DEAR COLLEAGUE LETTER

DEAR COLLEAGUE LETTER

DCL-06-30

Date: September 21, 2006

TO: ALL STATE IV-D DIRECTORS

RE: Query Interstate Cases for Kids (QUICK)

Dear Colleague:

The Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) is pleased to announce the end of the six-month pilot period for the QUICK application. Based on the success of the pilot, OCSE is now moving forward with national implementation of QUICK. Although we will continue to assess surveys from caseworkers, we do not anticipate any major changes to the application.

QUICK is a web-based application that allows workers to initiate a single-case query with another State and to view resulting information in real time. For the pilot, financial and case status information were provided via QUICK.

There are currently six States in production: Arizona, Colorado, North Carolina, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. Moreover, there are another six to eight States actively working to develop this functionality. States with experience in implementing QUICK are willing to share source codes in order to significantly reduce the development process.

During the pilot period:

A total of 670 users viewed QUICK data in real time.
Caseworkers initiated 5,644 requests.
Responses arrived quickly—on average in about 7.4 seconds, with 3.2 seconds being the fastest.

Below are some comments from caseworkers using QUICK:

I have gone into the QUICK program several times for financial information on several cases and it really was "quick"!!!

This program will save time and paperwork for Enforcement Officers as well as other workers.

This is a great tool to see another jurisdiction’s information.

This program may just be one of the best timesavers ever for caseworkers with regard to UIFSA cases!! Keep up the good work!

OCSE encourages all States to consider developing and implementing the QUICK application. If you have any questions or want additional information regarding QUICK, contact your technical representative or the Service Desk at 1-800-258-2736. A listing of the technical representatives can be found on the OCSE Web site at: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cse/newhire/csenet/contacts/csenet_contacts.htm

Your continued support is greatly appreciated as we strive towards our goal of improving the lives of our nation's children.

Sincerely,

Margot Bean
Commissioner
Office of Child Support Enforcement

cc: ACF Regional Administrators
Regional Program Managers