Under JFS Scioto County Commissioner Scottie Powell wants to move Scioto County Children Services under the control of Jobs and Family Services and strip the Scioto County Board of Children Services of its administrative power, instead of moving it to an advisory capacity. He made the announcement at an emergency meeting of the CPS Board on Wednesday afternoon.
When asked if the decision has already been made, Powell said he had already drafted a letter to be ready at the next Scioto County Commissioners meeting. Commissioners approved $2 million in emergency funds for the agency, but not before commissioners criticized the board’s cost savings plans and even suggested it might be time to disband the board or privatize foster care in the area. Powell said, “I think the process is broken. It needs rapid change. Meeting every 30 days is not going to get us there fast enough. Commissioners to review it Thursday.”
He said if the board chooses to reject the changes, the county commissioners could also then override that vote. Powell says the board structure makes rapid change difficult. “This is not a knock on the board. I know there are several people who take it personally. What I’m looking at is entirely operational. It lives in JFS in 77 counties throughout the state of Ohio.
There’s a reason why. Under JFS you can have an action plan and not look at it next month. If something’s not happening and Jason doesn’t do something that’s requested by the end of the week, it can be addressed immediately instead of waiting 30 days.” The commissioner said the board could still have a role in raising funds and reaching out to the community. “I think the community knows there’s some broken processes.
He cited 70 kids still in foster care after the mandated 24-month time frame instead of being permanently placed.” Board members had questions about what would happen to staff members. Powell said, “We’re very mindful of that. What does that do to the team at Children Services? Quite honestly, what does it do to the team at JFS. These symptoms have been inherent here for years.”
Powell said he was uniquely qualified to help restructure the agency. “I’m the only one in the county trained to fix governmental processes. It’s the reality of what we’re talking about.”