New Law to Improve Child Support System Equity

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NEW LAW TO IMPROVE CHILD SUPPORT SYSTEM EQUITY

Effective May 1st, Child Support Services will send all collections on behalf of families  that previously received cash assistance through CalWORKs directly to those families 

RANCHO CORDOVA, CA – The State of California is continuing to make changes to  improve equity in its child support system. Yesterday, Assembly Bill 207 (AB 207), signed by  Governor Newsom in 2022, began to be implemented.

WHAT THIS MEANS: Collections that are received for government-assigned debt due to  participation in the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids program  (CalWORKs) will be passed through to those families who no longer receive CalWORKs.  This does not mean the parents paying child support to these families are paying more,  but instead California is making child support a better source of income to assist  vulnerable families by waiving the government practice of “paying back” the aid to the  state.

“Passing through the money previously owed to government to the family once cash aid  is no longer being received helps ease the burden on some of the most deeply impacted  parents in our caseload,” said David Kilgore, Director of the California Department of  Child Support Services. “By allowing debt to be paid off while passing more money  directly to families, child support is effectively helping both paying and receiving parents  and their kids. I am glad to see changes like this improving the child support program in  California.”

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: 

BACKGROUND: Before March 2020, intercepts of Federal tax refunds first paid back any  funds due to the government for any CalWORKs payments to the family, and then went  to the support recipient. Federal law requires this intercept if the taxpayer has any past  due child support. With many Californians losing employment due to the pandemic,  Governor Newsom moved swiftly to take Executive Action to ensure any Federal stimulus  funds went to pay the families first and recoup for CalWORKs payments last.

The Legislature voted to make this permanent in 2021 and since then, each legislative  session has brought more changes to the child support program, taking into account the  vast demographic and income shifts among parents, and the changes in how  Californians define their families.

That same month, the Legislature voted to expand the amount of child support that is  passed through to families who are currently receiving CalWORKs benefits from the first  $50 each month to $100 for families with one child and $200 for families with two or more  children. Child Support Services implemented this change beginning in January 2022,  greatly increasing the support paid to CalWORKs families.

BIGGER PICTURE: Under the Newsom Administration, the state has taken action to update  child support statutes to better serve the current needs of children and families, ending  practices that have long created inequitable results for California parents. California is  making changes to improve equity, implementing programs that assist rather than punish  parents, creating efficiencies and improving outcomes that together serve as a model  for the nation.

For more information, visit https://childsupport.ca.gov/formerassistance/ 

Eastern Sierra Child Support Services serves families by establishing parentage, obtaining  child support and medical support orders, and enforcing child and spousal support  obligations. Serving Inyo and Mono County child support participants. For more  information, call 866-901-3212 or view the Department of Child Support Services website  at www.childsupport.ca.gov.

News Staff