INCREASE CHILD SUPPORT COLLECTIONS AND PAYMENT RELIABILITY
Tactics:
Pass Through to Formerly Assisted Families
Business Problem/Opportunity: The Governor signed Assembly Bill 207 on September 27, 2022 which allows the passing through of collections on these assigned arrears to the family while retaining their assigned nature. There is the need to develop policies, procedures, and training regarding this change.
Current Status: 
91% completed
Business Outcomes:
- Families receive current collections otherwise retained as recoupment, with an overall positive impact to their available resources
Critical Success Factors: Families with assigned arrears balances are receiving payments.
- Progress: Pass Through to Formerly Assisted Families 91%
Automate many tasks associated with enforcement of Smith-Ostler cases, to allow such cases to be opened and enforced in all counties
Business Problem/Opportunity: In child support cases where a person’s income fluctuates or includes periodic bonuses, courts may make an order for additional support, termed “Smith/Ostler” orders after California case law including parties with those names. This additional support is not included in the basic guideline amount, but must be tracked separately. Many local agencies are unable to collect this additional amount because Child Support Enforcement has not been programmed to account for this type of order, and the manual process to track the additional support amount outside of Child Support Enforcement is prohibitive for many local agencies.
Current Status: 57% completed
Business Outcomes:
- Increased cases
- Increased collections
- Increased non-IV-D cases
Critical Success Factors: Increased cases with Smith-Ostler orders.
- Progress: Implement Smith-Ostler Functionality 57%
Advance Flexibility, Efficiency and Modernization Standards (FEM)
Business Problem/Opportunity: By ensuring that child support orders accurately reflect a parent’s ability to pay, these changes can improve the fairness of child support orders, enhance enforcement efficiency, and ultimately secure better outcomes for children in California
Current Status: 41% completed
Business Outcomes:
- Improve the well-being of children and families
- Child support orders will be set to accurately reflect a parent’s ability to pay, creating less financial strain, and children will be more likely to receive the support they need
- Focusing on earning capacity over presumed income will prevent parents from evading their obligations and ensure that orders are more precisely tailored to their financial capabilities
Critical Success Factors: A reduction in presumed order establishments, an increase in compliance rates and increased accuracy.
- Progress: Advance Flexibility, Efficiency and Modernization Standards (FEM) 41%
2020 - Address New Hire Reporting - COMPLETE
Obtain reliable financial information through the New Hire Reporting process
Business Problem/Opportunity: Third party vendor, Stellarware, was hired to manage New Employee Registry reporting compliance and accuracy, and to obtain employment and location information for parents ordered to pay support, thereby increasing collections to families via Income Withholding Orders.
Current Status: 
100% completed
Business Outcomes:
Compliance with New Employee Registry reporting requirements and accuracy of data will increase
Employment will be reported for more parents ordered to pay support
More Income Withholding Orders will be generated and collections to families will increase
Critical Success Factors: Due to statewide budget cuts resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, contract with Stellarware ended.
2023 - Re-examine the "Compromise of Arrears" debt reduction program - COMPLETE
Increase usability by customers and local child support agencies
Business Problem/Opportunity: Perform system enhancements to the Compromise of Arrears Program to improve business processes. Review Compromise of Arrears Program and consider any needed changes to address uncollectible debt and increase collection.
Current Status: 100% completed
Business Outcomes:
- Expand program access to more participants
- Increase collections
- Decrease uncollectible arrears
- Improve long-term program efficiencies
Critical Success Factors: Increase overall collections and increase access and usability for customers
2021 - DRA Implementation - COMPLETE
Prioritize current support and family-owed overdue support before government-owed overdue support
Business Problem/Opportunity: Effective May 1, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom issued an Executive Order that allowed California Child Support Services to distribute current and overdue support collected to families first and amounts owed to the government second, a change permitted under Federal Law. On July 16, 2021, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill 135 making the change permanent in statute and prioritizing family support over government reimbursement in cases where children had received Temporary Aid to Needy Families.
Current Status: 100% completed
Business Outcomes:
- California will distribute all collections, including federal tax refund offsets, within a case to current child support and family-owed overdue support before government-owed overdue support
Critical Success Factors: Increased support to families.
2022 - New Hire Reporting Improvement - COMPLETE
Obtain reliable financial information through the New Hire Reporting process
Business Problem/Opportunity: Operations Division to manage New Employee Registry reporting compliance and accuracy, and to obtain employment and location information for parents ordered to pay support, thereby increasing collections to families via Income Withholding Orders.
Current Status: 100% completed
Business Outcomes:
Compliance with New Employee Registry reporting requirements and accuracy of data will increase
Employment will be reported for more parents ordered to pay support
More Income Withholding Orders will be generated and collections to families will increase
Critical Success Factors: Increased compliance rate with new employee hiring requirements and increased Income Withholding Orders generated from new hire registry.