A: To address current Hotline and screening challenges, search functionality was enhanced and the system will allow screeners to approve screenings for referral movement without supervisor approval, except for Structured Decision Making (SDM), which must still be approved by a supervisor. A one‑page guide outlining mandatory fields was provided to CWDA and County Leadership for review and feedback. A final version of the Hotline Quick Start Guide & Intake demonstration was released on September 14, 2026.
 

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.
 

A: ELT received a walkthrough on August 24, 2026. The 60-day checklist can be obtained from CWDA.
 

A: Code freeze will occur August 24. In alignment with the September 3 Board of Directors decision to adjust the go-live date, the Defect freeze is now November 7.
 

A: Counties can expect the September V1.0 Production Simulation release to include a set of upcoming fixes that OTSI is currently compiling and preparing to share. This will give counties a clear understanding of what changes are included and what they should look for during testing.

Once a bug, defect, or story has been fixed, release notes will be updated so counties know when to go back in and retest the functionality. This provides counties with a clear feedback loop and ensures they can validate the new behavior as part of the Production Simulation release.
 

A: The State is still evaluating the availability of the testing environment after Go‑Live, and no determination date has been identified at this time.
 

A: The Project shared the Hotline Quick Start Guide & Intake demonstration, which was released to counties on September 14, 2026.

The one-pager identifies the mandatory fields required during the Hotline screening process and is intended to help streamline information gathering and documentation during a Hotline call. It also includes a recorded demonstration showing completion of the Hotline call and associated documentation, which took an average of approximately 23 minutes.
 

A: Additional information was released to all counties on August 31, 2026. For full details, see the Interim Guidance Document: Managing RFA, Emergency Placements, and External Systems Processes at CARES V1 Go-Live in the CWDS website.

To reduce impacts to the families and children we serve, counties will be permitted to complete Resource Family Home Applications initiated prior to CWS-CARES V1 Go-Live in the external system in which it was initiated until data conversion to CWS-CARES is complete. For systems with data conversion deferred to until after CWS-CARES Go-Live, conversion is currently anticipated to occur in July 2027. Once all active applications have been completed in the external system or data conversion is complete, whichever comes first, the external systems identified are required to be made inactive or read-only.

A: Guidance explaining temporary procedures counties must follow for Resource Family Approvals (RFA), Resource Family Homes (RFH), and Emergency Placements when CWS‑CARES Version 1 (CARES V1) goes live was released August 31.
At CARES V1 Go-Live:

• All new RFA/RFH applications and Emergency Placements must be started and managed in CWS‑CARES.
• If an RFA/RFH application is approved in an external system after Go-Live, counties must re‑create and fully process the application in CWS‑CARES so the Resource Family Home can be created.
• Applications already in progress in external systems can continue there through approval.
• Historical information will remain in external systems until data is converted after Go-Live.

A: For CWS-CARES V1, the worker will be able to document a screening for Supplemental Security Income (SSI)/State Supplementary Payment (SSP) benefits. They will also be able to upload any document to a case record such to support eligibility and tracking of youth who have social security benefits. As the Project and the counties identify additional guidance and practices, CWS-CARES will expand functionality to meet additional needs in CWS-CARES Version 2 and any subsequent releases. Thank you for your advocacy, please do not hesitate to continue doing so going forward.