By Cheryl Splain, KnoxPages.com Reporter
MOUNT VERNON — While Gov. John Kasich’s goal of moving Ohioans up and out of poverty by getting them back to work is not in dispute, the details of how that will be done may be challenging.
Matthew Kurtz, director of Knox County Job & Family Services, told County Commissioners Teresa Bemiller and Roger Reed “we know going in” that complying with Kasich’s Comprehensive Case Management Employment program will be difficult. CCME combines Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) money with Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) money.
Kurtz said that “the fly in the ointment” is that the funding streams for the two programs are different, the outcome measurements are different and the programs target different individuals. If local Job & Family Services agencies do not comply with CCME, they will lose the funding.
Designed with a holistic approach in mind, CCME seeks to link independent human services programs such as child care, housing and behavioral health with workforce initiatives, thus creating a coordinated approach to lifting Ohioans out of poverty. Counties will be required to meet certain outcomes based on this model.
“We are concerned whether we are able to get the outcomes the state wants,” said Kurtz. He also said that at least initially, counties will be held harmless if they do not meet the measurement standards.
The program goes into effect July 1.