211 Database

This policy was established by the 211 Kings County Advisory Committee in accordance with the Alliance of Information and Referral Systems (AIRS) Standards. These Standards meet the criteria for Professional Information and Referral Services, Section II, Standard 5.

1. General Terms of Inclusion

To be included in the 2-1-1 Kings County Resource Database, an organization must meet ALL General Terms of Inclusion unless otherwise indicated. 
a. Organizations that provide health and human services/advocacy/education/ I&R defined as: “the activities of human service professionals which help people to become more self-sufficient, sustain independence, strengthen family relationships, support personal and social development and ensure the well-being of individuals, families, groups and communities.” (AIRS) 
b. Services must be available to the general public of Kings County and not
exclusive to a membership. 
c. Offers services for free, low cost, or on a sliding scale. (For-profit exceptions see below).
d. Is licensed or certified, when applicable.
e. Have a physical address and/or phone number.
f. Have a consistent contact person/people responsible for reporting updates to the resource database.
g. Provide 2-1-1 Kings County with updates of organizational information and services via phone, fax, e-mail, Internet, or mail, on a quarterly basis, or as changes occur.

Non Profit Inclusions

a. Non-profit 501 (c) (3) tax exempt organizations that provide a free, low cost, or sliding-fee scale services (health and human service, advocacy, or educational).
b. Organizations that are not eligible for 501(c) (3) status, but meet all state licensing requirements, including (but not limited to) hospitals, health clinics, home health care agencies, chemical dependency treatment programs, community counseling agencies and individual mental health professionals who offer a sliding fee scale or reduced fee.
c. Non-profit organizations that provide community service opportunities.
d. Non-profit organizations that provide volunteer opportunities.
e. Educational organizations within Kings County including (but not limited to) early education providers, elementary schools, junior high schools, public high schools, school districts and boards of education, and private schools that serve children or youth with disabilities or special needs.
f. Advocacy groups or self-help support groups that are related to health and human service issues.

For Profit Inclusions

For-profit businesses that offer free, low cost, or sliding-fee scale health and human service programs will be admitted.  If the business does not provide free, low-cost, or sliding-fee services then the for-profit business must provide a service not met by other public or nonprofit agencies in Kings County (Examples include, but are not limited to, board and care facilities and sober living facilities)

Local Organization Inclusions

a. Community and self-help support groups
b. Social or fraternal organizations which serve the community at large.
c. Churches, service organizations, and civic groups that offer a service to the community at large.

Out of County Organization Inclusions

a. Out of county organizations or groups that can provide service (i.e. phone, mail, house visits, Web) without the client having to travel out of Kings County AND are not adequately available through Kings County organizations.

I&R Inclusions

The 211 Information and Referral Systems below shall be included in the database due to proximity to Kings County.
a. Fresno 2-1-1
b. Kern County 2-1-1
c. Monterey 2-1-1
d. SLO 2-1-1
e. Tulare County 2-1-1

National Organization Inclusions

a. National organizations that provide services without a client traveling out of Kings County AND are not adequately available through Kings County organizations; for example, the National Runaway Hotline and the National Organization for Rare Disorders.

Disaster Inclusions

a. Permanent local, state and federal disaster-related resources, i.e., organizations with a formal role in emergency response, a clearly defined disaster mission and/or a history of providing services during a previous incident.
b. Organizations that have no formal role in emergency response BUT emerge in the context of a particular disaster, specific relief.
c. Recovery services that come to life in response to the specific needs of the community. These disaster resources are updated annually, immediately prior to an anticipated disaster and throughout the response, relief and recovery periods.

General Exclusions

a.   Agencies or organizations that provide services which are not available to the general public of Kings County, or which are available only to persons holding membership or status in a specific group or other organization.
b. Agencies that deny service on the basis of color, race, religion, gender, nationality, or on any other basis not permitted by law. (For example:  women’s shelters would not be excluded for denying service based on gender providing that it is permitted by law.)
c. Agencies or organizations that offer or provide services which are unlawful under federal, state, or local statute, ordinance, regulation, or order.
d. For- profit business establishments not described above
e. Organizations that provide free or low-cost services when their primary purpose is to market the organization’s main business.
f. Out of County organizations and groups that require travel to a physical location out of Kings County.
g. 2-1-1 Kings County reserves the right to exclude from its database any organization that 2-1-1 Kings County has adequate reason to believe may have a philosophy that could be hurtful to the well-being of individuals, groups or the community as a whole. Potential grounds for exclusion or removal from the database may include, but are not limited to, service non-delivery, fraud, misrepresentation, discrimination, or criminal activities.
h. 2-1-1 Kings County reserves the right to refuse to list or to discontinue listing organizations that have had serious complaints lodged against them with any regulatory body, with other organizations in the database providing similar services, with 2-1-1 Kings County or United Way.

Disclaimer

Eligibility for inclusion does not guarantee inclusion. 2-1-1 Kings County has the right to prioritize and limit entry. 2-1-1 Kings County reserves the right to edit information to meet format, guideline and space requirements.
Inclusion does not imply endorsement and omission does not indicate disapproval.
Information provided by organizations and individual service providers and included in the 2-1-1 Kings County database will be made available to the general public in various formats, including telephone information and referral, an on-line search-able database of services and printed materials.

Policy Established: April 29, 2009

Reviewed: January 24, 2014