Ulster County to move Youth Bureau administration into Department of Social Services; public hearing set

The Ulster County committee voted to set a public hearing on proposed local law number 9 to administratively place the Youth Bureau inside the Department of Social Services while maintaining a legislatively approved Youth Bureau director.
Deputy Executive Amenta framed the change as largely administrative: the Youth Bureau is a two-person operation that oversees large contracting and programming obligations countywide, and the county has increasingly relied on DSS for administrative support. The proposal, Amenta said, formalizes an existing arrangement and mirrors similar structures used elsewhere in New York state, including Dutchess County. The plan keeps the Youth Bureau director role as a legislatively approved position while moving day-to-day administrative functions and fiscal processing under DSS.
Legislator McCullough and other members described direct observations of Youth Bureau activity at motels and summer programming; deputy executives confirmed the Youth Bureau provides year-round after-school and camp programming in some locations. The committee adopted Resolution 3 82 to set a public hearing for Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025 at 7:10 p.m.
No changes to Youth Bureau programs or contracts were adopted at the meeting; the action was limited to setting the public hearing and explaining the administrative rationale.