8 votes

The stimulus bill punishes parents behind on child support. Now is not the time

2 comments

  1. ThyMrMan
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    It is incredible how the more I learn about this stimulus bill, the more terrible it ends up being. Would think it is rather simple to just give people money, but somehow the government is...

    It is incredible how the more I learn about this stimulus bill, the more terrible it ends up being. Would think it is rather simple to just give people money, but somehow the government is screwing that up as well.

    4 votes
  2. MimicSquid
    Link
    ... ...

    Child support enforcement is a vital system for many working- and middle-class parents for facilitating economic contributions from noncustodial parents to custodial parents and their children. However, as the most economically vulnerable among us face growing financial precariousness, the collection of child support will make low-income child support payers increasingly at risk for a host of actions that will simultaneously undermine their ability to navigate this global crisis and support their children after it ends.

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    Importantly, these noncustodial parents—mostly fathers—are more likely to be paying child support as reimbursement for welfare benefits paid to the custodial parent. Welfare reform passed in 1996 allowed states to order child support to repay their expenditures of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF, and other means-tested benefits.* This means that low-income custodial parents and children see very little of the child support paid by the noncustodial parent. Almost half of child support debt belongs to low-income parents who are paying back the state for the cost of TANF benefits. In a time of great economic precariousness most acutely affecting the economically vulnerable, repaying the state for welfare benefits does not seem like a high priority. Therefore, we urge state enforcement offices to discharge all outstanding child support debt owed directly to the state.

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    As a country in crisis, we must consider how existing policies may exacerbate existing conditions for the poor. While lawmakers take steps to lessen the economic and social impact of COVID-19, alleviating the financial and psychological stress of child support obligations increases parents’ ability to emotionally support their children during this time when it is the most needed. In light of this ongoing national emergency, we implore states across the U.S. to seriously consider these recommendations, which we believe would be in the best interest of those individuals and families who are most economically vulnerable, now more than ever.

    1 vote