Frequently Asked Questions
External System Monthly Meeting
Q: What updates can you share regarding progress on improving the reporting functionality?
A: The Project is currently assessing options to support counties and evaluating improvements to the reporting experience aligned with post‑CWS-CARES Version 1 (CARES V1) priorities and capacity.
Q: What progress has been made to improve the reliability and usability of form generation in WORD and AEM?
A: IBM is developing the top‑priority 2,400 county forms in Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) by mid August, and counties may create or modify forms in either format and upload them themselves. California Juvenile (JV) court forms are not allowed to be edited per JCC.
Q: Given the ongoing problems with payment delays, incorrect validation logic, and data mismatches, what progress has been made on improving FCED?
A: To resolve current Foster Care Eligibility Determination (FCED) issues, development and testing should be completed ahead of Code Freeze, with clear identification of mandatory data fields, automated resubmission and error reporting for interface failures, and full end‑to‑end payment‑processing testing. Additional steps include producing daily reconciliation reports and establishing a process that allows payments for voluntary foster care placements when a petition is not yet sustained.
Q: Given the issues with unreliable search and record‑management functions, including duplicate results and limitations with merge/unmerge, what progress has been made to address these problems?
A: The unmerge workflow is currently under development. This work was previously dependent on onboarding the new Service Desk vendor; however, due to contracting timelines, the Project has moved forward with development of the technical components of the unmerge workflow.
Technical testing will be completed, and the timing will be confirmed. Once the new Service Desk vendor begins onboarding in early October, the Project will work with the vendor to validate the end-to-end unmerge ticketing process, including routing, assignment, notifications, and the ability to support the targeted 48-hour SLA.
The Project deployed additional enhancements and refinements to the Civica Search tool in the Production Simulation environment at the end of August 2026, including enhancements to the “AND/OR” search criteria. The Project continues to refine search functionality based on testing results and county feedback.
Q: What is the plan for system cutover, and how will downtime be minimized?
A: The plan for system cutover, as voted and approved by the Board of Directors on September 3, 2026, is to switch CWS/CMS to read‑only on Thursday at 5 p.m. This approach minimizes the amount of time counties operate in read‑only mode and helps reduce overall downtime. Because the cutover occurs shortly before Go‑Live, final validation and remediation are limited to one day prior, which reduces the time available for pre‑launch validation and issue resolution.
For full details, see the Important Update: CWS-CARES Go-Live Date Adjusted to December 7, 2026 communication on the CWDS website.
Q: How will the ticketing system identify training needs and system issues, and how will users receive feedback through the ticket process?
A: The ticketing system helps identify both system defects and training needs by tracking issue trends and reviewing how tickets are submitted and resolved. Tickets stay open until fixes are confirmed, ensuring accurate visibility into recurring problems. Tier 2 follows established workaround guidance before escalating or closing issues, and users retest fixes or tickets close after five business days without response.
Service desk reviews and data analysis highlight where additional user training is needed and whether training-related issues are entering the ticket system. OTSI will also verify that current county messaging on ticket closure aligns with actual ticket behavior.
Through this process, the system provides users with clear updates while helping identify both technical issues and training gaps.
Q: Regarding the Decommissioning Activities Timeline, can decommissioning activities for external systems begin before February 2027?
A: Yes, decommissioning activities can begin prior to February 2027. Organizations (California Department of Social Services, Counties, Tribes with California Title IV-E Agreement(s)) are encouraged to begin validating fully In-Scope functionality in the Production Simulation environment. Early validation can provide opportunity to minimize duplicate data entry, revise and finalize business processes in preparation for Go-Live, and/or move forward with plans to set fully In-Scope system(s) to read-only or decommission.
Q: Is there a data validation process for CARES-Live Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths Assessment (CANS)?
A: Converted CARES-Live data will be available for validation in Production Simulation environment after Phase 2 begins in July 2026.
Q: Will out of scope external systems be built into CWS-CARES beyond CWS-CARES Version 1?
A: The scope for CWS-CARES beyond V1 has not been finalized. External systems currently identified as out of scope for CWS-CARES V1 will be reevaluated for duplicative functionality following the release of future CWS-CARES scope.
Q: Who is responsible for ensuring current Resource Family Approval (RFA) caregivers in Binti counties are informed about CWS-CARES account access? What is the communication approach for informing RFA applicants that there will be a transition from Binti to CWS-CARES?
A: Approved Resource Family Homes (RFHs)/applicants with an email address associated with their Binti account will receive communications from the Project and/or county regarding the transition from Binti to CWS-CARES and any actions needed to maintain progress toward approval. As part of this transition, RFHs/applicants will receive an invitation to the RFA portal and will follow the steps to create a CWS-CARES portal account. It is expected that information previously submitted in Binti will be available to them within the CWS-CARES portal.