Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Will text boxes in CWS-CARES have the capability for AutoText?
A: From our understanding, AutoText is a feature that allows you to store and quickly reuse blocks of text. This feature is not included in CWS-CARES Version 1. Counties could still use Microsoft Word and then copy and paste the narratives into CWS-CARES if they wanted to.A: From our understanding, AutoText is a feature that allows you to store and quickly reuse blocks of text. This feature is not included in CWS-CARES Version 1.
Counties could still use Microsoft Word and then copy and paste the narratives into CWS-CARES if they wanted to.
Q: When will the Project begin to accept requests for APIs? Pre-or post-go-live, or is that not known yet?
A: At this time, the Project is not accepting requests for APIs, and there is no plan to provide or accept new API requests before the CWS-CARES V1 go-live.
The Project is still defining the long-term API strategy and continuing to work with counties to understand use cases and business needs. As this strategy becomes clearer, the Project will share updates and outline the process for how and when counties may submit API-related requests in the future.
We will keep counties informed as soon as more information and timelines are available.
Q: Within documents, is it possible to redact content?
A: Yes, CWS-CARES allows users with the appropriate permissions to redact information in documents such as PDFs, Word files, and Excel files. All redacted documents are saved as PDFs, even if the original file was created in another format.
Redaction can be done in two ways:
- Manual redaction: selecting specific portions of the document to block out.
- Automatic redaction: searching for a word or phrase and redacting all occurrences at once.
Only users with the correct role-based permissions (such as case workers or supervisors) will see the redaction option, and access depends on their role and their access to the case or record.
Q: What is the time frame that CWS-CARES will retain a record of information that has been deleted or modified? For example, if a document such as a Court report is deleted, how far back will CWS-CARES be able to track when it was deleted? Will it be able to identify who performed the action? Will CWS-CARES be able to retrieve the original Court report?
A: Deleted data (including Court Reports) can be retrieved from the Salesforce platform by users for up to 15 days, and you can view details on who deleted it. After 15 days, system administrators can recover deleted data at any time.
Q: Is there a plan for dedicated counties once CWS-CARES V1 goes live with Tableau? Will there be a similar set up- or will the process be different?
A: Yes, CWDS will establish network connectivity (including CARES SFTP Service) for dedicated counties. Please reference the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) page on the CWDS website for the August 12, 2025 TAC Meeting resources. This meeting shared information on the CWS-CARES SFTP service and set-up.
Q: Can we get information about the document management tools we will be receiving? From recent CWDS bulletins, we understand counties will be using DocuEdge, but without more technical specifications counties cannot adequately assess impacts to our current imaging\document management systems.
A: CWS-CARES offers a robust set of document-related features including the ability to generate, upload, view, edit, download, print, redact, and merge documents. Appropriate access controls are enforced so that only the users who need to see the documents have access to them.
In CWS-CARES, documents are tied/indexed to key entities such as screenings, referrals, cases, eligibility, court work items, etc. Documents tied to the key entities can be viewed by retrieving the key record first and then pulling up the documents tab to see a list of all documents tied to the record.
Additional context on capabilities:
- Documents are indexed and tied to specific records in CWS-CARES.
- Document indexing uses an extensible and flexible document taxonomy system that is intuitive to use and makes saving, categorizing, and retrieving documents easy.
- Document lists allow sorting by Title, Category, Type, Uploaded By, and Uploaded Date.
- Documents can be viewed and managed directly within the relevant CWS-CARES context, such as screening or a case.
Q: Would we be able to use CWS-CARES allocations to make purchases?
A: CWS-CARES funding allocations can only be utilized for participation pertaining to CWS-CARES design, development, and implementation activities. This funding does not include merchandise. Please refer to the California Department of Social Services ACL 23-62 and CFL 23/24-03 for more information.
Q: Will genograms be available in CWS-CARES V1, and if so, is there an example of what they will look like?
A: Yes, the genograms' functionality will be available in CWS-CARES V1. The project team combined "genograms" and "family tree" due to overlapping similarities, and this functionality is fully built and currently in the testing phase.
Q: The latest workstation spec requirements list out a minimum of 15" monitor screens. Is this mandatory? We have some laptops that are 14" inches, and IT is wondering if it's more a resolution issue than physical size.
A: The minimum screen resolution required to support all CWS-CARES features is 1024 x 768 pixels. The 15” monitor size is a general guideline for monitors and is not mandatory.
Q: Will CWS-CARES Forms be Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant? Counties wants to know if CDSS would be providing any guidance regarding ADA compliance guidance/requirements to counties.
A: Yes, State forms developed by the project will be ADA compliant and follow the latest Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and ADA state requirements. Counties are responsible for ADA compliance for their own forms created in CWS-CARES. The Project will not be validating compliance on county created forms.