Resources
Child Support Resource Library
Welcome to the YoungWilliams Child Support Resource Library. Search by keywords or use the filters to select categories of interest to you. Currently, our Library consists of academic and government research articles and reports from around the country, federal opinions, and case law from states in which our full service child support projects are located.
Longitudinal Associations among Child Support Debt, Employment, and Recidivism After Prison
This is a link to an an article that appeared in The Sociological Quarterly posted on the website, Researchgate.net. The abstract is as follows: Recently released prisoners in the U.S. are increasingly facing the burden of financial debt associated with correctional supervision, yet little research has pursued how—theoretically or empirically—the burden of debt might affect life after prison.
Behavioral Strategies to Increase Engagement in Child Support
A person who comes into the child support office to accept service voluntarily is actively engaging in the child support process. In doing so, the person benefits from reduced fees, a greater voice in the legal process, and a better understanding of the way an order is established. The child support program benefits from increased efficiency, reduced costs, and the ability to provide more information to parents. With these benefits in mind, the Behavioral Interventions for Child Support Services (BICS) team worked with the Georgia Division of Child Support Services (DCSS) to test a new form of outreach intended to get more people to accept service voluntarily.
2015 OCSE Annual Report to Congress
This report, published by the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement, highlights financial and statistical program achievements based on data reported by state and tribal child support agencies. The report includes information on collections, expenditures, paternities and orders established, and other program statistics.
The Safety Net that Works: Improving Federal Programs for Low Income Americans
This document is a compilation of essays, ideas, and policy recommendations authored by individuals with expertise in various federal anti-poverty programs. The author of one of the essays, entitled Empowering Child Support Enforcement to Reduce Poverty, is Robert Doar, Resident Fellow and Morgridge Fellow in Poverty Studies, and former IV-D Director of the New York State Child Support Program. In this article, Doar stresses the importance of the child support enforcement program, and the opportunities it offers with respect to formulation of new policies. Companion articles focus on the Earned Income Tax Program (Bruce D. Meyer), Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (Ron Haskins), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Russell Sykes), Medicaid (James C. Capretta), Housing (Edgar O. Olsen), Supplemental Security Income Disabled Children Program (Richard V. Burkhauser and Mary C. Daly), Child Welfare (Maura Corrigan) Child Care (Angela Rachidi), Women, Infants, and Children (Douglas J. Besharov and Douglas M. Call), Homelessness (Kevin C. Corinth), and Early Learning (Katharine V. Stevens).
Building Assets for Fathers and Families (BAFF) in Tennessee
Tennessee was one of seven states that received a grant from the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement aimed at improving the economic stability of low‐income families in the child support system by engaging noncustodial parents (NCPs) in financial education, savings activity, and asset‐building activities.
Nudges for Child Support: Applying Behavioral Insights to Increase Collections
The Behavioral Interventions to Advance Self-Sufficiency (BIAS) project, sponsored by the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE) of the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and led by MDRC, uses a behavioral economics lens to examine programs that serve poor and vulnerable families in the United States. This report presents findings from four tests of behavioral interventions intended to increase the percentage of parents who made child support payments and the dollar amount of collections per parent in Cuyahoga County, Ohio.
In re Marriage of Dean (Kansas 2018)
Courts must follow the definition of income found in the guidelines. The mother appealed the district court’s calculation of the father’s gross income. The district court subtracted the amounts the father was paying towards mortgages from his gross monthly income. The Appellate Court reversed the decision. The definition of income is purposefully broad, and the worksheet doesn’t allow for these types of deductions from gross income. The evidence showed the father had made several substantial mortgage payments right after the divorce. The court reasoned that allowing mortgage payments as a deduction from gross income allows a parent to build up equity in property at the expense of a child.
Reid v. Reid (Tennessee 2018)
In order to find a parent underemployed for child support purposes, the court must apply a list of factors. A parent who inflates expenses while downplaying income isn’t necessarily underemployed as defined by statute. The father filed a petition to modify his child support, and the mother responded with a counter-petition for modification of custody and support. The trial court found father intentionally underemployed but that there was no significant variance to justify the modification. The trial court denied both petitions, and both parents appealed. The appellate court found that while the evidence showed father was inflating his expenses and assigning much of his income to his brother, this didn’t meet the statutory definition of underemployed.
Hague Child Support Convention: Judicial Guide
Written specifically for judges, judicial officers, and other court officials, this Guide focuses on the 2008 Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA) provisions judges need to apply in Hague Child Support Convention cases. It contains information and procedures about matters common to all applications under the Hague Child Support Convention; recognition and enforcement of an order; establishment of Convention orders, including, where necessary, establishment of parentage; modification of orders ;specific measures; and resources.
Integrating A Two-Generation Approach to Child Support Services: Colorado’s Service Level Approach
In 2013, the Colorado Department of Human Services, Division of Child Support Services began a shift in culture toward a family-centered, two-generation (2Gen) approach. As part of this effort, the child support program implemented services across generations within families. This document, prepared for the Colorado Department of Human Services, provides guidance for establishing and implementing a 2Gen approach to service delivery at the local child support agency level.
