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25 <br />Child Support — Existing Time Limited Child Support Officer <br />Request: Convert an existing permanent full -time time - limited Child Support Officer <br />position to permanent status. <br />Purpose: To locate absent parents by using the Internet and other appropriate databases, <br />as well as maintain a full service child support caseload. <br />Job Functions: <br />❑ Locates absent parents by performing extensive searches on the Internet and other <br />State and Federal databases. <br />❑ Provides intake; establishes paternity and support orders; and enforces child support <br />orders by administrative or judicial actions. <br />Reasons for Request: <br />In July 1997 this position was established as a permanent time limited Child Support <br />Officer with an ending date of June 30, 1999. This position serves as Location Specialist <br />in Child Support and provides the knowledge and expertise to perform extensive <br />searches used to locate absent parents. <br />It is important that this position be continued to maintain child support services. Among <br />other things: <br />❑ Without this position, additional time would be required on the part of the other Child <br />Support Officers to locate parents. This would not be accomplished as efficiently <br />because the location specialist has developed special expertise using these computer <br />resources. The impact would be to slow the process of locating absent parents and <br />collecting child support payments. In some instances, the impact may be that the <br />absent parent is not located at all. <br />❑ Having the remaining Child Support Officers perform the location function would <br />reduce the amount of time they could spend maintaining child support caseloads. In <br />addition, it would increase their caseloads. Since the location specialist child support <br />officer maintains a caseload, as well as performs locator searches, the average <br />caseload for Child Support Officers has decreased from 460 to 400. <br />❑ Under welfare reform, welfare recipients are given a specific time frame in which <br />they can receive benefits. After this period, the welfare payment is terminated. <br />Thus, it is critical that absent parents are located and child support payments are <br />received because the welfare "safety net" for children has been removed. <br />• <br />