Vol. 71, No. 12,
December 1998
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.
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