Child support in review - FY 2003

CHILD SUPPORT IN REVIEW FY 2003
Office of Child Support Enforcement Georgia Department of Human Resources

Director's Message
T he Georgia Department of Human Resources Office of Child Support Enforcement proudly presents a report of our activities during FY 2003. Georgia not only remains in the national forefront in the collection of child support, but also continues to focus on the broader needs of children.
The Child Support program shoulders a great responsibility in bettering the lives of over 624,000 Georgia children. I am proud of the innovative efforts of Georgia's Office of Child Support Enforcement.
Highlighted topics in the FY2003 report include: A $32 million increase in collections Helping 413,000 custodial parents remain self-sufficient Enhancing the Georgia Paternity Acknowledgement Program to increase the number of children with established
paternity at birth Helping over 3,000 non-custodial parents through the Georgia Fatherhood Services Network improve their abilities
to pay their court-ordered child support Innovative uses of technology to improve customer service and streamline the child support process
These accomplishments obviously reflect a staff dedicated to ensuring that children have the benefit of, at minimum, their parents' financial support and, at best, their parents' commitment of time, love, and guidance.
We wish to thank our many community partners who have contributed to Georgia's success in helping children and families.
Robert Riddle Director Office of Child Support Enforcement

Supporting Our Children

All children need emotional and financial support from both their father and mother. Georgia's Child Support Enforcement program (OCSE) benefits children by enforcing the parental responsibility to pay financial support. This helps to promote and enhance family self-sufficiency and stability as well as reducing the public burden of supporting financially abandoned children. The child support services offered by 80 offices across Georgia help children receive the support they deserve.
Georgia collected $523.7 million in child support to benefit more than 624,068 children during FY2003. Almost one third of Georgia's children - 29 percent - are served by the Office of Child Support Enforcement.
During the year, OCSE expanded its use of technology with the "Where's My Child's Check?" service on the Georgia Department of Human Resources web site. Customers with established cases with OCSE can access the last six payments that have been processed on their case. Additionally, the

Fatherhood Services Network continued to work with a variety of community and faith-based organizations that provide services that many Fatherhood participants need to overcome barriers such as substance abuse and criminal backgrounds.
Other innovative programs that OCSE offers include specialized training for new and veteran staff, direct deposit of child support payments to custodial parents, and the Child Access and Visitation Program for non-custodial parents who wish to visit their children.
Georgia is recognized as a national child support enforcement leader thanks to the commitment of people devoted to children, families and the child support program. Despite these efforts, many children are not receiving the support they need. We will continue to work to strengthen enforcement laws and enhance our services to collect more support for Georgia's children.
Please take the time to review this report for more specific information concerning our program.

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CHILD SUPPORT IN REVIEW FY 2003

Collecting Child Support

OCSE services are available to all Georgia parents who need assistance. The custodial parent may apply at the OCSE office that serves their county. There is a one-time fee of $25. The service is free to custodial parents who receive Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF). The custodial parent is asked to furnish legal documents, if available, and information about the non-custodial parent.
Child Support Services Include: Locating non-custodial parents Establishing paternity Establishing and enforcing child support orders Establishing and enforcing medical support orders Collecting and distributing support payments
Collection and Enforcement Tools Available to OCSE:
Withholding child support from paychecks or unemployment benefits
Intercepting federal and/or state income tax refunds to pay child support arrears
Garnishing worker's compensation benefits

Reporting parents behind in child support payments to credit bureaus
Suspending or revoking driver's, professional or occupational licenses for failure to pay child support
Reviewing and modifying child support orders periodically
Intercepting lottery winnings of more than $5,000 Filing contempt of court actions which may result in a
jail sentence if the non-custodial parent is found in contempt of court Filing liens and levy on tangible / intangible property Seizing matched bank accounts after notice

Georgia OCSE Collects $1.4 Million a Day

Since its inception in 1973, OCSE has collected $4.75 billion on behalf of children and families around the state. During the past year, collections topped $523.7 million. That equates to just over $1.4 million per calendar day for Georgia's children.

$9.6 million was collected from intercepted state tax refunds
$33.3 million was collected from federal tax refunds $7.3 million was collected from unemployment
compensation benefits $86,598 was collected from lottery winnings $31.5 million to parents whose cases were not
established by OCSE but whose payments are routed through the Financial Customer Service Unit

Much of this increase can be attributed to welfare reform, enforcement tools granted by the Georgia General Assembly in recent years, technology enhancements, privatization initiatives and the dedication and commitment of OCSE employees across the state.
During FY 2003: $523,745,288 in child support was collected Collections increased $32 million over FY2002

Georgia's FY2003 Caseload Profile: 29% of all children under 18 in Georgia have a case
with OCSE Total caseload - 456,960 TANF caseload - 80,305 Non-TANF caseload - 359,713 Private child support cases (non-IV-D) - 16,942 Average agent caseload - 588 cases Cases with a support order - 316,928 (72 percent) Cases receiving a payment - 223,238 (70.4 percent) Percent of unlocated cases dropped from 23.5
percent at the beginning of the year to 21.2 percent at the end of the year

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Georgia Fatherhood Services Network Improves Parents Ability to Pay Child Support

The Georgia Fatherhood Services Network, created by OCSE in 1997, works with non-custodial parents who are supposed to pay their child support through OCSE and are unable to pay. Gainful, stable employment enables these parents to provide regular financial support for their children. The program expanded statewide in November 1998.
The Fatherhood Program:
Generally takes three months to complete. Participants are required to work at least 20 hours per
week while enrolled in the program. Participants are required to pay child support during this
time. Upon completion of the program, participants receive
assistance in obtaining full-time employment earning a

wage that they can live on and pay their child support.
Many participants have barriers such as substance abuse problems or a criminal background that prevent them from maintaining employment. OCSE is not equipped to address these issues and has contracted with other agencies, educational institutions and community groups to provide the necessary services.
The Georgia Fatherhood Services Network is the largest state-operated fatherhood program in the country. Over 3,000 non-custodial parents received services through the network during the past year. Almost every state now offers some type of fatherhood program. However, Georgia is one of the few states that offer services in all areas of the state.

Access and Visitation Project Increases Support Payments

OCSE established the Child Access and Visitation Program to help non-custodial parents who want to visit with their children. The program provides non-legal services and intervention on behalf of the non-custodial parents referred to the program. The goal is to improve non-custodial parents' access to and visitation with their children.
Research has shown that parental contact is related to the payment of child support and that fathers' involvement improves children's development and self-esteem. In Georgia, according to a recent report by the U.S. Inspector General, 55 percent of all program participants increased the amount of support paid by an average of $88, and 48 percent increased the frequency of payment.

To be eligible for the program, a non-custodial parent must have an active case with the OCSE or MAXIMUS Child Support Services. Income restrictions for receiving services vary with each project area.
Funding for the project comes from a grant from the Administration for Children and Families of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and from grant funds managed by the Georgia Department of Human Resources.
During FY2003, the Access and Visitation Program: Arranged 621 visitations
- 539 visitations were successful - 82 visitations were unsuccessful - 426 were monitored visitations - 71 were supervised visitations - 42 neutral drop off/pick ups were arranged Developed 91 parenting plans Conducted 119 mediations Arranged 1,105 individual parenting sessions Allowed 1,161 parents to attend group parenting sessions

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In-Hospital Paternity Acknowledgement Program Boosts Georgia's Paternity Establishment Rate

The program provides an opportunity for putative fathers and unwed mothers to acknowledge paternity at or near the time of the child's birth. Signing a voluntary paternity acknowledgement allows a father to have his name placed on the child's birth certificate. This is especially important since research indicates that the earlier fathers become involved in the lives of their children, the better the chance there will be a connection and that it will last. Parents are advised of all of their rights and responsibilities prior to signing the voluntary paternity acknowledgement.

Georgia's In-Hospital Paternity Acknowledgement Program has been very successful in improving its effectiveness during the past few years. OCSE contracted with Policy Studies, Inc. to provide training, technical assistance, quality assurance and public outreach to all birthing hospitals, state Vital Records, county Vital Records, registrars and probate judges in the state. The training has been a masterful collaboration of several DHR programs including the Office of Adoptions and the Division of Public Health's Vital Records Branch, Family Health Branch, Newborn Hearing and Metabolic screening programs, and Children 1st.

In Federal Fiscal Year 2002 (October 1, 2001 through September 20, 2002):
47,419 children were born to unwed parents in Georgia. 62 percent signed a voluntary paternity acknowledgement. The rate of paternity establishment improved by 22 percent
since the program began.
The increase has proven beneficial to OCSE in helping it to achieve its federally mandated paternity establishment goals. Paternity establishment is one of the OCSE program goals with both federal incentives for success and penalties for failure. The continued success of this program offers benefits not only to the mothers, fathers and children, but also to OCSE.

Child Support Enforcement Crosses State Boundaries

The most difficult child support cases to pursue are those in which the parent obligated to pay child support lives in one state and the child and custodial parent live in another. However, all states are required to pursue child support enforcement including location, paternity establishment, and establishment of obligations as vigorously for children who live outside their borders as for those under their own jurisdiction.
Georgia has 78,974 cases where one of the parties lives out of state. The majority of these cases are with states that border Georgia. Approximately 18,000 of these cases involve a parent who lives in the State of Florida.
Under federal welfare reform mandates, all states enacted the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA) prior to January 1, 1998. The UIFSA law for Georgia is in code section 19-11-100.

UIFSA provides procedures for referring a case for action in another state. The laws can be used to establish paternity and to establish, modify or enforce a support order. Also, interstate wage withholding can be used to enforce a support order in another state if the noncustodial parent's employer is known.
Georgia and all other state child support enforcement agencies have an office called the Central Registry to receive incoming interstate child support cases, make sure that the information given is complete, send the case to the right local office and respond to inquiries from out-of-state child support offices.
The speed with which the case is enforced depends on the aggressiveness of the child support agency in the state where the non-custodial parent lives as well as the usual factors such as whether the non-custodial parent is located and employed and the court system in that jurisdiction.

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Child Support on the Internet
www.cse.dhr.state.ga.us
Through its Internet homepage, OCSE can now provide up-to-date child support information to a worldwide audience in less time, and at a fraction of the cost of using traditional printing and distribution methods. Internet users can access a wide range of child support information on the site, including an application for services, an application for custodial parents to have direct deposit of child support payments, the Georgia Child Support Guidelines and Georgia's current "Most Wanted"poster. By simply clicking a button, custodial parents can print out and complete the application before their first visit.
Where's My Child's Check?
OCSE has made information related to child support checks available through the Internet 24 hours a day, seven days a week, making it easier to find out the status of the payments while preserving the privacy of personal information. Custodial parents with established cases with OCSE can access the last six payments that have been processed on their case. Next year the name of this Internet service will change to OCSE Constituent Services and will provide access to all payment information, the ability to update address information, case status information, the ability to apply online and the ability to pay online. Using a reference number and a PIN, the OCSE customer can view the check date, check amount and the name of the check payee. The "Where's My Child's Check?" web site is currently receiving 65,000 hits per month.
Family Support Registry Assures Timely Processing of Support Payments
Welfare reform dictated that the state centralize its collection of child support payments at one location. OCSE created the Georgia Family Support Registry (FSR) to fulfill this requirement. Lockheed IMS was selected through competitive bids to serve as contractor for the project.
Most affected by this process are the state's 185,000 employers. They have cooperated fully with the registry staff. To further improve services, the FSR offers employers the ability to send payments electronically or to provide the FSR with a listing of payments on a diskette.
During the past year of operation: 4.2 million items were processed $468 million in support payments were processed $54 million were processed by electronic funds transfer 1.9 million pieces of mail were processed
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Debit Card Will Improve Delivery of Child Support Payments
During FY2004, OCSE will eliminate the paper checks that are currently sent to custodial parents, to improve the delivery of child support payments. OCSE has contracted with a qualified vendor to manage full service debit card activity at no cost to the state or to parents. Custodial parents will be offered the option of receiving their child's support payments by direct deposit to their own bank account or by electronic debit card.
Electronic debit cards and direct deposit will provide a more efficient means of paying OCSE clients. They will also improve OCSE's operations and productivity and reduce the administrative burdens associated with paper checks.
Benefits to the custodial parent include: Reduces time for payments to reach
families Prevents delay or loss of payments Gives un-banked clients a method of
banking and eliminates check cashing fees Enables clients to track their child support funds through monthly statements Offers convenience and safety to clients

Child Support Hotline Enhances Customer Service

The OCSE Hotline began operation on September 1, 1986 with one line to serve as a central point of information and a clearinghouse for problem solving. Today, with 24 lines, the OCSE Hotline handles more calls than any other hotline operating in Georgia state government.
In FY2003, the OCSE Hotline:
Processed 8,750,788 phone calls Enabled 144,041 callers to speak to one of our customer
service specialists Enabled 108,120 callers to receive assistance from the
Family Support Registry

To access the OCSE Hotline, call 800-227-7993.
The OCSE Hotline is operational 24 hours a day, every day. The customer service specialists are available between 7:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Monday Friday except for state holidays.

Clients calling the OCSE Hotline may select the option of speaking to an operator located in the Customer Service Unit. Twelve customer service specialists answer questions and assist with problems.
The bulk of the questions received by the Customer Service Unit are for: Payment information Requests for enforcement

OCSE Recognizes its Staff and Partners

70/70 Club Members of the 70/70 Club have achieved a minimum 70 percent rate of obligated cases and a 70 percent rate of paying cases. Members of the FY2003 70/70 Club are OCSE offices in the following cities:

Americus Camilla Canton Clarkesville Columbus Covington Cuthbert Dalton

Dublin Eastman Hinesville Jesup Macon MAXIMUS-Augusta MAXIMUS-Valdosta McDonough

Milledgeville Monroe Roberta Rockspring Rome Sandersville Savannah Springfield

Statesboro Swainsboro Sylvester Thomaston Thomson Warner Robins Waycross Winder

80/80 Club Members of the 80/80 Club have achieved a minimum 80 percent rate of obligated cases and an 80 percent rate of paying cases. Members of the FY2003 80/80 Club are OCSE offices in the following cities:

Dahlonega

Elberton

Jackson

Tifton

Georgia Department of Human Resources Office of Child Support Enforcement Two Peachtree Street, NW; 20th Floor Atlanta, Georgia 30303 (404) 657-3851 www.cse.dhr.state.ga.us