GREENVILLE – The Darke County Board of Commissioners met on Thursday to sign a proclamation to declare August 2023 as Child Support Awareness Month.
The Child Support Enforcement Agency of Darke County Job and Family Services brought this proclamation to the board and asked them to sign it to state that August is Child Support Awareness Month.
Through June, the CSEA served 2,894 children and 3,667 parents. Darke County averages around $7 Million per year collected in child support. Darke County is in the top 20% of counties in Ohio in dollars per case that the CSEA collects.
“One in three children are involved in the child support program in the state of Ohio,” Rhonda McKinnis of CSEA said. “Four out of ten of those children are born to unmarried parents. 1.7 billion dollars was collected in Ohio in the fiscal year of 2022.”
As of the end of June, the CSEA has 2,447 active cases, and at this point in the year, around 61% of those cases are currently being paid.
“We are just asking everyone to keep in mind in August, the children and that we are collecting money to help them,” McKinnis said.
August 2nd, wear green for child support awareness day.
The proclamation states:
” Whereas, we recognize that the well-being of Ohio’s Children and families relies on adequate financial support; and
Whereas, we recognize and commend the efforts of those parents who are committed to fulfilling their moral, financial, and legal obligation to provide support; and
Whereas, we recognize that Non-Custodial Parents sometimes face barriers to meeting their obligations, and some require services and assistance to do so; and
Whereas, we acknowledge that providing an effective Child Support Enforcement System requires the commitment, leadership, and collaborative efforts of our courts, government agencies, parents, and legislators;
Now, therefore, we, The Darke County Board of Commissioners of Darke County, Ohio, do hereby proclaim August 2023 as Child Support Awareness Month, embracing the Statewide theme that “Support is the Key,” acknowledging the efforts of our local Child Support Enforcement Agency, and encouraging all citizens, whose live are impacted by the need to provide support to a child, to join the efforts to improve the lives of our children and families of Darke County. ”
All three commissioners signed.
