Independent Facilitator, Service Coordinator, FMS: Who Does What in SDP

Three roles surround a participant in the Self-Determination Program (SDP): the regional center service coordinator, the independent facilitator (IF), and the Financial Management Service (FMS). Families lose weeks calling the wrong one. This is what each does, where the lines are, and who to call for what.

The service coordinator: the regional center

Your service coordinator works for the regional center. The regional center is the agency that determines eligibility, writes your Individual Program Plan (IPP) with you, sets your individual budget through the IPP team, reviews your spending plan, and authorizes the services in it. Nothing gets paid in SDP without a regional center authorization behind it.

The service coordinator is also the person to call when circumstances change. A new diagnosis, a move, a change in what a generic agency covers, a wage increase the budget cannot absorb: these go to the service coordinator because they may require a budget adjustment, and only the regional center can adjust a budget.

Your appeal rights do not change in SDP. If you disagree with a regional center decision about eligibility, the IPP, the budget or the spending plan, you have the same appeal and fair-hearing rights as in traditional services.

The independent facilitator: your planning partner

An independent facilitator is someone you choose to help with person-centered planning, developing the spending plan, and coordinating services. The IF works for you, not for the regional center or the FMS.

Three things families should know about IFs as of 2026:

• The role is optional. You do not have to use one. Your service coordinator can perform the IF functions if you prefer.
• There is no certification requirement today. The Department of Developmental Services (DDS) expects an IF to have training in self-determination, person-centered planning and service coordination, but there is no license or certificate to check. DDS awarded a contract for IF certification in September 2024, so this may change; ask your regional center what is current.
• An IF does not approve anything. The IF helps you build the plan. The regional center approves it.

Whether and how an IF is paid depends on your spending plan and your regional center.

The FMS: the money, the payroll, the compliance

The FMS is the only vendored service SDP requires, and the regional center pays for it outside your budget. Once the regional center authorizes your spending plan, the FMS is the company that pays every provider in it: vendors, agencies and the caregivers you hire yourself. It helps with hiring, verifies provider qualifications, directs caregivers to criminal background checks, runs payroll and files employment taxes, keeps your funds sufficient through the year, and sends a monthly expenditure report.

The lines the FMS does not cross are as important as the work it does. The FMS does not decide how your funds are spent; you do. It does not approve or deny services; the regional center does. It does not supervise your caregivers or provide care. An FMS that files a Special Incident Report is meeting a reporting duty every vendored provider has, not making a service decision. See what our role is as an FMS and, for the most common arrangement, understanding the Co-Employer model.

The Participant Choice Specialist

Every regional center has a Participant Choice Specialist, created by a DDS directive dated November 4, 2021. This is a regional center staff member focused on SDP. If your service coordinator is new to the program or you need someone who works with SDP every day, ask to be connected to the Participant Choice Specialist.

Who to call for what

• "Is this service allowed?" Service coordinator. The regional center reviews for federal eligibility and generic resources.
• "I want to change my spending plan." Start with your IF or service coordinator to revise the plan; the regional center approves it; then the FMS updates what it pays against. See changing your spending plan mid-year.
• "My budget is not enough." Service coordinator. Only the regional center can adjust a budget.
• "My caregiver's paycheck is wrong." FMS.
• "A vendor has not been paid." FMS.
• "How much is left in my budget?" FMS, or the FMS portal.
• "I need help writing the plan." IF, or service coordinator if you do not use an IF.
• "I need a background check for a new caregiver." FMS. It directs the person to fingerprinting.
• "I disagree with a decision." Service coordinator first, then the fair-hearing process.
• "Something serious happened to my family member." Call emergency services if needed, then tell your service coordinator and your FMS. The FMS has a reporting duty as a vendored provider, and caregivers are mandated reporters of abuse and neglect.

How Sentinel Four handles this

Every family has a dedicated case manager. That person is your one contact for everything on the FMS side: payroll, vendor payments, invoice questions, the budget balance, background-check direction and incident reporting. We do not act as the IF, and we do not approve services. When a question belongs to the regional center, your case manager will say so and, where it helps, will work with your service coordinator and IF directly. We accept referrals from both, with a draft spending plan. Our portal shows your budget, invoices, approvals and payment records at any hour, so "how much is left" is a login, not a phone call.