State Fiscal Highlights
· The bill generally reflects the current practice of the Commission on Fatherhood within the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services and will therefore have no additional costs to state.
Local Fiscal Highlights
· No direct fiscal effect on political subdivisions.
Detailed Fiscal Analysis
The bill makes changes to the membership, staffing, and duties of the Ohio Commission on Fatherhood in the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) by doing all of the following:
(1) Increasing the total number of commission members from 20 to 23, including two additional members of the general public and the Assistant Director of Job and Family Services in charge of the Office of Child Support;
(2) Requiring the Commission to employ an executive director and permitting the hiring of additional staff as necessary to perform its duties;
(3) Increasing the frequency of state summits on fatherhood;
(4) Expanding the duties of the Commission to include identifying and funding specific fatherhood-related initiatives; and
(5) Requiring the Commission to prepare and submit an annual report that evaluates the fatherhood-related initiatives funded by the Commission.
The Commission was created in 1999 and, in general, the provisions of the bill reflect current practice. The Commission appointed its first executive director in 2008 and currently employs three part-time intermittent staff. According to ODJFS, the funding plan for the Commission accounts for the more frequent state summits and the expanded duties of the Commission. The Commission is funded entirely with federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families dollars with an annual budget of about $2.4 million. Members of the Commission serve without compensation, but are reimbursed necessary travel and parking expenses to attend five commission meetings per year. The two additional public members would be eligible to receive reimbursement for such expenses, which is likely to be absorbed within the Commission’s budget.
