MOUNT VERNON — Unemployment figures are down for the county, but it isn’t clear at this point whether that’s good news.
Roger Shooter, director of the Knox County Division of Job & Family Services, met with the Knox County Commissioners Monday to present October’s unemployment figures. October saw the county at 6.2 percent unemployment, the fourth consecutive drop since this summer, bringing the state close to the national rate of 6.1 percent.
Yet this news comes as economic woes continue to dominate the headlines.
“Are our people finding jobs or getting lost?” asked Commissioner President Robert Wise.
“That’s the raging debate,” Shooter said, pointing out that many people are suspecting that these figures merely indicate that many people are reaching the end of their unemployment benefits and are being dumped from the rolls, even though they don’t have jobs. Shooter pointed out the hidden iceberg of part-time employees who have lost work, which aren’t reflected in the statistics.
Shooter also noted that the state of Ohio has overspent the federal allocation of funds used for the Prevention Retention Contingency program. Shooter said the KCDJFS has rewritten current PRC guidelines to cut the $1,800 maximum to $1,000. Shooter said people have been using the maximum amount for mortgages or rent, but the revision will not only cut the maximum allowance, it will also reduce the number of months rent that is payable from three to two.
“The goal is to help people to get to work instead of staying on the system,” Shooter said, adding that he felt some had been misusing PRC as a welfare check.
Shooter informed the commissioners that Kim Smith is resigning from her position as supervisor of foster and adoptive care, effective Dec. 26, to concentrate on starting her own family life.
“We’re sorry to see her go,” Shooter said.
The job will be posted internally. As the KCDJFS is on an attrition-reduction program, Shooter hopes to fill the job from within, in order to avoid possible layoffs. He said the coming year is likely to be a bad one for his department, as a recession doubles the department’s work, while it still is subject to the same cuts as other state departments.
In other business, the outgoing and incoming coordinators of the Knox County Agricultural Society Museum, Paul Hothem and Art Mizer, respectively, came to meet with the commissioners to express thanks for previous support and to look toward the coming year. They presented a framed certificate acknowledging the commissioners’ “outstanding support and effort toward making the 2008 addition to the museum a reality.”
Hothem said that by using volunteer labor and in-kind donations, the society was able to build the addition for $96,600, well below the $300,000 cost an architect projected for finishing it at commercial rates. This left the society with some savings intact, although a number of maintenance issues are pending.
Hothem said the log cabin needs some logs replaced, the schoolhouse and the Hiawatha Building need repainting, and the area under the first wing needs insulation and the installation of a drop ceiling. In addition, he said, the museum needs display cases to maximize space.
Mizer said he talked with many visitors who toured the museum during the Knox County Fair, and found that many came from far away specifically to see the museum, which is the most complete and diverse collection of agricultural equipment in the state. The museum also has added a wheelchair ramp to the schoolhouse to make it more accessible.
With the expansion in mind, the commissioners last year provided $15,000 in funding for the museum. Wise noted that things were getting tight this year, and they haven’t yet seen full budget projections. He noted that on the other hand, the organization had obviously managed its funds well. Commissioner Tom McLarnan moved to give the museum $7,500 for now; if more is needed later in the year, museum officials can revisit the commissioners to see if more funding is available.
“It’s an investment in Knox County’s future, and it’s a Knox County asset,” said Commissioner Allen Stockberger.
