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Publication Date: June 2003
Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Author(s):
Research Area: Social conditions
Type:
Abstract:
P.L. 104-193 (the 1996 welfare reform legislation) made major changes to the Child Support Enforcement (CSE) program. Some of the changes include requiring states to increase the percentage of fathers identified, establishing an integrated, automated network linking all states to information about the location and assets of parents, and requiring states to implement more enforcement techniques to obtain collections from debtor parents. Additional legislative changes were made in 1997, 1998, and 1999, but not in 2000, 2001, or 2002. This report describes several aspects of the revised CSE program and discusses three issues that probably will be reexamined by the 108th Congress -- CSE financing, parental access by noncustodial parents, and distribution of support payments. This report will be updated to reflect new developments and issues.