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Job and Family Services details IT transfers, unemployment system replacement and TANF choices
Summary
JFS Director Matt Damschroder told the Senate Finance Committee that Ohio will replace its outdated unemployment insurance system with a commercial product and fund the work through an employer-side administrative fee; the department will also assume Ohio Benefits from DAS and consolidate certain assistance program oversight.
Matt Damschroder, director of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (JFS), described three major administration and IT items before the Senate Finance Committee: (1) program transfers, (2) the Ohio Benefits system move from the Department of Administrative Services (DAS) to JFS, and (3) replacement of the state's unemployment insurance (UI) computer system.
Damschroder said the executive budget proposes to move several means-tested household assistance programs (including the Community Services Block Grant oversight) from the Department of Development to JFS to consolidate similar program administration in one agency. He said local service delivery through community-action agencies and county JFS offices would not change; the move is intended to create state administrative efficiencies.
He described the planned transfer of Ohio Benefits (the public-assistance eligibility portal used for SNAP, TANF, Medicaid and publicly funded childcare) from DAS to JFS, noting that JFS already provides IT infrastructure for related programs and is a natural home for the system.
On unemployment insurance, Damschroder said the existing system is outdated and that the agency selected a vendor (Geographic Solutions) through a request for proposals. He said a new UI system is planned to go live in fall of 2026, and the executive proposal funds the replacement by allowing an administrative fee on employers' unemployment tax. "We are planning to go live in fall of 26," he said, and explained the fee as "up to 0.15% on the first $9,000 of payroll" which the department estimates would generate roughly $74 million per calendar year and cover system costs and maintenance.
Damschroder said the House version moved the fee from permanent to temporary law, which would require future legislative authorization and give a future JFS director the chance to justify any ongoing fee level.
Other topics included workforce and apprenticeship program performance (Ohio ranks third nationally for registered apprenticeships), child support performance (high federal scores for paternity and collections), and transfers of other programs into JFS. He said the agency would follow up with additional details and that the department is willing to consider statutory limits or sunsets if the committee prefers a temporary funding approach for the UI system.
Ending: Damschroder offered to continue discussions on fee structure, system procurement and opportunities to limit long-term vendor lock-in while JFS proceeds with implementation planning.
