Innovations in Human Services Financing

Many funding innovations have developed in the human services field in the last decade. This paper describes some of those innovations, the trends in these innovations, and suggests other potential developments in the area. Funding innovations in four categories have developed - charges for specific services rendered, dedicated fees or charges, earmarked added-on charges, and earmarked portions of traditional, broad-based funding sources. Several trends may be seen in these developments. First, human service managers have developed considerable entrepreneurial skill, placing an emphasis upon a substantive connection between the funding source and the service funded. At the same time, they are exhibiting conservative implementation strategies by deliberately seeking out new funding sources that have been successfully tested elsewhere. Finally, the need for innovations in this area will increase as traditional funding sources continue to fail to keep pace with increased demand for services.