House Community Budget Issue Requests - Tracking Id #1440 Supported Employment and Transportation for ADM TANF Individuals
Requester:	Duane Zimmerman		Organization:		Lakeside Alternatives, Inc.
Project Title:	Supported Employment and Transportation for ADM TANF Individuals		Date Submitted:		01/25/2000 5:32:09 PM
District Member:	Bill Sublette		Service Area:		Regional
Counties Affected:	Orange, Osceola, Seminole
Recipient:	Lakeside Alternatives, Inc.		Contact:		Steve Hill
	434 West Kennedy Boulevard		Contact Phone:		(850) 656-3100
	Orlando 32810
Project Description:
Lakeside Alternatives, a comprehensive non-profit community mental health center in Orange County, serves approximately 11,000 children and adults with severe and persistent mental disabilities who have little or no resources to pay for their mental health care. This proposal is intended to demonstrate the need and obtain support for an appropriation for Lakeside to be the primary source of transportation for WAGES adn TANF eligible clients, in order to facilitate and increase their participation in needed Mental Health Substance Abuse services and the Supported Work Assistance Program. This proposal requests TANF funding to provide transportation for ADM TANF clients, to and from their scheduled appointments with mental health, substance abuse providers and the supported work assistance program. The service ares is to include the counties of Orange, Seminole and Osceola. All mental health and substance providers within this area servicing the TANF client will be included as part of the transportation provided by Lakeside Alternatives, Inc.
Services Provided/Benefit to State:
One service to be provided will be transportation for the ADM TANF client that is currently not available. A major block to those individuals seeking treatment for a mental health and/or substance abuse issue is the basic inability to fet from their residence to their scheduled appointments. This inability to participate in treatment is a major obstacle for the individual trying to make positive change. Without a mode of transportation to their appointments, they will remain at risk and unable to sustain employment. The State will benefit from this service be reducing the number of individuals unemployed and/or unable to maintain their current work responsibilities. This will in turn decrease the costs of public assistance, and increase the number of employed individuals. In addition, those needing mental health and/or substance abuse services will now be able to receive the services that ADM TANF funding was intended. The supported employment services will provide the individuals with a mental health and/or substance abuse issue the skills and training needed to gain, and maintain, self-sufficient employment. We will train the individual how to look for a job, communicate more effectivley with employers, interview with potential employers, and to identify their unique strengths and weaknesses. Lakeside Alternatives, Inc. will also provide the ADM TANF individual with medication management assistance and training, employer education, how to deal with symptoms on the job, and placement services. The benefit to the State is a reduction in the roles of public assistance and unemployment; particularly within a hard to place population, which without appropriate interventions may in time become permanently unemployed individuals.
Measurable Outcome Anticipated:
The goal of Lakeside Alternatives, Inc. is to assist all ADM TANF clients that are seeking appropriate treatment in order to find or remain employed, reach this goal. In order to reach this goal, Lakeside Alternatives, Inc. intends to monitor the following outcomes. 1. An increase in the number of ADM TANF clients gaining employment. 2. A decrease in the percentage of ADM TANF clients on the roles for public assistance. 3. An increase in the percentage of clients receiving mental health/substance services based upon referrals made. 4. A decrease in the number of the "no shows" for appointments.
Amount requested from the State for this project this year:				$1,011,478
Total cost of the project:		$1,086,478

Request has been made to fund:			Operations
Is there Local Government or Private match for this request?				Yes
	Cash Amount:	$75,000
Was this project previously funded by the State?				No
Is future-year funding likely to be requested?				Unknown
Was this project included in an Agency's Budget Request?				No
Was this project included in the Governor's Recommended Budget?				No
Is there a documented need for this project?				Yes
	Documentation:	Comments of ADM clients and Lakeside Alternative's experience with client transportation difficultie
Was this project request heard before a publicly noticed meeting of a body of elected officials (municipal, county, or state)?				No