizing and directing all of the departments staff and financial resources.

Legal Unit

Unit Description:
Represents Department in court and administrative hearings. Advises and furnishes legal services in support of Department's programs.

Daycare Unit

Client Contact Number:
607.778.2628

Unit Description:
Authorizes daycare services for families who are eligible according to the agency's Consolidated Services Plan. These include families:

• On Temporary Assistance who are working or involved in a work activity.
• In receipt of Child Protective or Preventive Services as part of a therapeutic service plan.
• Who are working and earn less than 200% of the state income standard.

Daycare is available for children age 6 weeks to 13 years old. The daycare staff assists families in locating appropriate daycare facilities and then calculates and authorizes appropriate reimbursement to the daycare provider for their services.

The daycare unit is responsible for registration and compliance of Family Daycare Providers and School-Age Childcare programs. The staff assists prospective providers through the application process and completes required inspections. All complaints related to Family Daycare, School-Age Childcare or unregistered providers are investigated by the Daycare Staff.

Emergency Coverage Services

Unit Description:
The Department must be able to receive and respond to child abuse or maltreatment reports 24 hours a day, seven days a week throughout the year.

Two (2) staff are assigned, on a rotating basis, to cover this responsibility outside of our regular business hours. These include a primary worker who receives all calls & ensures the needs for immediate action; and the secondary (or backup) worker who goes out to initiate investigations as directed by the primary worker.

The primary worker also has the ability to authorize any emergency medical treatment needed by children in our custody or guardianship of the Commissioner.

Family Services Unit

Unit Description:
These units provide services to ongoing cases involving families and children after the intake assessment is complete. These units provide, arrange for, or monitor the provision of services to ensure children's safety and welfare. Services are provided to children at home, in out of home care (foster care), and youth in independent living status. The primary goal of these units is to assure safety, and well being of children with their families or in another permanent placement.

Intake Unit

Unit Description:
These units receive all referrals for Children's Services. This includes investigating all child abuse/neglect reports referred by the State Central Registry of Child Abuse (SCR). These units also receive and assess for Services all other referrals regarding children & families from other sources. These units provide information and referral to agency community resources, and transfer cases needing ongoing services to the Family Services units after their initial assessment is complete.

Office Management Services

Unit Description:

• Maintains database for open & closed Services files
• Maintains closed case files storage
• Processes all court reports and legal petitions for ongoing Services cases
• Maintains data on legal/court activities
• Includes community service workers who provide transportation for case related activities; assist with casework and clerical functions.
• Process agency travel vouchers
• Orders & maintains office supplies & requirements for Services Division.
• Coordinates CSW schedules
• Provides clerical support to other Services units.
• Assists with phone coverage for Services units.

Protective Services for Adults

Walk-in Schedule:
8:30am - 5:00pm

Client Contact Number:
607.778.2635

Unit Description:
PSA is a state mandated program provided to anyone age 18 or older who is physically or mentally impaired, is in danger of harm through their own actions/inactions or the actions of others, and who have no one willing and able to help them in a responsible manner. PSA recipients include the frail elderly, the mentally ill, the developmentally disabled, substance abusers and the abused and exploited. In addition to casework services, many PSA clients receive representative payee services, as they have been determined by the Social Security or Veterans Administration to be unable to manage their own financial resources.

Services System Unit

Unit Description:
Services System Unit is responsible for processing service type payments and detention placements; also sends referrals to appropriate departments within DSS and outside sources. This unit also tracks Office of Family and Children and Special Education placements to assure DSS receives proper reimbursement. The Services Systems Unit does assist clients applying for Emergency Assistance with reading and completing an application only in those cases where the client is either disabled or illiterate and has no one to help. The front desk staff refers the client to this unit by phone.

Teen Services Unit

Appointment Schedule:
8:30am - 5:00pm M-F

Walk-in Schedule:
8:30am - 5:00pm M-F

Unit Description:
This unit includes the TASA (Teen Age Services Act) component and the TANF Services Block grant. The focus of this unit is to provide services to adolescents who are applying for public assistance programs. The unit works with teens regarding housing with adult supervision, education needs, independent living skills and employment.

This unit is located at BEC, is supervised and coordinated with the Services Division, Family Services Unit I.

Case Integrity Unit (CIU)

Client Contact Number:
607.778.2519

Unit Description:
The department contracts with the Broome County Security Division for this service. Case Integrity is a support unit for the agency. Broome County Security Division employees are assigned to this unit to review all types of assistance programs to ensure that clients received proper benefit allotments. In addition, allegations of client, vendor, and provider fraud are investigated.