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Giving Hope and Support to America's ChildrenFederal Case Registry to Track Parents Who Owe Child Support
OCSE Dedicates A Conference Room
HHS Awards Grants for Child Support Efforts
Program for Fathers of Children on Welfare Leads More to Pay Child Support
Final Rule on Automated Systems - On-Site TA and Early Reviews Promised
Postcard Simplifies Notice of Termination
DHHS Reaches Out to Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders
Legler Named Assistant Commissioner
OCSE's 8th National Training Conference - Meeting the Child Support challenge: Children First
One More Indication of the Importance of Regular Child Support Payments
The FCR, combined with the National Directory of New Hires, strengthens the capability of the nation's child support system to find noncustodial parents and assure they pay child support. "We are excited about the case registry and its expected results," said Commissioner Ross. "The Federal Case Registry, by providing timely information on those who evade their responsibilities, will benefit children for years to come."
Already, with select information submitted by states, the National Directory of New Hires has found over 1.1 million delinquent parents since October 1, 1997. With the new Federal Case Registry in operation, OCSE has "improved tools to ensure that children receive the support they need and deserve," said Donna Bonar, director of OCSE program operations. The registry will soon compile records on 16 million noncustodial parents who owe support to an estimated 32 million children.
Under welfare reform, states are required to maintain their own case registries and provide data to the federal registry on noncustodial parents, custodial parents, and children who need support. As data is provided, the federal registry matches millions of records automatically. The match with employer and wage information is then sent to the state to place a wage withholding order on the delinquent parent's paycheck.
There are strict security and safety provisions in the use of the Federal Case Registry's information. States must identify cases where the custodial parent may be a victim of domestic violence or have an order of protection, indicating that disclosure of information could be harmful to the parent or child. Congress prohibited unauthorized access, use of, or disclosure of information from the registry by federal employees, punishable by dismissal and a fine.
The Federal Case Registry also provides other benefits to children. In a unique collaboration with child protective services, for example, certain child welfare agencies can request the registry to locate an absent parent for a child who is in foster care and seeking a parent, or to terminate parental rights for the child to be adopted.
If you would like more information about the Federal Case Registry, contact Donna Bonar, Director of OCSE's Division of Program Operations, at (202)401-9271.
On September 29, 1998, OCSE Commissioner David Gray Ross dedicated an agency conference room in memory of four caseworkers in Watkins Glen, Schuyler County, New York, who were killed while on duty in October, 1992.
The Schuyler County Room honors caseworkers Phyllis Caslin, Florence Pike, Denise Miller Van Amburg, and Nancy Wheeler, who were shot and killed on October 15, 1992. Family members representing the four women at the dedication expressed appreciation for this public recognition of their sacrifice on behalf of children and families. Congressman Amory Houghton, Jr. (New York, 31st district) spoke on their behalf as well.
HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala recently announced the award of more than $1 million in grants to states and tribal organizations to strengthen their child support enforcement programs. "These grants will provide opportunities to further improve state and local child support efforts," Shalala said. The grant recipients are:
For New Enforcement Mechanisms
For New Paternity Establishment Procedures
For Innovations in Support Enforcement
For A Fatherhood Initiative
For TANF-related Innovations
"These grants will help us ensure," OCSE Commissioner David Gray Ross said, "that parents meet their financial responsibilities to their children."
A study released at the end of September by the Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation (MDRC) shows that Parents' Fair Share (PFS)--the largest national demonstration program for unemployed noncustodial fathers of children on welfare--has succeeded in increasing participating fathers' child support payments, a key goal of the demonstration.
Researchers found that Parents' Fair Share increased parents' child support in two different ways. Parents subject to a special case review involved in PFS intake made more payments to the child support agency than those subject to standard child support enforcement. In three sites, where a special study of this aspect of the program was conducted, the increase (relative to a control group) in the proportion of parents paying child support because of the special case review alone ranged from 6 to 15 percentage points, and average total child support payments per parent subject to the extra outreach increased by $160 to $200 over the 18 months of follow-up.
Separate from the effects of this special case review, a larger number of parents who were referred to PFS services and were subject to its participation requirements paid child support than would have paid in the absence of the program. Across all PFS sites (Dayton, OH; Grand Rapids, MI; Jacksonville, FL; Los Angeles, CA; Memphis, TN; Springfield, MA; and Trenton, NJ), relative to the control group, the proportion of parents paying support during the 18 months of follow-up increased by about 4.5 to 7.5 percentage points.
Fred Doolittle, the lead author of the study, summed up the basic findings as follows: "Working with a group that has sometimes been viewed as unlikely to respond to enforcement efforts, Parents' Fair Share got more fathers to pay child support."
With poverty and welfare receipt concentrated among single mothers and their children--and with time limits on welfare looming--federal and state welfare reforms have made it a high priority to increase the financial support provided by the children's fathers. Parents' Fair Share was the first major national effort to develop and test a program aimed at fathers who are behind in their child support payments because they are unemployed.
Despite improvements in the child support enforcement system, low-income fathers outside the economic mainstream are often missed by the usual enforcement efforts (such as computer searches for the fathers' addresses, employment, and income). And with many low-income fathers, courts and support enforcement agencies cannot be sure whether a parent has hidden income but is unwilling to pay support or is unable to pay and needs assistance in getting and keeping a job. Parents' Fair Share was a direct response to these challenges.
The program offered job training, help in looking for work, peer support groups focused on the rights and responsibilities of fatherhood (the "glue" of the program), and voluntary mediation between the fathers and mothers to work out conflicts. To create an incentive to participate, the program temporarily reduced the child support orders of parents who met program requirements. Fathers who were behind in their support payments and claimed unemployment were ordered by the courts to participate in the program.
By Steve Strauss and Bill Jack
Welfare reform specifies a number of enhancements to statewide automated child support enforcement systems. With publication of the final regulation related to those requirements on August 21, 1998 (OCSE-AT-98-26), OCSE met the requirement to publish final regulations within two years of enactment.The final regulations reflect lessons learned during the states' efforts to meet the systems requirements of the Family Support Act of 1988. In response, OCSE has made changes in regulations to strengthen management and oversight.
Close Monitoring
The first change is to more closely monitor the states' CSE development efforts. OCSE is committed to frequent on-site technical assistance visits and early and multiple reviews in all states. States whose systems development efforts are lagging will receive additional attention.
In addition, states' Advance Planning Document (APD) submissions--the vehicle for receiving approval for federal financial participation-will be closely reviewed with respect to the state resources available to:
One of the major lessons learned from Family Support Act systems development efforts is that states whose staffing resources are stretched too thin are at the highest risk of failure.
APD Requirements
Moreover, a state's APD submission must contain an estimated budget and schedule for automation enhancements by task--such as State New Hire, State Case Registry, State Disbursement Unit, changes in allocation and distribution of child support payments, enhancements to interstate case processing, reporting and enforcement techniques.
Each of these tasks may have different life-cycle milestones and project deliverables (modules) related to the different tasks, but the APD needs to specify the applicable milestones and deliverables for each task. The state also needs to identify critical milestones which, if not met, would jeopardize its ability to meet program timeframes and successfully complete the automation project.
States' failures to meet critical milestones and deliverables, or to report promptly and fully on their progress toward meeting those milestones, will be treated seriously. If a state fails to meet milestones in its APD, OCSE may fully or partially suspend the APD and associated funding. OCSE currently has authority under 45 CFR 307.40 to suspend a state's APD if "the system ceases to comply substantially with the criteria, requirements, and other provisions of the APD."
This action may include suspension of future systems efforts under the APD until satisfactory corrective action is taken. In such cases, funding for current efforts, i.e., those not affected by the suspension, would continue to be available, although OCSE would closely monitor such expenditures. In more serious cases, suspension would involve cessation of all federal funds for the project until such time as the state completed corrective action.
A major change in the new child support automation regulations expands on the existing requirement that a state have an implementation plan in place, along with back-up procedures. OCSE will now require a state to obtain independent validation and verification services in certain instances.
In addition, OCSE is adopting a "zero tolerance" policy with respect to required reports and APD updates. Late reporting will trigger deferral of state claims for federal financial participation or, if late reporting is persistent or prolonged, suspension of a state's APD.
By Lyn Rindy
Acting on a suggestion from Debbie Thompson of American Silicon Technologies, the Wenatchee Office of Washington State's Division of Child Support (DCS) implemented a simple office practice that has made compliance easier for the employer community. Ms. Thompson suggested that it would make her life less complicated if there were an easy way for her to inform the child support office when an employee leaves the company.
She suggested a postcard an employer could just drop in the mail. And so, on August 1, 1997, the Wenatchee Office began to enclose an Employment Termination Notice postcard with every income withholding order it sends to employers. Each postcard is already stamped and addressed to the Wenatchee Office.
This change in office practice is an example of several innovations that resulted in the Wenatchee Office being honored with the Outstanding Program Achievement Award at the 1998 conference of the National Child Support Enforcement Association.
The response from the employer community has been one of overwhelming approval, as measured by a telephone survey of employers and also from responses received during the Wenatchee Office's regularly scheduled employer workshops. Many large employers have requested a supply of the cards to notify the Wenatchee Office of the termination of employees who had begun working before inauguration of the postcard policy.
During the seven-month pilot project, from August 1997 through February 1998, the Wenatchee Office received 625 postcards back from employers. Nearly one-third of the cards reported an employee's termination, and many of those postcards included the name of a new employer or a new address.
Lyn Rindy, Supervisor/Employer Relations Manager for the Division of Child Support in Wenatchee, describes the advantages of using the Employment Termination Notice postcard:
Saves Time and Money for Both the Employer and DCS
Every postcard that comes back reporting a termination saves a phone call between the employer and the child support office. Without the postcard, employers who needed to report a termination had to call or write the child support office, which necessitated finding the phone number or address of the field office.
The postcard also has been used instead of the Answer to the Notice of the income withholding order because the self-addressed, stamped postcard is easier to submit.
Improves Public Relations
Prior to the postcard project, many employers sent a note with their last payment, informing the child support office of the termination. The note was sent to the centralized cash department in headquarters, which led to delay in the information reaching the district field office. In the meantime, the Support Enforcement Officer might find that a payment had been missed and would call the employer. Besides being a waste of time, this had a negative affect on DCS's credibility with employers.
Increases the Timeliness of Collections
When an employer reports a termination and includes the name of the new employer, the information may be gathered even more quickly than by the New Hire Reporting Program. Based upon the enthusiastic support of the employer community, the Employment Termination Notice postcard has been adopted for use throughout the State. This is a prime example of the value of soliciting input from employers and then using that information for the overall benefit of the program.
If you would like further information about Wenatchee's postcard project, contact Lyn Rindy at (509) 886-6252. Lyn Rindy is Supervisor/Employer Relations Manager for the DCS office in Wenatchee, WA.
A recent Dear Colleague letter from Commissioner Ross to all state child support directors provides information on domestic violence. The National Resource Center on Domestic Violence (NRC) has produced two papers that may be helpful in implementing the family violence indicator and safeguarding information provisions of welfare reform.
The papers are Building Opportunities for Battered Women's Safety and Self-Sufficiency and Family Violence Protocol Development.They provide information on what constitutes domestic violence, safety strategies and universal notification/screening for battered women, development of domestic violence protocols, and approaches to staffing offices to handle domestic violence. Excerpts follow:
"Given the importance of child support to children, it is essential that support be pursued whenever possible. Many battered mothers will want child support enforced, and some will not. If child support enforcement will increase a battered mother's or child's danger, current approaches generally force her to choose between two alternatives:(1) enforce the support and face the danger; or (2) do not enforce child support. In addition, battered mothers who need TANF assistance will need to ask for a good cause exception to the cooperation requirement. In order to meet the important goals of child support enforcement and to avoid 'rewarding' batterers for their threats and violence, states might consider developing a third option--safely enforcing child support." [Building Opportunities for Battered Women's Safety and Self-Sufficiency]
"Safe child support enforcement means careful implementation of the cooperation/good cause or other exceptions provisions. It also means working with battered mothers to develop safer enforcement strategies when regular enforcement approaches may increase danger. Since enforcement activities, such as court hearings, may bring parents physically together, agencies should plan to provide physical protection to battered mothers as well (e.g., sheriffs, metal detectors at hearing locations, etc.)." [Family Violence Protocol Development]
For further information contact OCSE's domestic violence liaison, Susan Notar, at (202) 401-4606, or the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence at 1-800-537-2238.
The DHHS Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Initiative for child support includes outreach to AAPI communities to provide consumer education about the importance of child support and the new child support enforcement provisions in welfare reform. An initial activity was to translate a child support pamphlet into Vietnamese and, in collaboration with ACF's Office of Refugee Resettlement, share the publication with the Vietnamese community through mutual assistance associations. In addition, OCSE has developed and updates on a regular basis its WEB site as a place for timely and useful information to all consumers.
OCSE Commissioner David Gray Ross has announced the appointment of Paul K. Legler as Assistant Commissioner, with responsibilities to assist states in operating their child support enforcement programs in accordance with the provisions of welfare reform.
"Paul's work in developing the welfare reform proposals," the Commissioner said, "gives him in-depth understanding of the critical issues states face and particular insight into resolving them."
Drawing more than 400 participants, OCSE's 8th National Child Support Enforcement Training Conference showcased training technology in a variety of satellite, video conferencing, and computer based training (CBT) sessions. OCSE Commissioner David Gray Ross opened the conference by remarking that everything we do is and must be aimed at strengthening the lives of children and families. "This is not easy work," he said, "which is why we need to come together periodically to engage each other and to learn new skills and techniques that will help us do our jobs better."
There were plenty of new skills and techniques to be learned at this conference. A CSE Technology Learning Center gave participants a look at how CBT can support classroom training while "disc-to-go" sessions using authoring software helped participants develop professional quality training discs that they could take back to their offices.The Assistant Secretary for the Administration for Children and Families, Olivia Golden, in remarks to the conference, reminded participants that "as people move from welfare to work, child support takes an increasingly important role, allowing families to remain independent when they might otherwise lose their footing."
Other conference highlights included a satellite plenary session on customer service, and workshops on: state self-assessment (also on satellite); the effective use of videoconferencing; the National Child Support Electronic Resource Center; new rules for distribution; performance-based incentives; and CSENet.
"Innovative and challenging," said one state participant. "A welcome change from the usual conference format," said another. To stay ahead of the learning curve, OCSE's Training Center staff have already begun to plan for next year's conference. If you have ideas or suggestions for the agenda, contact the National Training Center branch chief, Yvette Hilderson Riddick, at (202) 401-4885.
The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) says that 10 million Americans, including almost 4 million children, do not get enough to eat.
According to the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, conducted by the NCHS and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, some 4 percent of Americans live in families in which there is not enough to eat--either sometimes or often.Americans most at risk of food insufficiency are children and the poor. About 6 percent of children and 14 percent of America's low-income population reported they do not have enough to eat.
For more information contact the NCHS Press Office at (301) 436-7551.
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