State Strategies for Improving Child Support Outcomes for Incarcerated Parents

Right-sizing child support orders has been a big point of discussion for child support. This  includes appropriate orders for parents who are incarcerated. The federal office of child support passed new rules in 2016 that require notice to parents who will be incarcerated for more than 180 days of their right to a request a review of their child support order. This brief analyzes four strategies that states are using to identify and reach out to incarcerated parents with child support orders. The strategies include data exchanges with state and local criminal justice agencies; using other sources, including publicly accessible search tools, to identify incarcerated parents; working together with justice agencies to connect with incarcerated parents, and partnering with workforce and employment programs to assist reentering parents.