CFPIC | Child & Family Policy Institute of California

Supporting Human Services in strengthening the lives of California’s vulnerable adults, children and families.

The Child and Family Policy Institute of California (CFPIC) is a private non-profit organization incorporated in 2004 as a 501 c 3 entity under the auspices of the County Welfare Directors Association (CWDA). The purpose of the CFPIC is to “advance the development of sound public policy and promote program excellence in county Human Services Agencies through research, education, training and technical assistance.”

Beginning in late 2000 CWDA was privileged to receive the services of the National Network for Child Safety and the Public Child Services Association of Ohio, with funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, for the purpose of assisting CWDA in identifying strategies for supporting and advancing best practices among its members. In 2002, reflecting on work that was being done in Ohio, the recommendation was made that the county Human Services directors consider establishing a private non-profit entity that could solicit private foundation funding to support their collective work. Over the course of many months similar organizations, within and outside California, were researched. Finally, in 2004, a Board of Directors was named, by-laws were written, and the Child and Family Policy Institute of California (CFPIC) was formally incorporated. Funding was obtained from the Casey Family Programs and Zellerbach Family Foundation to enable the hiring of an Executive Director and the establishment of an office in Sacramento. Since that time, the CFPIC has implemented a number of projects to support the work of California’s Human Services Agencies.

CFPIC has worked since its inception to carry out its mission in partnership with a number of other organizations, including the following:

County Welfare Directors Association
California Department of Social Services
California Social Work Education Center
California’s Regional Training Academies
California Institute of Mental Health
US Department of Health & Human Services; Region IX
UC Berkeley Performance Indicators Project
California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare (CEBC)
Alcohol and Drug Policy Institute
California Center for Research on Women and Families
Research faculty at California universities
The Resource Center for Family-Focused Practice
Philanthropic partners, including Casey Family Programs, Zellerbach Family Foundation, Stuart Foundation, and Annie E. Casey Foundation

Spending on County Human Services Programs in California: An Evaluation of Economic Impacts
This report by Beacon Economics and Berkeley Policy Associates found that county human services programs play an important role in our economy, generating on average $1.32 in economic activity for every $1 spent. In addition, federal matching funds currently available through the American Recovery and Reconciliation Act make cuts in state spending especially costly. Further, the results indicate that the hidden and indirect costs of reducing these expenditures are also substantial. Methods of analysis include an input-output analysis of program expenditures, and a literature survey of the hidden costs of expenditure reductions.
Download the report.

Foster Youth Education Task Force
Fact Sheets
Updated versions of the Education Law Fact Sheets and Education Rights Wallet Cards are now available.

CFPIC has worked in collaboration with Speiglman Norris Associates, Berkeley Policy Associates, and other partners and stakeholders in the design and implementation of the CalWORKs Child-only Study. While at its onset the vast majority of CalWORKs cases included an aided adult, over half of CalWORKs cases now provide aid just for the children because the adults have been excluded from cash aid and receipt of services. Concern has been expressed about self-sufficiency status of the parents and caregivers in these cases and also about the well-being of the children.

Child-only Study Report #1, analyzes administrative data from seven Northern California counties to answer questions about the prevalence of five major subgroups of child-only cases, the characteristics of family members comprising those cases, and parents and caregivers’ dynamics of history of receipt of aid. Report #2 and an accompanying policy brief, utilize data from face-to-face surveys with sanctioned and timed-out CalWORKs recipients to report on the composition, characteristics, and needs of those households in five California counties and to address essential policy questions.

A third study phase, focused on child well-being, is in the design stage. For additional information email Richard Speiglman, project director, at richard@snassoc.com