This program has been developed by your County Executives and the County Legislatures to help lower the prescription drug cost for County residents. There is absolutely no charge to you or the County to belong to this program. This card was designed to be used if you do not have insurance or if something is not covered by your current insurance program. This card cannot be used in conjunction with another insurance program in order to discount your co-pays or deductible. Click the ProAct link under the Hot Topics section on this website for further information.
A Request for Proposal (RFP) for #1319VF - Traditional Preventive Child Welfare Services – is being issued Wednesday, June 12, 2013.
ERIE.GOV | Your information resource from the government of Erie County, New York
Welcome to the Department of Social Services
Rath County Office Building
95 Franklin Street
Buffalo, NY 14202
(716) 858-8000
Carol Dankert-Maurer, Commissioner of Social Services
Addressing Human Trafficking of Minors
The Erie County Department of Social Services has partnered with the International Institute of Buffalo (IIB) through a New York State Office of Children and Family Services initiative called the Safe Harbor Plan. The initiative is designed to build a localized response to child trafficking under the state-wide “Safe Harbor for Exploited Children Act” that was passed by the NYS Legislature in 2008 to redirect exploited children from the criminal or juvenile justice systems to the family courts. Once there, the children and their families can receive support and services from the child welfare system.
In addition, as part of the plan, services will be provided to victims of sex trafficking. Such items include case management, emergency temporary housing, health care, mental health counseling, language interpretation and translation services, job training, and services to assist in establishing a permanent residence. Erie County was one of five counties in NYS to receive funding for related services and was awarded a grant of $124,444 to use toward identified service components. Elements of the grant include enhancing community awareness, training and identification, housing, case management and advocacy.
Over the next several months, a campaign across Erie County will promote public awareness of sexual exploitation and human trafficking, with information being posted on billboards, buses, subways and bus shelters. ECDSS will work collaboratively with IIB as well as the International Office For Adolescents (IOFA) to conduct training for staff and external partners in Erie County. The IIB will create a brief training video to be utilized by all new DSS caseworkers as part of employment Orientation.
Human trafficking is described as a form of modern slavery in which perpetrators profit monetarily through the exploitation of others. Victims of human trafficking include individuals who are male or female, U.S. citizens or foreign born, and victimized through labor or sexual exploitation. Any individual under the age of 18 whose story reveals one or more of the following indicators may be a trafficked minor and therefore will benefit from a thorough screening:
The recruiting or moving stage typically starts the human trafficking process, followed by the captivity stage in which a victim encounters force, fraud or coercion. The “End” portion of the process includes the victim being monetarily exploited through means of involuntary servitude, debt bondage or sex trade.
Places of human trafficking of minors can include:
For more information regarding the issue of human trafficking of minors, or to report a case of possible exploitation, call the International Institute of Buffalo’s Trafficking Victim Services at (716) 883-1900, extension 323.
June Highlights
Free Summer Meals
Summer should be a stress-free time that is full of food, friends and fun. Free summer meals can help. During the summer months, children aged 18 and under can receive free, nutritious meals at Summer Food Service Program meal sites. Many sites also offer fun activities, so kids and teens can stay active and spend time with friends while enjoying healthy meals. Meals and snacks are also available to persons with disabilities, who are over the age of 18 and participate in school programs for people who are mentally or physically disabled. To locate a site in your community or for further information, please contact the New York Growing Up Healthy Hotline, toll-free, at 1-800-522-5006 or visit www.nysummermreals.com.
Vision Statement
We envision a community where children, adults and families are healthy and safe and enjoy a quality life. As a responsive and efficient organization, we seek to continually engage the community in defining the role of Social Services.
Mission Statement
To engage people in need and provide a broad range of efficient and effective assistance and services with community partners to facilitate a brighter future for the people of Erie County.
Department Highlights
A Request for Proposal (RFP) for #1319VF - Traditional Preventive Child Welfare Services – is being issued Wednesday, June 12, 2013.
Erie County children on Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) or who are in Foster Care may be eligible to attend up to two weeks of residential summer camp paid for by ECDSS.
Several programs begin in June as part of the Erie County Department of Social Services Youth Bureau's "Summer Primetime"
Erie County has been selected as one of six counties in NYS to participate in a nationally recognized, evidence-based Juvenile Justice System reform project launched in 1992 by the Annie E.
You may be eligible for Cash Assistance and other benefits.
Are you a foster youth, foster parent, agency worker, or family member who wants information about helping prepare foster youth to enter and succeed in college? There is help with applying for and obtaining financial aid for college.