As Gov. Scott Walker’s proposed budget cuts agency budgets across the board, Dane County officials said Thursday the county’s child support agency would lose almost $1 million throughout the next two years.

Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk said in a statement the county is preparing to take $840,000 in cuts through 2013, which could lead to increased hardships for single-parent families. Falk said the funding cuts would lead to a loss of $8 million annually in the agency’s collected child support.

Walker’s budget proposal would also recommend laying off 10 employees from within the child support division, the statement said.

The agency acts as a third party by seeking out the appropriate parent to ensure payments are made to the single-parent family, Falk spokesperson Joshua Wescott said.

Wescott said the division’s staff works to establish court orders and enforces action for those who do not make payments, often through legal means. He added that less funding equates to less resources and staff to seek out the appropriate amount of child support.

“Taking money out of the back pockets of parents trying to support their kids at a time when so many are struggling is just wrong,” Falk said in the statement.

Currently, the county’s child support division manages cases for 22,000 families or roughly 55,000 individuals, the statement said. Falk estimated around 6,000 of these families would lose financial support altogether under the governor’s proposed budget.

Falk said the cuts would compromise the county’s ability to go after parents who dodge their responsibilities of supporting their children with the bare essentials. She added that about half of the state’s children age five or younger who live in single-parent homes live in poverty.

“The economy continues to see its share of struggles, and the folks who are hurt the most in this situation were already living in poverty,” Wescott said.

The $840,000 cut also affects federal funding for the agency, Wescott said.

Federal funding is determined by matching the amount of state dollars allocated to the program, Wescott said. Therefore, the cut in spending at the state level would solicit a comparable loss in federal funding.

The state contributes roughly one-third of the agency’s funding, while federal dollars comprise about two-thirds of the budget, Wescott said.

Wescott said Dane County’s agency ranks high in child support dollars obtained per every dollar spent on the agency – securing more than $7 for each dollar spent. He added the rate is about twice the national average and more than a dollar better than the state’s number.

“[The division] shows an amazing return of investments,” Wescott said. “The child support division does a great job of going out and making sure the other parent has shared responsibility in helping to support that little one.”

The county’s Child Support Agency currently receives $3.6 million a year from federal and state dollars. Wescott said the proposed cut in state funding is a “pretty substantial percentage.”

Walker’s proposed budget cuts $12.5 million from child support services statewide, with Dane County bearing about 7 percent of the total cut, Wescott said.

A representative for Walker could not be reached for comment by press time.