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Richland County child support office reports improving arrears collection, hires Spanish‑speaking assistant
Summary
The Richland County Community and Health Services standing committee heard a child support update showing the office near its current‑support benchmark, progress on arrears, a recent tri‑annual review with a small number of findings, and the hiring of a part‑time Spanish‑speaking clerical assistant.
At a meeting of the Richland County Community and Health Services standing committee, the county child support director reported that the office is close to meeting its current‑support collection benchmark and is making gains on arrears collection.
The director said collections of current support stood at 75.72% as of June 30, short of the agency’s 80% target for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30 but above the statewide average she cited of 74.57%. She said Richland County ranks 18th in the state for arrears collection (the statewide arrears average she cited was 63.88%).
The director told the committee the office received a second‑quarter state reimbursement payment on July 31 of $56,823.05 and has received about 81% of its projected revenue to date. She cautioned that some of the receipts reflected incentive payments tied to performance goals and therefore are not guaranteed, and that routine reimbursements are claimed monthly but paid quarterly.
The office recently completed a triennial review, the director said. The reviewer conducted a virtual file review and an on‑site visit. The review produced a small number of findings of noncompliance; the director said she expects the written report in a month and that she had already corrected roughly half of the items identified.
On staffing, the director announced the recent hire of Jacqueline Hill as a part‑time clerical assistant (budgeted at 15–20 hours per week, a non‑benefit position). Hill is a certified Spanish interpreter, the director said, which the office expects will improve service to Spanish‑speaking participants.
The director also noted upcoming trainings and conferences she will attend, including a directors’ dialogue in Madison and a transport enforcement conference in Appleton. She closed by flagging August as Child Support Awareness Month and cited national 2024 figures she provided: 12,200,000 children served nationally and $29.5 billion collected by child support agencies.
Committee members asked no additional questions about the report.
The committee received the report as informational.
