5-28-2026 Human Services Board Minutes

1 MANITOWOC COUNTY HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT BOARD MEETING MINUTES CALL TO ORDER: The Manitowoc County Human Services Department Board met at 4:15 p.m. on Thursday, May 28, 2026 in open session at the Manitowoc County Human Services Department, 801 Jay Street, Manitowoc, WI. Board Members Present: Bruns, Erdmann, Grambow, Klein, McDonell, Murack, Ruggirello, Schiesl Board Members Excused: Agnew Board Members Absent: County Board Members Present: County Staff Present: Ader, Fure, Johnson, Keagle, Kubec, Mutchie, Whitney, Williquette, Martell PUBLIC COMMENT ON ANY MATTER PERTAINING TO THE HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT: None APPROVAL OF THE APRIL 23, 2026 MINTUES: A MOTION WAS MADE BY SCHIESL, SECONDED BY BRUNS TO APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM THE APRIL 23RD MEETING. MOTION WAS CARRIED. EDUCATION TOPIC – DRUG COURT – Mandy Keagle Drug Court Coordinator Amanda Keagle provided a thorough overview on Manitowoc County’s Drug Court Program. Ms. Keagle reviewed the eligibility requirements, disqualifying charges, the services available, an overview of the program phases, criteria for graduation, and program incentives. Mr. Mutchie also shared some of the unintended benefits of the program including reduced costs in other programs and even lower numbers of children in out-of-home care. ELECTION OF 2ND VICE CHAIR – Doug Klein A MOTION WAS MADE BY SCHIESL, SECONDED BY MCDONELL TO APPROVE MIKE GRAMBOW AS 2ND VICE CHAIR. MOTION WAS CARRIED. FINANCIAL REPORT – Daniel Whitney A projected surplus amount given at the April meeting has been revised. The projected HSD status is listed as a deficit for 2025 of $274,000. Anticipated results for the 2024 WIMCR pick up session, estimated at $260,000, will not be available to HSD until December 2026. Since the timeframe is too far in the future these funds will not be included in the 2025 financials. REQUEST TO APPROVE QUALITY CONTROL POSITION FOR FOODSHARE – Lori Fure Lori explained the changes to the federal reimbursement for the food share program and the penalties the state and counties would have to fund if state error rate is over 6%. In response to many county resolutions, including Manitowoc County’s, the state provided funds to each Income Maintenance consortium for quality control positions. The purpose of the positions is to keep the Foodshare error rate under 6%. Our consortium received enough funding for 7 positions. The consortiums plan is that Manitowoc County fill one of the positions. 2 A MOTION WAS MADE BY BRUNS, SECONDED BY RUGGIRELLO TO APPROVE A QUALITY CONTROL POSITION FOR FOODSHARE. MOTION WAS CARRIED, AND WILL BE FORWARDED TO THE PRSONNEL COMMITTEE. DIRECTOR’S REPORT ON AGENCY OPERATIONS - Lori Fure The Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee created a subcommittee to oversee an Overdose Fatality Review Board. HSD supervisor Jerome Mutchie was elected chairman of that subcommittee, which means he will be acting as the coordinator of the overdose fatality review board. Our Economic Support unit uncovered fraud with two cases recently. One of them is being criminally charged and will be in court soon. The Children’s Long Term Support program (CLTS) had a state review of records. Our overall score was higher than the state average. This is important because the state has authority to issue financial penalties if our CLTS does not meet certain timelines. Director Fure reviewed current situations impacting our budget. We have had 4 more resignations this month. A position each in Economic Support, CLTS, CPS Intake and a casual CPS Intake worker. We currently have 13 open positions and are recruiting for 5. The increase workloads are taking a toll on current workers, along with the increased complexity and severity of the work itself. QUESTIONS FROM BOARD MEMBERS ON THE STATUS OF THE HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT None DATE OF NEXT MEETING: The next regular meeting of the Human Services Department Board will be held on June 25, 2026 at 4:15 p.m. The meeting will be held at the Manitowoc County Human Services, 801 Jay Street, Manitowoc, WI. ADJOURNMENT: A MOTION WAS MADE BY GRAMBOW, SECONDED BY SCHIESL TO ADJOURN THE MEETING OF THE HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT BOARD AT 6:00 P.M., MOTION CARRIED.