BROOKINGS – The Brookings County Commission is considering the use of ease-of-access online forms in the Human Services office to save time regarding county indigence applications.
The commission addressed the issue at its Sept. 6 meeting.
Heather Murfield, Brookings County Human Services assistant, presented the opportunity to add online forms through the Jotform program and explained the benefits of offering online forms.
Using online forms would help the office determine indigent applicants prior to even meeting with them and redirect non-indigent individuals to other options in Brookings County. An indigent person is defined as any person who does not have sufficient funds, credit or property to be self-supporting, has no one who provides support to them, or cannot be self-supporting through work due to illness or injury.
Murfield hopes the use of online forms would also help reduce the amount of incomplete applications Human Services receives.
“When people look at our application, they’re a little overwhelmed and think it’s large. And I simply explain to them that there really isn’t that much information. It’s just us figuring out what your financial situation is currently,” she said. Online forms would lay out the county guidelines for assistance, and completion of those forms would help save applicants and Human Services employees time in handling the applications, Murfield added.
“I want this to be an easy application …. The people that are applying for indigence assistance don’t technically or usually have a vehicle or means to get to a bus and come to and from the office,” Murfield said.
Thus, an applicant would only need to set up an appointment to review their application in person rather than make multiple trips to the office. “We’re still having in-person, face-to-face application processes.”
Applicants would be able to upload required documents, such as a driver’s license, using a phone, tablet or computer to the online forms before even coming to the office. Murfield explained that, although not all indigent applicants have access to a device, that there are programs outside the county that offer phones or tablets for free or decreased cost.
One of the most common issues Murfield sees with applications are those who don’t list important information, such as the individual’s gross income. “This is important information that I need to assess that they are in fact indigent, and that they’re not just making up numbers,” she explained.
The forms also prevent applicants from making an appointment with Human Services immediately after they submit their application, allowing the office time to review the forms and send the applicant a link to the full application that can be completed prior to their scheduled appointment. Applicants wouldn’t be required to use online forms if they’re more comfortable with hard copies.
Commissioner Lee Ann Pierce praised Murfield for her efforts for the Human Services office.
“I really appreciate all the work you’re doing in the Human Services office and the effort that you’re putting into making things more efficient …. I’m fine with doing changes that make our Human Services office more efficient,” Pierce said.
Pierce added that she had some concerns about building a business out of the services offered. “What I don’t want us to do is build a system that makes us a social services agency where we’re encouraging more people to ask for our taxpayers’ money in order to pay for their living expenses …. We’re not the first place people are supposed to go to look for funds for their rent or utilities.”
Some local programs offer assistance that doesn’t have to be repaid, but county funds do.
Murfield explained that a questionnaire section of the application asks the applicant about prior contact with other programs.
“I make it part of my job, part of the application, to familiarize myself with what other agencies are in Brookings County and what services they provide,” Murfield said.
State’s Attorney Dan Nelson spoke on the transparency an online indigent application would provide to Brookings County citizens.
“Whether or not this is approved next year, the year after … this information eventually will be put online because that’s the direction we’re moving as county and municipal governments continue to try to be more transparent with information, try to make it more easily accessible. At some point, people have an expectation and I think it’s a fair expectation that this information is made available online.”
There were some questions from the commission regarding gathering data from the forms, which at the time was unknown. The commission postponed the ease-of-access online form approval at the Sept. 6 meeting, requesting more information be presented to the commission at a later date.
Contact Alison Simon at asimon@brookingsregister.com.
