You asked which municipalities have separate social services departments. You also asked us to select a few Fairfield County towns with these departments and population sizes similar to Greenwich (61,000 in 2003) and report on the types of services they provide. For these towns, we have also included median household income information that, in addition to population size, could be an indicator of a community’s need for social services. Greenwich household median income in 1999 was $ 99,086.

SUMMARY

According to a 2003 survey by the Connecticut Local Administrators of Social Services (CLASS), 127 municipalities (75%) had separate social services/human services departments. The remaining 42 towns made referrals for these services, usually to the closest Department of Social Services (DSS) office or a community action agency, to name just two.

Only two of the 23 Fairfield County towns have populations that are within 23,000 people of Greenwich’s 61,000 and separate social services departments: Danbury and Fairfield. The services these departments offer range from counseling, to job search skills, to referrals to state, federal, and community resources.

TOWNS WITH SEPARATE SOCIAL SERVICES/HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENTS

Table 1 indicates which of Connecticut’s 169 towns have separate social services departments. Please note that Hartford (pop. 124,000), which does not have a separate department, contracts with a number of community providers for many social services. It also has separate departments that serve the elderly and youth. Likewise, Meriden, a city of 58,200, offers social services under a larger, umbrella Department of Health and Human Services. Other towns that reported not having these departments could have similar arrangements.

Table 1: Municipalities with Separate Social Services Departments

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FAIRFIELD COUNTY MUNICIPALITIES’ SOCIAL SERVICE DEPARTMENTS

Danbury (pop. 75,000; median household income in 1999-$ 53,664)

According to the city’s website, Danbury’s Department of Welfare and Social Services is responsible for assessing the need for, and providing a broad range of, social services in the community. Among other services, it provides:

FY 2004-05 Budget: $ 312,097 (plus an additional $ 142,000 for the homeless shelter and $ 190,000 for supportive housing).

Staff: Seven full-time; two part-time (shelter has three of the full-time and one of the part-time) employees.

Fairfield (pop. 57,400; median household income in 1999--$ 83,512)

Fairfield has a separate social services department that offers a variety of services. These include:

FY 2004-05 Budget: $ 158,093

Staff: Three part-time employees

RELIABILITY OF CLASS SURVEY

We are not sure about the reliability of the CLASS survey. We contacted two Fairfield County towns that were listed as having separate departments and were told they did not, reducing the number of towns to 125. We believe part of the discrepancy is due to the fact that the state took over administration of the general assistance program in the late 1990s, at which time many towns eliminated or reorganized their social services departments in response.

According to the CLASS survey, two of the 23 cities and towns in Fairfield County, Sherman and Norwalk, did not have separate social services departments. But, as indicated above, we learned that an additional two (Shelton and Stratford) do not have these departments, although Stratford designates one employee as a social services liaison and the town’s senior, health, and community services departments offer social services, including help with energy assistance. People living in Sherman and Norwalk who need services are referred to DSS or the Salvation Army, and Norwalk Economic Opportunities Now (NEON), a community action agency, respectively.

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