NCSEA 2022 Policy Forum Schedule
Thursday, February 3
7:30 AM - 8:30 AM - Breakfast
8:30 AM - 10:00 AM - Plenary I: Opening Plenary
10:00 AM - 10:45 AM – Networking Break
10:45 AM - 12:15 PM - Plenary II: Are We Hearing Them?
APHSA with support from the Annie E. Casey Foundation conducted a project aimed at better aligning health and human service systems to serve young families. Recently APHSA released Working Together – A Roadmap to Human Services System Alignment for Young Families which details some of the project findings, highlights best and emerging practices and makes recommendations to continue the work of system alignment. We will open with a robust conversation with parents, including those who participated in the project, and those engaging with the child support program. APHSA President and CEO Tracy Wareing Evans will discuss the yearlong project and the implications of this body of work on deep systems-level policy and practice changes leading to improved outcomes for young families and the significance of parent voice in shaping it. As part of this plenary, we will be joined by Human Services leadership from Louisiana and Michigan who will share their reactions, perspectives, and how they are approaching change in customer participation and engagement in their states. This Plenary Session will facilitate and provide information and discussion material for many of the other Plenary discussions over the three days of the Policy Forum.
12:15 PM - 1:45 PM - Lunch on Your Own
1:45 PM - 3:15 PM - Plenary III: Living What You Are Learning
Much attention has been devoted to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion since recent events brought renewed attention to systemic racism and social injustices against people of color in our society and institutions. The time for action is now but, what’s next? Are we embracing DEI with intention and purpose? Why is it important to all of us? Conversations with our guest speaker(s) will highlight how we can make a difference and how DEI can become part of our agencies’ culture now and in the future.
3:15 PM - 4:00 PM – Networking Break
4:00 PM - 5:30 PM - Plenary IV: When “Not Taking Sides” isn’t Neutral: Creating Equity in the Child Support Program for Survivors of Domestic Violence
Being neutral in delivering child support is a cornerstone of the IV-D program. The power and control tactics used by batterers must be mitigated through safety-informed child support policy and practices for the process to be truly neutral for a victim/survivor parent. Absent safety modifications, we have “taken the side” of the abuser, amplifying their ability to manipulate, coerce, intimidate, or threaten the survivor into forgoing child support or making child support agreements or parenting time arrangements that are not in the best interest of the child, not grounded in facts, and increase violence risks for families. This plenary will highlight child support agency policy, practice, and partnerships necessary to balance the scales of justice for survivors who need child support.
Speakers: Michael Hayes, Doreen Nicholas
5:30 - 6:30 PM - President's Reception
Friday, February 4
7:30 AM - 8:30 AM - Breakfast
8:30 AM - 9:45 AM - Plenary V: Measuring the Program’s Success – the Past, Present, and Future of Child Support’s Performance Metrics
The five performance measures have been in place for 23 years and the debate continues on whether they adequately measure the current best practices and policies of our program. Come hear how and why the current performance measures were selected and different perspectives on how they have worked over the years for state programs. The panel then will focus on current innovative program policies—including those designed to move families to self-sufficiency, that emphasize a family-focused approach, and those incorporating diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging principles—and discuss new performance measures that could evaluate a program’s success in these areas. The session will conclude with a discussion on next steps for the future of the performance measures. Don’t miss this interactive session with audience polling on one of child support’s favorite topics!
Speakers: Erin Frisch, David Kilgore, Diane Potts, Bob Williams,
9:45 AM - 10:15 AM – Networking Break
10:15 AM - 11:30 AM - Plenary VI: Perspectives on Enforcement: Changing Views for Changing Times
Enforcement of support orders is a core service provided to families in the child support program. State and local agencies have many tools available to encourage and facilitate compliance, but the use of these tools has evolved over time due to statute, policy changes, case law, and other factors. This session will feature panelists with different perspectives on the use of specific enforcement remedies and how their approach evolved over time with changes in the program.
Speakers: Susan Brown, Edward Lehman, Tracy Rumans, Brian Tribble
11:30 AM - 11:45 AM - Transition Break
11:45 AM - 1:00 PM - Plenary VII: Policy Reasons to Proactively Encourage Genetic Testing Paternity
Paternity establishment has been a high priority for the child support program since its inception in 1975. Methods of establishment have changed, but the priority remains the same. Every child support agency fields questions on how to disestablish parentage, sometimes years after a voluntary paternity acknowledgement has been signed. In this session, the history of paternity establishment policy and practice will be considered along with the value of genetic testing to the accuracy and endurance of the order. Implications for same sex parentage will also be examined.
Speakers: Ryan Bradley, Lara Fors, Tish Keahna Kruzan, Nara Milanich
1:00 PM - 2:30 PM - Lunch on Your Own
2:30 PM - 3:45 PM - Plenary VIII: State Guidelines and the Modernization Rule – Are States’ Implementation Meeting Expectations?
The Modernization Rule made sweeping changes to the requirements of state guidelines at the hopes of improving child support for low-income families and using actual income rather than blanket income imputation. Did the rule changes succeed? The panel will discuss the challenges to states in meeting the new federal requirements, how states have interpreted the rule changes differently to meet individual policy goals, and whether those affected outcomes.
Speakers: Paul Gehm, Kathleen Murphy,Tracy Rumans, Vicki Turetsky
3:45 PM - 4:15 PM – Networking Break
4:15 PM - 5:30 PM - Plenary IX: Intergovernmental Hot Topics!
What are some of the most frustrating issues that impact successful management of intergovernmental cases? How about: interstate payment processing, enforcement of “dead” cases, $0 orders, interstate case closure regulations, limited services, interest, debt compromise, IWO on UIB, and others. Join our panel of experts in a give-and-take informal discussion as we tackle these difficult areas to identify possible recommendations for change. Add your voice on the obstacles you face as you handle these challenging cases, along with possible solutions.
Speakers: Verrhonda Bullock, James Fleming, Diane Potts, Rob Velcoff
Saturday, February 5
7:30 AM - 8:30 AM - Breakfast
8:30 AM - 10:00 AM - Plenary X: “Ask not what your policy can do for your system, but what your system can do for your policy”
System modernization can be a key component in the evolution of the child support program. Today the child support program needs to be flexible and adaptable not only to meet the ever-changing policy requirements but our ever-changing customer needs. Our own expectations require us to quickly make changes, and the expected speed of change is only going to get faster. How do we ensure we are not locking ourselves into a complex restrictive solution that prevents us from realizing the vision we have for the future of the program? This session will include recent experiences from both states and vendors as they modernize their own systems. Did they have to change their policy to meet the system or did the system inform new policies because of its flexibility? What worked? What didn’t work? Join us to learn more.
10:00 AM - 10:30 AM – Break
10:30 AM - 12:00 PM – Building Change Action Plan
To wrap up the 2022 Policy Forum, we invite you to join a fun interactive session where the rubber hits the road! As you enjoy each of the plenary sessions aligned with NCSEA’s vision of a world where every child receives reliable financial and emotional support and believes parents are vital to the financial and emotional support of our children you will be thinking “How can I we make this happen?” For this session we ask that you pick one of the Plenary Topics you’d like to operationalize in your state or organization. We will begin with an introduction to action plans focused on organizational change management and then get right to work by networking and collaborating on your action plan and next steps.