99032

Prepared by the North Dakota Legislative Council staff for the Child Support Committee July 1997

CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT SERVICES AND CHILD CARE LICENSURE - BACKGROUND MEMORANDUM

INTRODUCTION

Section 14 of House Bill No. 1041 directs the Legislative Council to study the provision of child support services and child care licensing in this state. Section 14 further provides that in conducting the study, the Legislative Council must consider whether child support services and child care licensing can be more efficiently and effectively provided and, if so, by which agency or unit of government.

House Bill No. 1041 (copy attached as Appendix "A") relates to the administration and financing of human services programs by the state and counties. The bill was recommended by the 1995-96 interim Budget Committee on Human Services. The bill directs the county to assume fiscal responsibility for certain programs, including the child care block grant program. In return, the state is directed to take responsibility for the complete grant cost of Medicaid and basic care. In light of the "swap" in responsibilities between the state and counties, the interim committee concluded that a study to determine which entity should be responsible for child support services and child care licensing was necessary.

CHILD CARE LICENSING

1997 Legislation Legislation Enacted

House Bill No. 1226, which provides for the implementation of federal welfare reform, amended the statutes that address how the county administration of early childhood services is funded. The bill provides that effective July 1, 1997, the Department of Human Services no longer will reimburse counties for 50 percent of the amount expended by the counties for the administration of the early childhood services program and counties will no longer be required to reimburse the Department of Human Services for one-fourth of the amount expended in the counties for the program costs of the early childhood services program in excess of the amount provided by the federal government for the program costs.

Senate Bill No. 2055 provides for a penalty for providing early childhood services without a license.

Defeated Legislation

House Bill No. 1331 would have required licensure for all early childhood service providers except when the services were provided by a relative. This bill failed to pass the House.

House Bill No. 1352 would have created an early childhood services board. This bill failed to pass the House.

House Bill No. 1465 would have created a child care trust fund. This bill failed to pass the House.

Senate Bill No. 2345 would have provided public access to certain information regarding early childhood service providers. This bill failed to pass the Senate.

Recent Studies Joint Social Service System Committee

In 1996 the Joint Social Service System Committee, composed of representatives of the North Dakota Association of County Social Service Board Directors, the Department of Human Services, the North Dakota Association of Counties, and the 1995-96 interim Budget Committee on Human Services, was formed. Subcommittees of the committee studied statutes relative to county-based social services; options for the provision of child support enforcement services; the current and ideal structure for early childhood licensing; and the overall structure and funding of children and family services.

This joint committee presented testimony to the interim Budget Committee on Human Services. The subcommittee on early childhood services testified that the subcommittee agreed with many of the recommendations made by the Child Welfare League of America, Inc., a consulting firm hired by the Budget Committee on Youth Services during the 1993-94 interim. The subcommittee determined the quality and consistency of early childhood services could be improved if the services were provided through a regionalized and specialized system.

The subcommittee determined early childhood licensing should be a regionalized service that is provided by specialists in early childhood education and should be funded with increased fees and at least partially funded with broad-based federal or state taxes. Because there was no increased funding available at the time, the subcommittee did not propose a specific plan.

The study proposed in Section 14 of 1997 House Bill No. 1041 in large part arose from the research conducted by this early childhood licensing subcommittee.

1993-94 Interim

During the 1993-94 interim, the Budget Committee on Youth Services, pursuant to Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 4055, studied the provision of services for children, including services related to child care, education, health, corrections, and foster care. The committee contracted with the Child Welfare League of America, Inc., to assist in its study of children's services in this state. Recommendations by the consultant regarding early childhood development and education addressed the need to ensure quality, licensed child care providers. The consultant made the following recommendations:

• Enact a state licensing authority for children's programs, administered by the Department of Human Services and located in each regional human service center which would be responsible for licensing child care, foster homes, and children's group care and institutional facilities. The licensing authority would serve as a liaison for fire inspections, health and safety, and law enforcement clearances and would balance parental decisionmaking with ensuring accurate and timely payments to caregivers. The licensing authority should be staffed with professionals with field experience in children's programs and training in child development.
• Clarify regulations to ensure that local officials have the authority to close child care facilities in emergency situations.
• Eliminate the category of "registered" day care homes and use one set of standards for child care licensing. The Department of Human Services should develop a phased plan over a two-year period to move appropriate "registered" homes into the "licensed" category.
• The Department of Human Services should develop a single eligibility determination process to simplify ease of access to child care resources irrespective of the public funding source.
• Priorities should be given to licensing school-based child care programs and adding slots for protective child care, prime-time day care, infant care, and nontraditional hours of care.

In response to the consultant's recommendations, the committee recommended Senate Bill No. 2043 to establish a child care licensing authority in each regional human service center for licensing child care facilities. The bill would have transferred child care licensing responsibility from the counties to the state. The bill also would have expanded the number of child care providers that would need to be licensed beginning July 1, 1997, from the current requirement of a provider who cares for six or more children at any one time to all child care providers unless the provider was a relative or a person caring for children from no more than one family other than their own. The fiscal note indicated that the state fiscal effect would be approximately $1.7 million per biennium and the county fiscal effect would be approximately $900,000 per biennium. Senate Bill No. 2043 failed to pass the Senate. Testimony received by the standing committee indicated opposition from the counties and opposition to the fiscal note.

1989-90 Interim

During the 1989-90 interim, the Budget Committee on Human Services, pursuant to Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 4030, studied child care issues and needs, including the feasibility and costs of providing child care support to low-income working families. The committee did not make any recommendation as a result of its study of child care.

Statutory Background of Early Childhood Services Early Childhood Services

North Dakota Century Code (NDCC) Chapter 50-11.1 addresses early childhood services. According to Section 50-11.1-01, the statutory purpose of the chapter is to assure that children receiving early childhood services are provided food, shelter, safety, comfort, supervision, and learning experiences commensurate to their age and capabilities, to safeguard the health, safety, and development of those children.

North Dakota Century Code Section 50-11.1-02(5) defines "early childhood services" as:

[T]he care, supervision, education, or guidance of a child or children, unaccompanied by the child's parent, guardian, or custodian, which is provided in exchange for money, goods, or other services and is, or is anticipated to be, ongoing for periods of two or more hours per day for a part of three or more days per week. Early childhood services does not include:

1. Substitute parental child care provided pursuant to chapter 50-11.
2. Child care provided in any educational facility, whether public or private, in grade one or above.
3. Child care provided in a kindergarten which has been established pursuant to chapter 15-45 or a nonpublic elementary school program approved pursuant to subsection 1 of section 15-34.1-03.
4. Child care provided to preschool age handicapped children in any educational facility through a program approved by the superintendent of public instruction.
5. Child care provided in facilities operated in connection with a church, shopping center, business, or other establishment where children are cared for during periods of time not exceeding four continuous hours while the child's parent, guardian, or custodian is attending church services, shopping, or engaged in other activities, other than employment, on or near the premises.
6. Schools or classes for religious instruction conducted by religious orders during the summer months for not more than two weeks, Sunday schools, weekly catechism, or other classes for religious instruction.
7. Summer resident or day camps for children which serve no preschool age children for more than two weeks.
8. Sporting events, practices for sporting events, or sporting or physical activities conducted under the supervision of an adult.
9. Headstart programs that are federally funded and meet federal headstart standards.
10. Child care provided by a hospital by medical personnel within the physical structure of the hospital to children who are ill.

North Dakota Century Code Section 50-11.1-02(4) provides that an early childhood facility is any facility where early childhood services are provided.

Early childhood services are provided by a variety of facilities, including child care centers, family child care homes, group child care homes and facilities, in-home providers, multiple licensed facilities, and preschool educational facilities.

According to NDCC Section 50-11.1-02(1), a "child care center" is "an early childhood facility where early childhood services are provided to nineteen or more children."

North Dakota Century Code Section 50-11.1-02(6) defines a "family child care home" as "an occupied private residence in which early childhood services are provided for no more than seven children at any one time, except that the term includes a residence providing early childhood services to two additional school-aged children during the two hours immediately before and after the schoolday and all day, except Saturday and Sunday, when school is not in session during the official school year."

North Dakota Century Code Section 50-11.1-02(7) defines a "group child care home" or "group child care facility" as "a child care facility where early childhood services are provided for eight through eighteen children or a facility, other than an occupied private residence, which serves fewer than eight children."

According to NDCC Section 50-11.1-02(8), an "in-home provider" is "any person who provides early childhood services to children in the children's home."

North Dakota Century Code Section 50-11.1-02(10) defines a "multiple licensed facility" as "an early childhood facility that provides more than one type of early childhood services."

According to NDCC Section 50-11.1-02(11), a "preschool educational facility" is "a facility that offers early childhood services and follows a preschool curriculum and course of study designed primarily to enhance the educational development of the children enrolled in the facility and that serves no child for more than three hours per day."

Early childhood service providers in North Dakota may be categorized as follows:

• Nonlicensed providers.
• State-licensed providers.
• State-registered providers.
• Carecheck registered providers.

Licenses

The following early childhood facilities are licensed by the Department of Human Services: family child care homes, group child care facilities, preschool educational facilities, and child care centers.

According to NDCC Section 50-11.1-03(1) a "license for a family child care home is required if early childhood services are provided for four or more children ages twenty-four months and under or six or more children at any one time."

North Dakota Century Code Section 50-11.1-03(2) provides that a governmental organization establishing or operating a group child care facility, preschool educational facility, or child care center must certify to the Department of Health that the facility complies with all applicable rules and that any nongovernmental person establishing or operating this type of facility must be licensed.

The following early childhood service facilities may be licensed, voluntarily registered, or voluntarily carecheck registered:

• Licensure - North Dakota Century Code Section 50-11.1-03 provides that a family child care home not required to be licensed under Section 50-11.1-02(1) may voluntarily be licensed as a family child care home.
• Registration - North Dakota Century Code Section 50-11.1-06 provides an in-home provider may voluntarily be registered. Registration is the process whereby the Department of Human Services maintains a record of all in-home providers who have stated that they have complied or will comply with the prescribed standards and adopted rules. The standards and rules adopted by the Department of Human Services regarding registration are found in North Dakota Administrative Code Article 75-03. Under NDCC Section 50-11.1-06, registration certificates for in-home providers are effective for a maximum of one year.
• Carecheck Registry - North Dakota Century Code Section 50-11.1-06.1 provides that an in-home provider, a family child care home that is exempt from licensure, or a licensed early childhood services provider may voluntarily be carecheck registered. The carecheck registry provides for a toll-free telephone line, maintained by the Department of Human Services, for interested parents, guardians, employment agencies, and child care referral groups to find out if a person has met the requirements for placement in the carecheck registry.

Licensure Requirements

The requirements for early childhood licensure are found in NDCC Section 50-11.1-04. This section provides that an applicant must pass a mandatory investigation of the applicant's activities, proposed standards of care, and facilities; pass a possible investigation of an applicant, the applicant's employees, or every person living or working in an occupied private residence to determine whether any of them has a criminal record or has had a finding of probable cause for child abuse or neglect filed against them; comply with standards of sanitation, health, and safety; use qualified staff; maintain facility conduct in accordance with prescribed rules; have no license revocation within 180 days of the current application; pay all license fees and penalties; and maintain cardiopulmonary resuscitation standards. Section 50-11.1-07 requires that the provider must maintain and make available required records and information, and Section 50-11.1-08 requires the provider to meet minimum standards set by the Department of Human Services.

Registration Requirements

In-home provider registration requires compliance with a variety of requirements. North Dakota Century Code Section 50-11.1-07 requires the provider to pass possible investigations to determine the qualification of the provider and to maintain and make available required records and information. Section 50-11.1-08 requires the provider to meet minimum standards set by the Department of Human Services.

Carecheck Registration Requirements

Carecheck registration requires fingerprinting of an applicant and completion of a fingerprint card. If the Department of Human Services has no record of a determination of probable cause for child abuse or neglect, it submits a set of fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and a set of fingerprints to the Bureau of Criminal Investigation to determine whether there is any criminal history record information regarding the applicant for carecheck registration. The applicant is placed in the carecheck registry after satisfaction of requirements adopted by the Department of Human Services and if no relevant criminal history record information is found and no report of a determination of probable cause for child abuse or neglect is found which disqualifies the applicant.

Penalties

The general penalty for noncompliance with NDCC Chapter 50-11.1 is a Class B misdemeanor. Specifically, as amended in 1997 by Senate Bill No. 2055, Section 50-11.1-13.1 provides:

A person who provides early childhood services to any child, other than a child who is a member of that person's household, is guilty of a class B misdemeanor if:

1. Those services are provided after that person is required to register under section 12.1-32-15;
2. The department has denied that person's application for licensure or registration to provide early childhood services or has revoked that person's license or certificate or registration to provide early childhood services following a finding that services are required under chapter 50-25.1 and that finding has become final or has not been contested by that person; or
3. The person allows another person to be in the presence of the child receiving the services if that other person is required to register under section 12.1-32-15 or has had an application for licensure or registration to provide early childhood service denied by the department following a finding that services are required under chapter 50-25.1 and that finding has become final or has not been contested by that other person.

Department of Human Services

Under NDCC Section 50-06-05.1(11), the Department of Human Services is responsible for formulating standards and making appropriate inspections and investigations in accordance with these standards in connection with all licensing activities delegated by law to the department, including child care facilities. North Dakota Administrative Code Title 75 contains the administrative rules adopted by the Department of Human Services. Title 75 provides that the Department of Human Services has delegated the administration of the program to the Division of Children and Family Services. Title 75 also provides that each regional human service center must have a regional representative of county social service programs who is responsible for approving, denying, and revoking early childhood service licenses, providing technical assistance relevant to early childhood services, and providing or arranging inservice training for early childhood licensing staff within the region.

Under Title 75, delivery of the actual early childhood services, such as the processing of early childhood services license applications, is provided by county social service boards under the supervision of the designated regional representatives.

North Dakota Administrative Code Section 75-01-01-01 provides:

The North Dakota department of human services administers the public welfare programs for the state of North Dakota. The department, managed by a governor-appointed executive director, maintains an array of human service programs funded by a combination of federal, state, county, and private donation dollars. The term "human service" means service provided to individuals or their families in need to help them achieve, maintain, or support the highest level of personal independence and economic self-sufficiency, including health, mental health, education, manpower, social, vocational rehabilitation, aging, and food and nutrition. The administration of services is divided between economic assistance, which addresses financial and medical assistance needs, together with program and policy, and field services, which address services that enhance the quality of life for people who are at risk due to crisis or disabling circumstances. The department also includes the state council on developmental disabilities.

. . .

2. Program and policy administers human service programs that are provided by the county social service boards and services centers. . . . The major programs supervised by program and policy which are subject, at least in part, to the provisions of North Dakota Century Code chapter 28-32 are:

. . .

3. Children and family services;

. . .

3. Children and family services. The division protects and promotes the well-being of all children, including children with disabilities, homeless, dependent, and neglected children. The division seeks to prevent, remedy, or assist in the solution to problems that result in the neglect, abuse, deprivation, exploitation, or delinquency of children. Unnecessary separation of children from their families is prevented by identifying family problems and assisting families in resolving their problems, by restoring to their natural families children who have been removed, and by providing services to the child in the family home. When restoration to the natural family is not feasible, the division supervises the placement of the child in a suitable adoptive home and assures the provision of adequate care of children placed away from their natural homes on a permanent basis. These goals are met through service programs that include . . . early childhood services . . . . Emphasis is placed on the collaboration of services with the children's services coordinating committee and the regional children's services coordinating committees. (emphasis supplied)

North Dakota Administrative Code Section 75-05-05-03 provides:

1. The regional director shall designate a regional representative of county social services programs.

. . .

4. With respect to early childhood services (day care services), the regional representative shall:
   1. Approve, deny, or revoke all early childhood home, group, and center license applications, license applications for preschool educational facilities, and applications for standard compliance certification, and provide formal notification to all applicants;
   2. Provide technical assistance regarding policies, procedures, rules, and laws for early childhood services in the region; and
   3. Provide or arrange inservice training for early childhood licensing staff regionwide. (emphasis supplied)

Alternative Early Childhood Services Licensing Agencies

The 1996 Joint Social Service System Committee provided testimony to the 1995-96 interim Budget Committee on Human Services regarding possible alternative early childhood service licensing agencies. Alternative licensing agencies included the child care providers, the Department of Human Services, the Department of Health, the Attorney General's office, or county social service boards. Another alternative licensing agency not mentioned by the joint committee is the regional human service centers.

CHILD SUPPORT SERVICES

1997 Legislation Legislation Enacted

House Concurrent Resolution No. 3031 directs a study of the issues of fairness and equity as they relate to child support guidelines and the issuance and enforcement of child custody and visitation orders. The study has been assigned to the 1997-98 interim child support committee.

House Concurrent Resolution No. 3034 directed the Legislative Council to study the impact of divorce on children and issues of equity and fairness as they relate to custody determinations, visitation orders, and child support obligations. The Legislative Council did not prioritize this resolution for study.

Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 4048 directed the Legislative Council to study the interrelationship of the postjudgment issues of child support and visitation, including the accountability of both parents to honor divorce orders and the development of a parenting education program that addresses the impact of divorce on children. The Legislative Council did not prioritize this resolution for study.

Section 83 of House Bill No. 1226, which contains numerous welfare reform provisions, establishes a task force to accomplish several of the goals and programs provided for under the bill.

House Bill No. 1226 brings the state into compliance with federal welfare legislation and includes numerous child support enforcement provisions, including a requirement that all employers report to the Department of Human Services all new employees within 20 days of hire and centralization of child support collection and disbursement with the Department of Human Services.

Senate Bill No. 2280 requires the Department of Human Services to request a child support enforcement agency to enter a child support withholding order within 20 days of the date income withholding is determined to be appropriate or the date of receipt of information necessary to carry out the withholding.

Defeated Legislation

House Bill No. 1244 would have required courts to order the obligor in child support cases to submit nonreimbursable medical expenses to the clerk of court as disbursements taxed in judgment. This bill failed to pass the House.

Senate Bill No. 2390 would have required the inclusion of a spouse's income in child support calculations. This bill failed to pass the House.

Recent Studies 1995-96 Interim

During the 1995-96 interim, the Budget Committee on Human Services studied the responsibilities of county social service agencies, regional human service centers, and the Department of Human Services under House Concurrent Resolution No. 3045. Testimony was received from the Joint Social Service System Committee. A copy of the relevant portion of the interim committee's final report is attached as Appendix "B". The committee recommended House Bill No. 1041 which requires counties to assume the financial responsibility for the costs of administering several economic assistance programs. In return for taking on this financial responsibility, the bill provides that the state will assume complete financial responsibility for the grant costs of medical assistance and basic care and contributes additional support of administrative costs for counties with Indian land. Section 14 of House Bill No. 1041 directed this study.

Joint Social Service System Committee

In 1996 the Joint Social Service System Committee, composed of representatives of the North Dakota Association of County Social Service Board Directors, the Department of Human Services, the North Dakota Association of Counties, and the 1995-96 interim Budget Committee on Human Services, was formed. Subcommittees of the committee studied statutes relative to county-based social services, options for the provision of child support enforcement services, the current and ideal structure for early childhood licensing, and the overall structure and funding of children and family services. The study proposed in Section 14 of 1997 House Bill No. 1041 in large part arose from the research conducted by this child support subcommittee.

Audit - 1995

An audit reviewing the efficiency and effectiveness of this state's system of establishing and enforcing support orders, the potential for reducing costs through program fees and interest on arrears, and the adequacy of policies and procedures surrounding the collection of overpayments to custodial parents was conducted by the State Auditor as part of a joint performance audit initiated by the National State Auditors Association in 1995. A copy of the audit recommendations is attached as Appendix "C".

During the 1993-94 interim, the Budget Committee on Youth Services studied children and youth services in the state and the provision of services for children.

During the 1991-92 interim, the Administrative Rules Committee studied the impact of various child support guideline models on family units, the quality of the relationships among the persons in the families, and on children who receive child support.

During the 1991-92 interim, the Budget Committee on Human Services studied the distribution of child support enforcement incentive payments made by the federal government.

Introduction

Part D of Subchapter IV of the Social Security Act (IV-D) addresses child support and establishment of paternity as it relates to federal grants to states for aid and services to needy families with children and for child welfare services. The IV-D program is administered by the United States Department of Health and Human Services through the Office of Child Support Enforcement. IV-D services are provided to household members who receive aid to families with dependent children (AFDC) and Medicaid benefits and are also available to anyone who makes application for IV-D services. Additionally, referrals are made to the Child Support Enforcement Division on foster care cases to permit the recovery of foster care expenses from parents. Approximately one-half of the total child support cases in this state are IV-D cases.

Significant change in federal law relating to welfare reform is changing the state's provision of child support services. Child support services are currently provided by a variety of governmental agencies in North Dakota. North Dakota's child support program is state-supervised and county-administered. The eight regional offices provide the front-line enforcement services. The national trend is to move from county-administered programs to state-administered programs.

State IV-D Agency

The Department of Human Services Child Support Enforcement Division is the state IV-D agency and is responsible for the overall operation of the child support enforcement program.

The division's functions include:

• Ensuring compliance with federal and state laws and regulations governing the IV-D program; making and interpreting all matters of policy; administering a "new hire" data base (effective October 1, 1997);
• Performing intake and recordkeeping on all child support collections;
• Collecting and distributing child support collections (effective July 1, 1999);
• Preparing affidavits of public assistance and child support collections;
• Providing statewide, national, and international location services;
• Obtaining federal funds and state appropriations for operations of the statewide IV-D program;
• Assisting in regional unit budget preparations by providing the county social service boards with updates on state and federal projects;
• Processing and approving regional unit expenditures and ensuring payment of these expenditures;
• Providing statewide training to regional unit personnel;
• Acting as liaison between other state IV-D agencies and international, federal, state, and county entities;
• Completing reports as required by federal, state, and county officials;
• Providing statewide public relations for the program;
• Providing legal advice on IV-D matters;
• Paying incentives and reimbursements to political subdivisions;
• Preparing contracts and agreements with political subdivisions and other governmental agencies and divisions;
• Handling special requests from the state Department of Human Services and other states, counties, regional units, recipients, applicants, legislators, and related agencies;
• Serving as the state information agency for the Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement Security Act (URESA) and related IV-D matters;
• Providing program research and analysis;
• Preparing and updating the IV-D procedures manual; and
• Issuing policy and procedures.

Regional IV-D Units Composition

Regional IV-D units are responsible for establishing paternity and support orders; enforcing and collecting child support; performing the initial parent location effort; implementing policy as determined by the state IV-D agency; and cooperating fully with the state IV-D agency. Each regional unit of the child support enforcement program is generally comprised of an administrator, investigator, attorney, and support staff. Each of these positions is responsible for providing a variety of functions for the unit.

Administrator

Each regional unit of the child support enforcement program is headed by a regional IV-D administrator. The administrator is responsible for the administration and management of a regional IV-D unit and the supervision of the operations and personnel within the unit. Duties of the administrator include:

• Hiring and discharging IV-D personnel within the unit;
• Conducting studies and surveys for statistical information and reports;
• Supervising and coordinating the work of all personnel within the unit;
• Coordinating the work of the unit with the state IV-D agency, county social service boards, county clerks of court, and other applicable agencies;
• Promoting public relations between the IV-D unit, other agencies, and the public;
• Interviewing recipients and applicants and working individual cases;
• Assisting in the preparation of legal documents and, if an attorney, performing all legal duties relative to cases;
• Overseeing the maintenance of case records and monitoring of the case records;
• Fiscal responsibility of the operation and budget preparation of the unit; and
• Ensuring compliance with program policies and procedures.

Investigator

Duties of a unit investigator include:

• Performing case intake, reviewing files, and gathering additional information when required;
• Interviewing a recipient, applicant, or absent parent and other necessary parties;
• Ensuring proper referral from IV-A (AFDC) is made and the case is within IV-D guidelines;
• Developing a plan of action for proceeding in each case;
• Locating absent parents;
• Investigating, gathering, and developing the evidence necessary for establishing paternity or establishing and enforcing support;
• Reviewing the obligor's financial status, ability to pay, and any other factors that might affect payment of child support obligations;
• Occasionally assisting in the preparation of legal documents;
• Occasional service of process; and
• Drafting of correspondence and assistance in monitoring cases for collections.

Attorney

A child support attorney is the legal representative of the unit. Attorney duties include:

• Responsibility for monitoring and advising decisionmaking matters regarding all legal procedures and actions;
• Responding and negotiating with opposing counsel and appearing in court as necessary;
• Advising the unit of court rules, practices, and child support law;
• Maintaining a close liaison with the state IV-D agency and county officials;
• Assisting investigators and other IV-D staff in legal matters; and
• Acting as an assistant state's attorney when appointed.

County Social Service Boards

County social service boards are responsible for the administration of the regional IV-D unit. Other duties include the budgeting and funding of the regional IV-D unit; contracting with public or private agents to discharge child support enforcement duties; reporting to the state agency; providing staff to operate the regional IV-D unit; interfacing with the regional unit on IV-A (AFDC) case matters helpful to successful child support enforcement; and approving all past AFDC and arrearage settlements.

Clerks of the District Court

Before July 1, 1997, the clerks of the district court were responsible for receiving and disbursing child support payments for IV-D and non-IV-D child support cases and implementing income withholding. Section 9 of 1997 House Bill No. 1226 created a state disbursement unit which will assume the child support duties previously performed by the clerks. Section 84 of House Bill No. 1226 provides that the transition from the clerks acting as the agents for receipt and disbursement of child support payments will occur between July 1, 1997, and April 1, 1999. Between July 1, 1997, and the system implementation date, with respect to income withholding and other activities, the clerks and the state will share responsibilities. The transfer of responsibilities under the bill will occur on a county-by-county and case-by-case basis.

Alternative Child Support Enforcement Service Providers Privatization - Collection

Child support services include locating noncustodial parents; establishing paternity and support orders; updating support orders to be current with a noncustodial parent's income; obtaining medical support from noncustodial parents; and collecting ongoing and past due support payments. According to a 1996 United States General Accounting Office (GAO) fact sheet, between 1980 and 1995 the national child support enforcement program's caseload more than tripled--from 5.4 million to 20.1 million cases. In addition, the amount of uncollected support from past years increased from $8.8 billion in 1986 to $30.8 billion in 1994. A study completed by the GAO determined that states are turning to private firms to collect child support payments because states are finding it increasingly difficult to service their growing child support enforcement caseloads with available staff and budgetary resources.

Privatized child support contracts in the states usually cover one or more services and, in general, either supplement state or local program efforts or replace them with privatized offices. According to the GAO, as of October 1995 one or more child support services has been privatized statewide in 20 states and at the local office level in 18 states. The privatized services include 21 contracts for full-service child support operations, 41 contracts for collections and related parent location services, nine contracts for payment processing services, and eight contracts for location services only. Most of these services were provided by four major contractors.

The type of cases referred for privatized collection dictate whether and to what extent the families and the government benefit financially. Variable factors include whether the collection is for an AFDC case or non-AFDC case; whether the collection is for current or past due support on AFDC cases; and whether AFDC collections are distributed to families. States predominately privatize collections of past due support.

A Texas study of privatization of child support services summarized private sector participation in child support enforcement would increase collections in both AFDC and non-AFDC cases, resulting in avoided costs, retained collections, federal incentives and federal matching funds, and additional support to children.

Recent privatization options considered in Florida included privatization of the collection and disbursement process by contracting with a bank to collect and disburse all child support payments and privatization of the collection process by contracting with a bank to collect child support payments but disbursing funds through the state.

Privatization - Disbursement

The 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (42 U.S.C. § 651 et seq.) specifies that each state must establish a single location to which employers can send child support income withholding payments and must establish a state child support disbursement unit to process payments. In response to this federal legislation, Florida conducted a study to determine how to comply with these requirements. One of the four options resulting from this study suggested privatization of disbursement process by contracting with a bank to disburse all child support payments.

Federal Administration

One alternative provider of child support services could be the Internal Revenue Service. In 1996 Ms. Vicki Turetsky of the Center for Law and Social Policy wrote Improving Child Support Collections: States Establish the Order, While IRS Collects the Support. In this article, Ms. Turetsky proposes the Internal Revenue Service would be able to make and implement improved child support collection services faster than the states have been able to; the system would be simpler, more efficient, and more accountable than the current state-run system; the system would ease the administrative burdens on employers; enforcement by the Internal Revenue Service would make nonpayment of child support a more serious offense; the system would be more effective at dealing with interstate cases; and the system would reduce the need for other costly and intrusive enforcement mechanisms.

STUDY APPROACH

This study focuses on which entity should provide child support enforcement services and child care licensing services. Areas that should be considered include:

• Who currently offers these services;
• Whether another entity could offer the services more effectively to the consumer, and;
• Whether another entity could offer the services more cost effectively.

Study approaches that may be helpful include gathering information from interested parties, evaluating how other states provide these services, and evaluating national trends.

ATTACH:3

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