Several families have attended recent commission meetings to voice concern about possible changes to services at the MCBDDS. Tuesday’s meeting saw a few families speak about how MCBDSS impacts their loved ones.
Sue White, a Montgomery County resident whose daughter is served by the MCBDDS, said she’s concerned about budget cuts at the county agency. She also questioned how the multi-million in levy dollars are spent.
“It just blows my mind how this money is allocated,” she said. “Something isn’t happening like it should be.”
Social Services represent 43% ($443.4 million) of the county’s 2024 budget. Montgomery County Administrator Michael Colbert said Human Services Levy dollars are allocated to multiple agencies that provide social services to residents.
In addition to the MCBDDS, the levy also gives funds to Montgomery County Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services (ADAMHS); Stillwater Center and other agencies.
The Montgomery County commission last year approved a $58.7 million budget for MCBDDS. The MCBDDS has projected deficits through 2033. This deficit could go as high as $14 million annually, Colbert said.
‘Fiscally negligent’
The MCBDDS could find other ways to stay within the confines of its budget, such as finding outside providers to facilitate services that are not mandated by the state, Colbert said, but the deficit pattern cannot continue.
“It is fiscally negligent for the DDS executive director, and their board, to continue to spend money that we do not have,” Colbert said. “We cannot continue to spend money like this because it impacts the entire social safety net and it jeopardizes all of the Human Services funding.”
The Montgomery County commission awarded $17 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds to MCBDDS after it declared a fiscal emergency in 2023. That one-time funding source, according to MCBDDS officials, was used to cover costs related to Medicaid waiver matches and other expenses.
This year, the Montgomery County commission with the Human Services Levy Council designated an additional $5 million from the Human Services Levy to continue assistance for residents with developmental disabilities. That money will come to the MCBDDS in January.
“There have been over three years to fix this,” said Montgomery County Commission President Debbie Lieberman. “And here we are again, in panic mode.”
Colbert said the county has offered assistance to the MCBDDS in other ways. This includes the transfer of IT services and mental health services to other agencies, among other actions.
MCBDDS Superintendent Pamela Combs said her agency declined the transfer of IT services after consulting with other county boards and her state association.
“I sought outside guidance in our field,” Combs said. “And different long-term experts within the field of DD advised us not to move forward with it. We have a very dedicated IT group that’s specialized in our systems.”
Combs said the agency’s IT department also provides assistance to families, self-advocates and providers.
Combs said the agency also has direct mental health service providers who are trained in helping people with developmental disabilities. She said the program is small, and many clients have already been transferred, but the agency is still deciding how to continue the program.
Combs also said that county developmental disabilities boards follow a model outlined in state code, adding strict restrictions to what business model the MCBDDS can operate under.
New board members
The MCBDDS has also been contemplating the pursuit of additional levy dollars. Lieberman said the commission is not opposed to the MCBDDS pursuing its own levy.
At its Tuesday meeting, the Montgomery County commission also appointed three new members — Ralonda Holt, Valerie Jones and Heath MacAlpine — to the county developmental disabilities board. These members replace three existing members who had expiring terms.
Colbert said the three new board members, who will serve on the MCBDDS through 2028, will bring “fiscal accountability” with them.
“It takes leadership to make those tough decisions,” Colbert said. “The executive director and their board must get in the room and prepare a set of fiscal projections that get the DDS budget back in line.”
Combs said families served by her agency are continuing to voice nervousness over proposed budget cuts.
“I really want to collaborate with the county,” she said. “We need their help in figuring out a path forward with this funding crisis. We do want to move forward, and it needs to meet the vision and mission of the Board of Developmental Disabilities.”
About the Author
