Sarasota commissioners agree to remove financial scoring, push for multi‑year contracted human services and application changes

Sarasota County commissioners on May 23 directed staff to remove the financial component of the contracted human services scoring matrix and to return this fall with revised application materials aimed at the fiscal year 2027 cycle.

The action stems from a presentation by Chuck Henry, the county’s director of health and human services, and public comments from local nonprofit leaders who said the application and scoring process disadvantaged smaller agencies. The county’s contracted human services program manages nearly $25 million in annual funding that pays for programs ranging from homelessness services to behavioral-health diversion programs.

Why it matters: The county’s contracted human services program distributes a mix of general‑fund millage, opioid settlement money and other sources to local nonprofits that deliver shelter, food, jail diversion and behavioral health services. Changes to scoring, contract length and advisory‑council membership will affect how nonprofits budget, recruit staff and plan services that serve vulnerable residents, including children, the elderly and people experiencing homelessness.

Most important facts and context

- Staff presentation and funding breakdown: Chuck Henry told the board the contracted human services portfolio is “about, 25,000,000, almost 25,000,000” annually, with roughly $15.8 million coming from the general‑fund/millage set‑aside, a little over $7 million from opioid settlement funding and about $2 million from other sources including court fees and interest. He said a 0.1 mill shift to behavioral health produces about $9.5 million for that purpose and leaves roughly $6.3 million for non‑behavioral human services under the current arrangement.

- Why staff proposed changes: Henry said the current application and scoring process — created and amended over decades — had become complex and in practice placed heavy weight on financial metrics that proved difficult to compare across organizations with different audit cycles and funding models. “Staff recommends retaining the application and application rating criteria, but without the financial scoring,” Henry said.

- Public comment and nonprofit concerns: Several nonprofit leaders told the commissioners the scoring and application timeline are burdensome and can penalize smaller providers. John Annis, a former chair of the Human Services Advisory Council, said: “You only pay them if they accomplish what you’ve asked them to do. This is contracted human services.” Peter Casamento, a public commenter, said the process can favor larger agencies with larger cash reserves and criticized how the financial weighting affected his organization’s ranking.

- Advisory councils and membership: Henry reviewed the Human Services Advisory Council (HSAC) and the Behavioral Health Advisory Council (BHEC), their duties and recent vacancies. HSAC is established to advise on non‑behavioral human services and currently has one health‑services professional vacancy; BHEC focuses on jail diversion, mental‑health and substance‑use priorities and had one citizen‑at‑large vacancy at the time of the meeting. Staff recommended keeping the two councils separate and recruiting to fill vacancies.

Board discussion and direction

- Removal of financial scoring: Commissioners repeatedly voiced support for eliminating the formal financial score and instead providing advisory panels with program budgets and audited financial statements as supplemental materials. Commissioner Knight summarized the board’s consensus by saying, “I agree with staff too is that, yeah, we eliminate that.” The board asked staff to return with a revised application for approval in the fall so changes could apply to the FY27 cycle.

- Contract length: Commissioners expressed broad support for multi‑year contracts to give nonprofits planning stability. Several members favored three‑year contracts with annual reviews of outcomes and financials, while one commissioner suggested two years; staff and several board members noted options such as one‑year initial agreements for new programs with renewal options. Commissioner Kutzinger said she “agree[d] wholeheartedly with considering a a 2 or 3 year contract.”

- Advisory councils: The board supported keeping HSAC and BHEC separate for now, restoring full membership and encouraging recruitment of members who bring relevant nonprofit, clinical and community experience. Advisory‑council chairs present at the meeting supported simplifying financial review for council members.

- Use of surplus funds and program priorities: Commissioners discussed how any surplus in the behavioral‑health allocation or the non‑behavioral allocation could be reallocated at the board’s discretion to address community needs such as expanding jail diversion capacity for women. County staff clarified that the millage dollars are part of the general fund and that the board may reassign funding through the budget process.

Implementation, timeline and monitoring

- FY26 vs FY27: Henry reminded the board the FY26 cycle was already in progress and that those funding recommendations would come to the board in early July. Requested changes would apply to FY27; Henry proposed issuing the FY27 application in January 2026 and returning to the board this fall with a finalized application and scoring sheet.

- Monitoring and payment: Staff said contracts require monthly reporting of services delivered; payments are tied to verified deliverables and the county can enforce corrective action or terminate funding if contract obligations are not met. Staff also said retaining program budgets and audited financial statements in the application would allow advisory councils to consider financial health without a formal numeric financial score.

Ending note

County officials and nonprofit leaders described the workshop as a step toward clearer, more equitable contracting and said they would work together over the summer. Henry will return with revised application materials in the fall for board approval so changes can be used for the FY27 cycle.