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Woodbury County applying to be on own for mental health services

Sioux City Journal - 3/21/2018

SIOUX CITY | Woodbury County is hoping for a decision from the Iowa Department of Human Resources in the coming weeks on a key limbo-year question posed by the County Board of Supervisors.

The supervisors on Tuesday voted to apply to the IDHS for an exemption from the state requirement to be in a regional service system for the delivery of mental health and disability services to low-income and other people.

The supervisors are looking to leave the three-county Sioux Rivers Regional Mental Health and Disability Services for the seven-county Rolling Hills Community Service Region. But there is one year before that may happen, so they want Woodbury County to function as a solo county beginning July 1, for fiscal year 2018-19.

"This will help us move forward in this interim year," Supervisor Jeremy Taylor said.

Taylor led the Tuesday discussions dealing with the process of exiting Sioux Rivers. Taylor said that departure is necessary, since there is a poor relationship with Sioux and Plymouth counties in the agency.

Taylor Goodvin, executive director of the Taxpayer Research Council, asked what would happen if the state department didn't give an answer by July 1.

Taylor said the timing for a decision from IDHS is likely to proceed in a timely fashion. He has been talking for months with state agency officials, including director Jerry Foxhoven.

"I had a good conversation with Director Foxhoven last week and believe they will move quickly," Taylor said.

The state changed from a county-based to a regional method of delivering mental health services for low-income people and others in 2014, and counties joined together into regions. Woodbury, Sioux and Plymouth counties formed the Sioux Rivers group.

DHS oversees the division of counties into regions. Only Polk County, the largest county in Iowa, has been allowed to work alone.

The county vote was 3-1 Tuesday. After asking what would be wrong with trying to get state approval to be a solo county "forever," Supervisor Marty Pottebaum cast the sole dissenting vote. Those voting affirmatively were Taylor, Rocky De Witt and Matthew Ung.

The Rolling Hills governance board on March 7 said it is agreeable to adding Woodbury County as an eighth county to the mental health agency. However, in a piece that wasn't expected, the region's board members said Woodbury County should be added one year later than previously discussed, on July 1, 2019, rather than in 2018.

That step created a limbo year for Woodbury County, in terms of what region the county fits within.

Mark Loutsch, who is chairman of the Sioux Rivers governance board, in a Journal interview a few days ago said conversations among Plymouth and Sioux board members shows that they want to function as a two-county region.

There is no certainty Woodbury County will ultimately be in Rolling Hills by 2019. The process is that three separate votes are required in order for Woodbury County to join Rolling Hills -- one taken Wednesday by the Rolling Hills board to forward the recommendation to the seven county boards of supervisors, a majority vote by those boards over the next few weeks, then a final majority vote by the Rolling Hills governing body.

Therefore, the Rolling Hills board was slated to also meet on Tuesday to create the resolution that the seven county boards will vote upon. Once that goes to the counties within roughly the next 60 days, the expectation is that they will vote on it within 30 more days, meaning a final resolution could take another three months.

Rolling Hills Community Service Region is comprised of Buena Vista, Sac, Calhoun, Carroll, Cherokee, Crawford and Ida counties.