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Richland County child support office reports meeting benchmarks, notes staff changes and budget posture
Summary
The county’s child support office told the committee it met federal benchmarks for the quarter, collected $1.15 million in current child support for the federal fiscal year and reported that Melanie was appointed director Oct. 7; the office also noted a recent state payment and ongoing cooperative transfers to other court-related budgets.
Richland County’s child support office reported to the Community and Health Services Standing Committee that it met all federal performance benchmarks for the July–September quarter and collected $1,150,000 in current child support in the recent federal fiscal year.
The report said staff recently attended regional enforcement training and that the office is pursuing additional online training in cooperation with the state bureau to raise enforcement capacity. The presenter said the office has been successful in maintaining benchmarks over several years and credited interagency coordination for improved case outcomes.
The director said she was appointed Oct. 7 and that she has been working with a state-appointed mentor as she transitions into the role; she said staff training on intergovernmental cooperation is underway and that some state aid payments arrived after the meeting materials were printed. The presenter told the committee she had received a third-quarter state payment “over $65,000,” although she did not have the exact check amount at the table and said she would include the precise figure in the next report.
Budget items discussed included regularly scheduled interdepartmental transfers for cooperative agreements with the family court commissioner and clerk of court; those transfers move funds within county accounts and do not change overall county funding levels. The office reported expenditures at roughly 57% utilization through September and noted several line items that slightly exceeded estimates.
Committee members commended staff for operational improvements and for maintaining performance despite staffing transitions; one member singled out Melanie and Charlene for “an absolutely outstanding job” in stabilizing the office during the transition.
The office will include the most recent October numbers in its next quarterly report and said it will continue pursuing state-supported training opportunities for staff working interstate cases.
