Department of Workforce Development Means to Collect Past-due Child
Support
By Constance M. Chesnik
| The new legislation sends the message that
parents must take responsibility for their children: Child support is an
obligation, not a choice. |
P.L. 104-93, the Personal Responsibility and
Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA), made major
changes to the child support enforcement program, placing many new
conditions on states regarding the operation of their programs.
Wisconsin complied with these requirements by enacting 1997
Wisconsin Act 191 .
Wisconsin always has been a national leader in establishing and
enforcing child support. However, much more needs to be done. Of the
support payments owed to our children, currently only 38 percent are
actually collected. That means an overwhelming $1.2 billion in
outstanding child support is owed to Wisconsin's children. The new
enforcement tools in Wis. Act 191 are not aimed at the responsible
parents who regularly make their child support payments; rather, they
are aimed at the parents who consistently fail to pay child support. The
new legislation sends the message that parents must take responsibility
for their children: Child support is an obligation, not a choice.
Wisconsin's W-2 program emphasizes personal responsibility. Now more
than ever, regular and adequate child support payments are necessary to
help Wisconsin families escape welfare dependency. The administrative
procedures under Act 191 will provide more frequent and timely
enforcement mechanisms for child support without unduly burdening the
state's court systems. Obligors are kept apprised of their payment
status through monthly billing notices and will receive additional
notices of any planned enforcement actions. They will have an
opportunity for a review of their payment records and an opportunity to
establish a payment plan, reviewable by the court, that will stay any
threatened enforcement action.
Addressing child support delinquencies early on can prevent parents
from amassing arrearages too large to ever pay off. Hopefully,
encouraging both parents to contribute to the financial well being of
their children also will encourage the involvement of both parents in
the lives of their children.
The Department of Workforce
Development (DWD) is in the process of developing administrative
rules to establish the procedures to administer these new enforcement
tools. The DWD has worked with many organizations and groups that have
an interest in the new legislation, including the State Bar and the
judiciary. It has worked diligently to comply with federal requirements
while also addressing concerns related to due process and the protection
of privacy.
It is the goal of the DWD to maintain Wisconsin's role as a national
leader in promoting parental responsibility and ending welfare
dependency. Act 191 will help the department to reinforce those
values.
Constance M. Chesnik, U.W. 1986, is an
attorney with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development. She has
advised the child support program for 13 years and is a frequent
lecturer and author on child support-related issues. She is a member of
the state and national Child Support Enforcement associations.
Wisconsin Lawyer
