This report addresses (1) expenditures for the recruitment, retention, training, licensing, and tracking of homes maintained by foster parents; (2) an assessment of whether the Department’s contract process of home recruitment, study, and supervision is the most appropriate means to provide these services; and (3) best performance measures to evaluate the effectiveness of these services. Although contracting appears to be an appropriate method for obtaining foster home recruitment-related services, the Department should improve how it contracts for these services.

This plan responds to key trends, emerging issues, and community visions and goals. The Plan includes strategies and actions for the years 2020 and 2040 to address identified transportation needs, while being sensitive to possible future funding constraints. This Final Report provides an overview of both the study effort and the work products developed throughout the planning process, which forms the basis for the final plan recommendations. The planning process analyzed the existing transportation system, land use and socioeconomic conditions within the study area; conducted in-depth local stakeholder interviews; developed future growth projections; provided opportunities for public input; and included an evaluation of alternative future solutions.

The Division of Children, Youth and Families is the state administered child welfare services agency responsible for developing the Child and Family Services Plan and administering the title IV-B programs under the plan. The Division provides child protective services; services within the Promoting Safe and Stable Families program; family support, preservation, and reunification services; family foster care and kinship care services; services to promote the safety, permanence, and well-being of children with foster and adoptive families; adoption promotion and support services; and health care services for children in out-of-home care.

In fiscal year 2012, St. David Unified School District’s student achievement was much higher than peer districts’, on average, and the District was reasonably efficient in most operational areas. The District’s administrative costs were much lower than peer districts’, but the District lacked sufficient accounting and computer controls. The District’s plant operations and transportation program were reasonably efficient overall. However, the District needs to accurately determine and report to the Arizona Department of Education its bus ridership information to help ensure the District is properly funded and to allow it the ability to calculate and monitor rider-based transportation performance measures. The District’s food service program was inefficient, with a cost per meal that was much higher than the peer districts’ average primarily because of overstaffing and inefficient purchasing practices. As a result, the District spent $44,110 of its Maintenance and Operation Fund monies to subsidize the program.

The best setting for abused or neglected children who are removed from their homes is a family-based setting, such as with a relative or in licensed foster care. Because it is not family-based, congregate care, such as emergency shelters, group homes, and residential treatment centers, is the least preferred placement option. However, the number of Arizona children and the length of time they are in congregate care has increased and as a result, the costs for this placement type nearly doubled between fiscal years 2009 and 2013. Contributing to the increase in congregate care use is an inadequate supply of foster care homes; various state practices, including some related to permanency goals and activities; and inadequate access to behavioral health services. Although the Arizona Department of Child Safety has taken some steps to reduce the use of congregate care, it should consider other states’ experiences to identify multiple strategies for reducing its use.

This report summarizes the results of an economic impact analysis of the Rosemont Copper Project, an open-pit mining operation to be developed on a 15,000 acre site in Pima County about 30 miles southeast of Tucson. The analysis employed the REMI PI+ regional economic forecasting model to estimate the economic impacts of the Project for the Cochise/Pima County/Santa Cruz Counties study area, for the State of Arizona, and for the United States.

The Arizona Department of Transportation, the Arizona Game & Fish Department and the Arizona State Parks Board are required to conduct a study every three years on watercraft fuel consumption and recreational watercraft usage. The fuel consumption data is collected to determine the allocation of motor vehicle fuel tax to the State Lake Improvement Fund. The information on recreational watercraft usage patterns on Arizona’s lakes and rivers is necessary, in part, to determine the distribution of SLIF funds to applicants.

In fiscal year 2013, the Department paid at least $14.6 million for transportation services for child protective services clients. However, the Department does not use performance measurement to manage and evaluate these services, including overseeing contracted transportation providers. The Department should develop and implement a performance measurement system to evaluate these services and ensure that this system provides the necessary data to evaluate the appropriateness and cost-effectiveness of contracting for these services. In addition, although the Department has implemented some procedures to help ensure proper payments to transportation providers for these services, additional steps would help address internal control deficiencies.

This Land Use Survey, conducted for the Cochise County Planning Department, was designed to elicit citizen opinions about the future pattern of growth in Cochise County and land use issues in areas outside of City limits. This project is an initial step in the County’s "Envision 2020: Land Use Planning in Cochise County" process, developed to measure citizen opinions on how growth is currently managed in the County and how to manage future growth.