Performance-Based Contracting (PBC)

July 1, 2018, marked the beginning of the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) and the commitment to improving outcomes for families with Performance-Based Contracting (PBC). DCYF has been strategically implementing performance standards in client service contracts across three key areas: Services (the "What"), Quality (the "How"), and Outcomes (the "Result"), as directed in House Bill 1661.

Standards in each area are intended to link client service-level data to outcomes, allow for data analysis on services, and adapt to the needs of children and families as contracts adapt to change. The goal of PBC is to partner with providers and advocates to achieve DCYF's long-term child and family outcome goals.

Additional information: 

  1. Introduction to DCYF Performance-Based Contracting
  2. PBC Annual Briefing
     

PBC Program Areas

Listed below are current summaries for each PBC program area. PBC annual updates by program area are linked below to demonstrate how program areas are developing service, quality, and outcome metrics for their client population in contracts for client services. These metrics represent the PBC aspects of contracts, not the overall success of a program. All contracts have additional metrics to support success of the programs outside of PBC and are listed elsewhere on the DCYF website.

Adoption Services

Child Welfare PBC Annual Update presentation

Adoption Services reduces adoption barriers for children in Washington. This program provides out-of-state adoption services and adoption recruitment services.

Contract Cycle: July 1, 2023-June 30, 2024
Number of Contracts: one plus out of state agencies child specific contracts
Annual Spending: $607,000

For more information, please refer to Adoption Services web page as well as the Child Welfare PBC Annual Update presentation.

Early Learning PBC Annual Update presentation

Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program

The goal of Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP) is to ensure the growth of healthy, resilient children by committing to dismantling racism and building an equitable state-funded B-5 system that provides child-centered, individualized education and health coordination services. ECEAP programming includes the provision of Early Childhood Intervention and Prevention Services (ECLIPSE) to a subset of eligible families. ECLIPSE offers monthly home visits with families and daily therapeutic care with an emphasis on social-emotional learning for children ages birth through five. 

Contract Cycle: July 1 - June 30
Target Population: Children up to 5 years old who are furthest from opportunity.
Number of Contracts: 63
Annual Contract Spending: $184+ million

For more information, please refer to the ECEAP and ECLIPSE web pages as well as the Early Learning PBC Annual Update presentation.

Juvenile Justice PBC Annual Update presentations

Juvenile Courts

Juvenile court serve low, moderate, and high-risk youth (10-17 years old) with the intention of connecting youth to research-based treatment approaches to prevent recidivism.

Contract Cycle: July 2022-June 2023
Number of Contracts: 56
Annual Contract Spending: $3,396,799

For more information, please refer to the Juvenile Courts web page and the PBC Annual Update presentation.

Office of Juvenile Justice

The Office of Juvenile Justice (OJJ) provides leadership, education, and coordination of juvenile justice system improvement and reform efforts. OJJ leads innovation and collaboration to reduce the impact of racial and ethnic disparities throughout the juvenile justice system. By providing compliance monitoring, funding, and training, OJJ acts as a resource to juvenile justice partners. The system provides a continuum of prevention, early intervention, intervention, and rehabilitative services operated by local counties and state government.

Contract Cycle: July 2022-June 2023
Number of Contracts: 12
Annual Contract Spending: $1.3 million

For more information, please refer to the Office of Juvenile Justice web page and the PBC Annual Update presentation.

Reentry

The goal of Reentry is to support the successful transition of Juvenile Rehabilitation youth reentering their communities through post-secondary education, workforce skills, and job training opportunities.

Contract Cycle: July 2023-June 2024 
Number of Contracts: 7

For more information, please refer to the Reentry web page and the PBC Annual Update presentation.

Partnership, Prevention and Services (PPS) Contract Groups PBC Annual Update presentations

Family and Community Support: Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention

Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention (CBCAP) collaborates with Washington State organizations to fund and support capacity-building. The goal is to implement high quality family support programming to increase the Strengthening Families Protective Factors for families and reduce the likelihood of child abuse and neglect. CBCAP is explicitly capacity-building for primary and secondary child abuse and neglect prevention. Additionally, these contracts also focus on building the capacity of community providers to evaluate their services and use the results to make improvements.

Contract Cycle: July 1 - June 30
Number of Contracts: 13
Annual Contract Spending: $1.6 million / $617,500

Family and Community Support: Early Support for Infants and Toddlers

Early Support for Infants and Toddlers (ESIT) builds on family strengths by providing coordination, supports, resources and services to enhance the development of children with developmental delays or disabilities through everyday learning opportunities.

Contract Cycle: July 1 - June 30
Number of Contracts: 45
Annual Contract Spending: $111+ million

Family and Community Support: Home Visiting

Home Visiting (HV) provides voluntary family-focused services to Washington state’s youngest and most vulnerable children and their families, expectant parents and families with new babies and young children to support the physical, social, and emotional health of the child.

Contract Cycle: July 1 - June 30
Number of Contracts: 48
Annual Contract Spending: $16.9 million

Integrated System of Care: Behavioral Health

DCYF’s behavioral health contracted service array includes professional, psychological, and substance use disorder services to assess and make recommendations for services for parents and families. These recommendations support parents in meeting their children’s needs to remain safely in the home or to return to the parents’ care. Contracted service providers are engaged when services cannot be paid for by Medicaid and for parents who do not have insurance.

Contract Cycle: October 1- September 30
Number of Contracts: 117
Annual Spending: Not available

Integrated System of Care: Housing

DCYF’s housing continuum for youth and families consists of a range of services and supports including but not limited to transitional living and group care services for foster youth 16 – 20 years old seeking opportunities for independent living, connections to federal housing vouchers and supportive services for youth and families with child welfare involvement. This includes a multiagency response team that provides a statewide system level response for youth and young adults exiting systems of care who are at risk of or experiencing homelessness. Services are provided primarily through contracts with local community-based providers. DCYF maintains partnership with Public Housing Authorities (PHA’s) for the administration of federal housing vouchers.

Contract Cycle: October 1- September 30
Number of Contracts: 5-6
Annual Spending: $740,000

Placement Continuum: Behavior Rehabilitation Services

Behavior Rehabilitation Services (BRS) is a short-term intensive wraparound support and treatment program for youth with high-level service needs used to stabilize youth, coordinate multiple support systems, and assist in achieving their permanent plan or a less intensive service, provided in an array of settings.

Contract Cycle: October 1 – September 30
Number of Contracts: 36
Annual Contract Spending: $62,215,308

Service Continuum Combined In-Home Services

Combined In-Home Services (CIHS) improves family functioning to promote the child’s or adolescent's health, safety, and welfare; thereby allowing the family to remain intact, and children to remain or return home.

Contract Cycle: October 1- September 30
Number of Contracts: 70, including Network Administrator
Annual Spending: $25 million

Service Continuum: Independent Living Skills

The Independent Living (IL) program prepares current and former foster youth ages 15 to 23 years old to live independently by increasing their skills, knowledge and competency in key life skills domains. The IL program is voluntary and is open to all youth that meet eligibility criteria.

Contract Cycle: September 1-March 31
Number of Contracts: 10, including the Network Administrator
Annual Spending: $2.8 million plus CHAFEE funds

Service Continuum Family Time

Family Time strengthens and preserves the family bond to build strong, safe families and communities by providing high quality family visitation services through a network of community-contracted providers.

Contract Cycle: July 1, 2023-June 30, 2024
Number of Contracts: 65, including the Network Administrator
Annual Spending: $40 million

For more information, please refer to program web pages as well as the PPS PBC Annual Update presentations.

Tribal Services PBC Annual Update presentation

In addition to direct services provided by DCYF, Tribal services are funded through contracts with federally recognized Indian Tribes and other Recognized American Indian Organizations in the state, enabling providers to serve the whole Tribe on and off reservations.

These contracts include Indian Child Welfare (ICW) and Community Juvenile Accountability Act (CJAA).

Contract Cycle:  July 2022-June 2023            
Number of Contracts: 29 (ICW)  11 (CJAA)
Annual Contract Spending: $3,379,083 (ICW)  $53,767 (CJAA)

For more information, please refer to the Tribal Relations web page and the Tribal Services PBC Annual Update presentation.

Questions?

Jennifer Scacco, Performance-Based Contracting Manger, DCYF Office of Innovation, Alignment and Accountability:

Jennifer.Scacco@dcyf.wa.gov