Kinship caregivers urge Ohio to raise payments, restore $10 million program

Multiple kinship caregivers and advocates urged the House Children and Human Services Committee to increase state support for relatives caring for children, saying current assistance is insufficient and urges would reduce foster placements.

Larry Bresler, representing Northern Ohioans for Budget Legislation Equality (NOBL), asked the committee to increase kinship-care payments and restore previously eliminated support. He said the last budget cut $10 million by eliminating a kinship caregiver program that provided one-time supports such as beds and cribs.

Witnesses asked for several changes: raise the Ohio Works First (OWF) child-only payment to $600 per month per child; restore a $10 million kinship caregiver program; make kinship payments equal to foster-care payments; and expand childcare funding targeted to kinship families. Bresler pointed to House Bill 7 as legislation that “goes very far in that direction” and urged incorporation of its provisions into the budget.

Several caregivers gave first-person accounts. Celia Sossman read testimony for Angelique Cunningham about caring for four children without custody and receiving only nominal emergency assistance initially. Tim Walters, a longtime foster and kinship caregiver, urged parity between kinship caregiver support and foster-care payments and requested a line item equal to the prior $10 million kinship caregiver program.

Elma Laverne Dodson, co-founder of the Finland Guardian Group, said many kinship families face food, utility and transportation costs and asked the committee to raise OWF child-only cash assistance to $600 per child. Diane Howard and other speakers described long-term caregiving struggles, the lack of childcare support, and the financial barrier that prevents family placements that would avoid foster care.

Committee members thanked witnesses and asked staff to consider budget tradeoffs; no formal vote occurred. Advocates said increased kinship support would reduce trauma to children and avoid out-of-county foster placements that they said occur when kinship caregivers cannot afford to take children.

Why it matters: Witnesses argued that kinship placements yield better child outcomes and that insufficient support pushes children into foster care or group placements. The requests, if funded, would change payment levels and programmatic line items in the state budget.