Child Support Enforcement Information for New York Residents
Child Support Enforcement Program
The Child Support Enforcement program also referred to as the CSE is in every state throughout the U.S.
The program started in the year 1975, when the Title IV-D of the Social Security Act was passed by Congress. This Title IV-D states that every U.S. state must:
- 1. Enforce child support orders when the payments are not made.
- 2. Provide paternity establishment procedures and to get child support court orders.
- 3. Gather and issue child support payments.
- 4. Establish and maintain statewide child support enforcement laws.
CSE units in New York provide CSE services as well as having support collection units which are located in every county. These units are also located in NYC.
What Services Does CSE Provide?
The following CSE services are offered free of charge:
- 1. Locating the absent non-custodial parent.
- 2. 2. Paternity establishment.
- 3. Child support establishment.
- 4. Support collection.
- 5. Support enforcement (Administrative).
- 6. Support enforcement (Court).
- 7. Medical support establishment and enforcement.
- 8. Review and adjustment of child support amounts.
- 9. Modifications of child support orders.
The services that are listed above are defined one by one below.
- 1. The CSE locates the absent parent or parents by using local, state, and federal information and resources.
- 2. Normally if a child or children are born to people that are not married, the child or children legally have no father. The establishment of paternity must take place before any medical support or child support can be filed for. CSE will aid parents in establishing paternity by filing a paternity petition to Family Court or by having the parents complete a voluntary form that acknowledges the paternity. CSE will also help with genetic testing if both parents admit doubt to being the child or children's biological parent.
- 3. When attempting to get child support established CSE can help a custodial parent with the filing of a petition in Family Court to get a child support order put in place.
- 4. The child Support Collection Units (SCU) not only collect child support payments, but they track and disburse the child support payments to the receiving parent as well. There is an exception to this when a custodial parent may be getting assistance. If the custodial parent is getting this type of assistance, all but the first initial fifty dollars of the child support payment is given directly to the Department of Social Services for a form of reimbursement payment for the aid provided to the custodial parent.
- 5. A Federal as well as NY state law requires the CSE unit to implement child support payments when the non-custodial parent doesn't disburse the child support owed. The CSE has administrative actions it can take to enforce child support without having to go to court. The first step the SCU takes is to deduct the child support payments from the non-custodial parent's paycheck. Another way the SCU collects child support is by withholding State and Federal tax refunds and any type of lottery winnings the non-custodial parent might receive. They can also seize assets which include bank accounts, suspending the non-custodial parents' driver's license, and denying or suspending the non-custodial parent's passport. The SCU will also notify credit reporting companies of past due child support expenses also called arrears. One of the other steps the SCU may take is to just pass on the case for gathering to the New York State Department of Taxation & Finance.
- 6. Sometimes administrative efforts are not victorious. When this happens the SCU may help file a formal request to the Family Courts. After the petition is filed, the court has the power to arrange money judgments for the overdue child support or arrears. This could include ordering the non-custodial parent into a employment program, they can also order a hearing to shelve state-issued business, occupational, or professional licenses, and the end result if most else fails is jail or probation sentence that the non-custodial parent will have to fulfill.
- 7. These services also comprise of gaining medical insurance. The CSE will also enforce court required health insurance. If the standing order doesn't require or ask that health insurance be provided the CSE will aid in filing a petition to get health insurance built-in to the order that was put in place prior to this new petition filing.
- 8. Usually child support payment amounts are modified periodically based on the current costs of living. The CSE will evaluate each support order approximately every two years to determine if a child support payment increase is needed. These expenses of living modifications can be made devoid of both parents having to go to court. If the custodial parent is not getting assistance when the case is evaluated the CSE will send a notice individually to the parents letting them know that at the current time their child support order is qualified for a cost of living modification. After getting this notice either parent can ask for the modification. If the custodial parent is getting assistance when the child support order is able to get an modification, the modification to the child support order will be made automatically without both parents asking that the modification to be made.
- 9. If either one of the parents living situations changes dramatically, CSE will aid the parent in filing a new petition to apply for a change to be made to the current child support arrangement. Examples of a dramatic change would include:
- 1. Job Loss
- 2. Custody with the child or children changes.
There are many types of situations that may qualify for a modification to be made, so make sure all changes are reported in a timely manner.