As DHS Cut Senior Nutrition Programs, Top Officials Got Raises

Top administrative staff at the Department of Human Services received almost $200,000 in pay raises in the past year before the agency cut senior nutrition programs, records show.

“These raises were given at a time when the economic situation was bad and getting worse and a budget shortfall was clearly imminent,” said state Rep. Randy Terrill, R-Moore. “In light of the raises, I find it hard to believe DHS could not find any way to save money other than cutting nutritional programs for the elderly.”

Records show 29 of the top 36 administrators at the agency received raises in the past year.

The pay raises ranged between $135 per month to an additional $1,894 per month. The pay raises totaled $16,380 per month and $196,560 per year. Terrill noted the pay raises were not approved by the Legislature and it is not known if those receiving the raises assumed any additional job responsibilities. Terrill likened DHS officials’ actions to AIG executives who received millions in bonuses after obtaining taxpayer-funded bailout money from the federal government.

“DHS has violated the sacred trust with our seniors in the same way many greedy Wall Street robber barons violated the trust of the taxpayers who bailed them out,” Terrill said. He said the case illustrates the need for even greater scrutiny of agency budgets as lawmakers revise appropriations due to the downturn.

“This unconscionable series of events calls into question the judgment of DHS’ senior management,” Terrill said. “With state workers facing furloughs or layoffs, the Legislature should scrub every agency budget to determine whether the DHS abuses are an isolated case or just the tip of the iceberg. Somehow, I suspect the latter.”

Even Demo State Sentor
Debbe Leftwich think this is
WRONG!

Oklahoma State Senate Communications Division
State Capitol
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
405-521-5774

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE –


State Sen. Debbe Leftwich said it was unconscionable for the Department of Human Services (DHS) to pass out nearly $200,000 in pay hikes at a time when the agency has cut $7.4 million from senior nutrition programs. Leftwich said while many employees at DHS and other state agencies are underpaid, raising salaries while cutting senior nutrition is the wrong thing to do. She applauded House member Randy Terrill, R-Moore, for bringing attention to the situation on Wednesday.

“This is outrageous, but it proves what I’ve said many times—DHS has deep pockets when it comes to something they want, like these raises. We have seniors who are literally going to suffer because of the cuts to the nutrition program, but the bureaucrats claim they couldn’t make cuts elsewhere,” said Leftwich, D-Oklahoma City. “This is indefensible.”

DHS has argued the raises were a necessary market-rate adjustment. Twenty-nine of the top 36 administrators at DHS have been given raises ranging from $135 to $1,894 per month.

“We have agencies that are being forced to leave empty posts unfilled, furlough remaining workers and cut programs, yet DHS proceeded with these raises. It’s just unbelievable,” Leftwich said. “For years I’ve tried to move state services for seniors out of DHS and other agencies to a stand-alone entity that will make taking care our older Oklahomans the priority it should be. As far as I am concerned, this action by DHS just underscores why they should not be entrusted with programs older Oklahomans need to survive.”

Legislation Implementing DHS Audit Recommendations Passes House

Legislation aimed at reducing the number of children removed from their home with the help of social workers and in-home services for parents passed the House today.

House Bill 1734 seeks to implement several recommendations of an audit of the Department of Human Services, including a requirement that law enforcement consult with DHS before removing a child; the creation of a passport program to allow information about a child’s physical and behavioral health and educational needs to be available electronically; implementation of a phase-out of public shelters; establishment of a centralized statewide hotline for all reports of abuse and neglect of children; and a reorganization of the department offices in Tulsa and Oklahoma Counties.

“The title is off this bill and we will continue to work with all interested parties to make sure this legislation keeps children in our state safe,” said Rep. Ron Peters, author of the bill and chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Human Services. “We will make it safer for children to stay in their homes with improved risk and safety assessments and increased home services for parents who genuinely want to take care of their children. These changes will allow DHS workers to focus more of their time on the true cases of abuse.”

The audit came after five months of extensive study by the independent auditing firm Hornby Zeller Associates.

House Speaker Chris Benge formed a bipartisan working group last year to study the issue made up of Reps. Peters, Kris Steele and Pam Peterson, Jeannie McDaniel, Wade Rousselot and Richard Morrissette. The group called for the performance audit as a way to determine what changes are needed to the system.

The legislation also calls for improved and expanded training for DHS workers to better assess the risk to and safety of a child. The change, coupled with the recommendation for DHS workers to be directly involved in child removals, would help to prevent children from being removed from the home needlessly, which puts undue burdens on the child and the system itself, said Peters, R-Tulsa.

In Oklahoma, the audit shows that 20 percent of children removed from their home are returned within one week of removal. In the Tulsa area, 40 percent of children removed are returned home in that same timeframe.

“The safety of our children is the utmost goal here, and I am hopeful we will be able to bring real change to the system with this legislation,” said Benge, R-Tulsa.

The legislation passed the House today with a vote of 87-8 and will move to the Senate for consideration.