DCFS: Child support cases, collections growing

Each year, the number of child support cases and the amount of collections in the Tri-parish area and state goes up, and local district attorneys’ offices are going above and beyond to make sure those who owe pay up.

“We have won several awards for our child support work,” said Lafourche Parish District Attorney Cam Morvant. “When I campaigned for district attorney, this is something I felt very strongly about, and I still feel strongly about it.

“I deal with a lot of different calls about different things every day, but don’t waste your time calling me about a problem paying child support. By the time you go to jail for not paying your child support, we have exhausted every avenue we have to get someone to pay. There are no compromises. Pay or you go to jail.”

Lafourche Parish is part of the Region 4 of the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services, which also includes Ascension, Assumption, St. Charles, St. James, St. John and Terrebonne parishes. According to DCFS statistics, the number of child support cases in the parish has fluctuated from 5,213 in 2010 to 5,154 as of July 2013, following the end of the fiscal year in June. In 2010, the parish collected more than $8.17 million in child support for the state. By 2011, that number increased by almost $1 million to a little more than $9.14 million. In 2012, Lafourche Parish’s child support collections totaled more than $9.69 million.

“We also do in court collections,” Morvant said. “We get them to come down here and pay it. You can’t always count on them to mail it in.”

In-court collections are also on the rise, and the parish collected $371,778 in 2012 from those who paid their child support in person.

“We have some who refuse to get steady jobs,” said Frank Rathle, Lafourche Parish assistant district attorney and child support coordinator. “We get them to come in once every month and pay by check.

“Child support is something you can never get away from paying.”

Each parish’s district attorney’s office is under contract with the state to collect child support, and while Morvant’s child support department is working hard to collect child support, it is doing so while operating in the red.

“The problem is that we are in our fourth year with a standstill budget,” Morvant said. “This is the fourth year we have not received any additional money (from the state) for running our child support department.

“Since I came into office, our expenses have gone up, insurance has increased, the case load has increased, and we have had to hire additional people to meet the workload.”

Still, the deficit does not deter Morvant from pursuing those who owe child support, and the district attorney knows what he is doing is in the best interest of children who receive child support.

“We take this seriously,” Morvant said. “We want to do it right, for it to be the best that it can be. We are operating at a deficit, but my office is footing the bill. It’s let the services go down or foot the bill, but we are going to pay for it.”

By making sure his office collects child support, Morvant hopes to keep children living in situations where the custodial parent is receiving child support from facing some of the hardships in life.

“The statistics are glaring,” he said. “Children have more hurdles in situations where their custodial parent is not receiving child support.

“I may not be able to make you emotionally support your child, but I will make you support him or her financially.”

In Terrebonne Parish, the number of child support cases has made a slow and steady increase since 2010. That year, the district attorney’s office handled 7,437 cases, and in 2013, that number totaled 7,770.

“Child support collections are going well,” said Terrebonne Parish District Attorney Joe Waitz Jr. “We are tough in Terrebonne Parish.

“This year, we are looking to collect right at $10 million for children and custodial guardians.”

Since taking office in 1998, Waitz’s child support office has collected more than $100 million in child support for children in the parish who receive such funds. In the last few years, each year’s total has moved from just under $9 million to $9.3 million last year.

Like Morvant’s child support office, Waitz’s is operating at a deficit, and Waitz’s staff also works hard to collect child support funds.

“We have been operating at a deficit for 18 years,” Waitz said. “For the past 18 years, we have dipped into our pocket to break even. This is not a money making business, but the money goes to help the children and provide basic things they should be given.”

Waitz’s office does child support roundups once or twice a year, depending on the number of warrants for delinquent child support, and sometimes a public statement that a roundup is scheduled is enough to get those who owe to turn themselves in.

“People will actually turn themselves in first rather than be arrested,” Waitz said. “Collecting child support is a problem all over the country and here. People have an obligation to support their child.”

“Joe is very aggressive in pursuing those who owe child support,” said Mark Pitre, director of child support services for the Terrebonne Parish District Attorney’s Office. “We’ve been to Chicago, Washington state and North Carolina to get people. If Joe wants them, we go get them.”

In St. Mary Parish, which is part of DCFS Region 5 and also includes Lafayette, Acadia, Evangeline, Iberia, Lafayette, St. Landry, St. Martin and Vermilion parishes, case numbers have also been on the increase. In 2010, the parish handled more than 5,257 child support cases and by 2013, the caseload increased to 5,482.

“The sheriff’s office has arrested people in the last several months for not paying child support,” said Shirley Legnon, intake supervisor for the St. Mary Parish District Attorney’s child support office. “We only take the cases and refer them to court.”

For the 2010-11 fiscal year, the state collected $380 million in child support arrears and obligations and handled 285,261 child support cases. In 2012-11, the state collected $399.5 million and had 292,474 child support cases. By 2012-13, collections totaled $422 million, and cases rose to 305,254.

When it comes to paying child support, the non-custodial parent may pay voluntarily. In cases where this does not occur, the state collects child support several ways including federal and state tax intercepts, unemployment claims, the Lottery, passport denial and casino intercepts. Income withholding accounts for almost 67 percent of child support collections, and other sources trail far behind at almost 16 percent. Offset of federal tax accounts for 9.19 percent, and money collected from other states is almost 6 percent. Offset of unemployment is just shy of 2 percent. Less than 1 percent each is collected through offset of state tax, other countries, casino intercepts, passport denial and lottery intercepts.

While casino intercepts make up a very small percentage of the state’s child support enforcement payments, the amount of money collected in the two years since the program launched recently passed the $1 million mark.

“DCFS officially hit the $1 million collection mark in March of this year,” said DCFS Secretary Suzy Sonnier in a printed statement. “Reaching this amount in less than two years shows that the casino intercept program is an essential tool to ensure that non-custodial parents who owe child support meet their obligations of providing financial, medical and emotional support to their children.

“With more than $1.3 billion owed by non-custodial parents, DCFS will continue to use every avenue and tool available to ensure that Louisiana’s children are being provided for by their parents.”

DCFS collected the money from gamblers who owed back child support, and all 19 state-licensed casinos participate in the program. The largest single collection to date was at Amelia Belle in St. Mary Parish last December. More than $23,000 was received in that single collection, and more than $62,000 has been collected from the casino since it started participating in the program.

Former state Sen. Nick Gautreaux introduced the casino intercept legislation in the 2010 session, and several other states also have with similar laws.

Those who do not pay court-ordered child support may also face liens against his or her property, seizure of assets, suspension of driver’s, business, professional, hunting or fishing licenses and contempt of court charges.

As local district attorney’s offices work to collect child support and track that those who do not pay voluntarily, the state DCFS was recently awarded more than $8 million as part of a federal Child Support Enforcement Incentive award.

“Each dollar of this award is reinvested in our efforts to collect current and back-owed child support on behalf of custodial parents taking on the responsibility of raising a child,” Sonnier said. “DCFS continues to exceed previous years’ child support collections by using tools and (the) best practices to collect from non-custodial parents who evade other efforts.”

The award is given based on performance indicators, including paternity establishment, obligation establishment, current support, arrears cases collections and cost effectiveness. The awards are granted every year after a federal audit of state child support collections. This is the fourth consecutive year the state DCFS has received the incentive.

The money is not expected to go to local or regional DCFS offices and will be used to reinvest in the child support program and continue to finance components of the program.

“A lot of the time, this money is used to enhance our technology and tools that we use to track or locate those who owe child support,” said DCFS media contact Trey Williams. “It might not go directly to any region, but the staff will benefit from the improvements we will make at a statewide level.”

The improvements include upgrades to the DCFS Customer Service Center and website as well as upgrades to improve efficiency and effectiveness and the parent and asset location systems.

“Historically, Louisiana has done very well with collecting child support compared to other states,” Williams said. “Louisiana is known around the country for its use of technology to collect child support. The state is at the forefront with the use of technology to collect child support. We talk to child support workers from other states at national meetings, and some of our tools are then implemented in other states.”

Those tools include ways those who owe child support are tracked down, including DCFS’s collaboration with other state agencies to share data, and an online system to check the employment status and check payment of those who owe child support.