Incarceration and Child Support:

1
Incarceration and Child Support

• Working with Incarcerated and Released Parents
  Lessons from OCSE Grants and State Programs
• Jessica Pearson, Ph.D.
• Center for Policy Research
• Denver, Colorado 80218
• www.centerforpolicyresearch.org.
• Presented at 16th National CSE Training
  Conference Workshop Better Ways of Working with
  Incarcerated Released Parents
• Research funded by Federal Office of Child
  Support Enforcement through Task Order 38 and
  demonstration and evaluation grants to numerous
  states including Colorado, Illinois,
  Massachusetts and Texas

2
OCSE Projects Dealing with Child Support and
Incarceration

• California (2003-2004) Employment after release
  (42)
• Colorado (1999-2001) Identify inmates, modify
  orders(898)
• Colorado (1999-2002)Create one-stop for reentry
  help (350
• Illinois (2002-2004) Modify orders in
  pre-release(190)
• Mass (2002-2003) Work w/ DOC, modify orders
  (1200)
• Minnesota (2001-2003) Reduce inmate arrears (102)
• Missouri (2001-2003) Parenting skills to inmates
  (400)
• Texas (2002-2004) Child support and
  reintegration in
  prison settings (317)
• Wash DC-Strive (2001-2002) Employment after
  release (82)
• Wash (2001-2003) Modify inmate orders (1,472)

3
The Problem

• No communication/agreements with DOC and other
  criminal justice agencies to identify, reach and
  treat inmates
• Courts/CSE treat incarceration as voluntary
  unemployment and not a change of circumstances
• Limited CSE outreach to incarcerated NCPs
• Incarcerated NCPs are uninformed about their
  child support situation and dont request a
  modification
• Review and adjustment procedures are difficult
  and long
• Arrears interest charges build during prison
• Ex-offenders face limited employment/earnings
  options
• Wage attachments enforcement actions are stiff
• Opportunities for debt leveraging/flexibility are
  limited
• Child support agencies are burdened with
  uncollectible debt

4
Child Support Arrears Rise During Incarceration

• Without intervention, child support arrears
  increase about 60 during prison
• With penalties and interest, the increase may be
  even higher
• Mass Colorado
• (n530) (n245)
• Average child support arrears at prison
  entry 10,543 10,249
• Percent of arrears owed to the state 52 71
• Average monthly support obligations 220 171
• Average arrears owed by parolees 16,430 16,651
  
• Percent increase in arrears during
  incarceration 56 63
• Range in arrears due 0-306,641 168-111,622
• Average amount of interest due 3,932 0
• Average amount of penalty due 1,966 0
• Average total due 19,371 16,651

5
Common MythsThe inmate says, I dont have to
pay child support because

• My child support stops when incarceration starts.
• I didnt know I had a child support order.
• I never signed the birth certificate.
• My family buys diapers for the baby.
• She spends the money on herself.
• Shes on public assistance.
• She wont let me see my kid.
• Child support wont be able to find me.

6
Partnerships and Collaborations

• Criminal Justice Agencies
• Matching automated databases between DOC and CSE
  (CO, MA, TX)
• Placing CSE personnel in criminal justice
  facilities (MA)
• Regular CSE presentations to inmates and parolees
  (CO, IL, MA, TX, WA)
• CSE brochures, and videos given to DOC personnel
  (CO, IL, TX, WA)
• Genetic testing in prisons and jails (IL, MA, TX)
• CSE holds one-on-one meetings with inmates (IL,
  MA, MN, TX, WA)
• CSE trains DOC and parole staff on child support
  (CO, IL, MA, WA)
• Courts
• Court personnel serve on project advisory board
  (IL)
• Judges and masters explain child support to
  inmates in facilities (TX)
• CSE presents information on inmate child support
  at judges meeting (TX)
• CSE designs affidavits as substitutes for
  personal appearance (MA, MN)
• CSE designs simplified modification forms for
  inmate requests (WI)

7
Identifying Inmates/Parolees with CSE Issues

• Electronic Match of DOC-CSE Caseloads
• Colorado Inmates known to CSE 26
• Parolees known to CSE 28
• Mass Inmates known to CSE 26
• Texas Inmates in State Jails 13
• (excluding those needing paternity or order
  establishment)
• Data matches often miss inmates in county jail,
  community corrections, etc.
• Problems with aliases, false SSNs, DOBs, dated
  info on facility or release date
• Key data items Name, DOB, SSN, Inmate ID,
  Current Facility, Date Current Incarceration
  Began, Earliest Projected Release Date

8
How to Communicate Child Support Information to
Inmates

• Printed brochures and Q/A sheets (TX, WA)
• Videos (WA, MN, TX)
• Columns in inmate newsletter (TX)
• Printed handbook in prison libraries (CO)
• Collect telephone calls/video conference to CSE
  agencies (MN)
• Live presentations by CSE staff at reception
  centers, pre-release, pull-out programs (CO, IL,
  MA, TX, WA)
• Train facility staff but be prepared to address
  their CSE issues and overcome some resistance
• Use multiple approaches and follow through with
  actions!

9
Expediting Modification Requests

• If granted, modifications take 3.1-7.2 months
• Simplify forms/Use SASE/No notary (Milwaukee, WI)
• Passive consent procedures (Los Angeles)
• Fast-track inmate requests (IL)
• Accept collect calls to special CSE staff
  (Minneapolis)
• Affidavit instead of inmate appearance at court
  (MA)
• Treat incarceration as a change of circumstance
• 0 orders (reserve orders) for inmates with
  monthly income of 200 or less with return to
  pre-incarceration order 60 days after release
  (Oregon, Milwaukee)
• Modify to standard, minimum order 50-80 (MA, CO)

10
Promoting Family Relationships

• In 2 Houston jails
• 209 inmates attended 313 group sessions on
  reintegration The average inmate attended 8.3
  sessions
• Sessions dealt with Personal responsibility,
  Avoiding destructive behavior, Breaking patterns
  of abuse and neglect
• Case managers made 2,000 calls to families
  agencies for inmates to re-establish
  communication and obtain services
• Following release reporting no contact with
  children dropped from 28 to 10, 87 said they
  saw their children as frequently or more often
  than before going to jail
• In 2 Missouri prisons
• 323 attended Proud Parent (fatherhood) sessions
• 147 began Long Distance Dads classes (12
  sessions) with 78 completing
• 335 attended Parents Fair Share sessions in
  workforce readiness
• 327 inmates attended group sessions on child
  development parenting
• 20 couples attended Relationship Enrichment
  Skills Training (3-hour class)
• 57 inmates 5 couples attended mediation
  sessions
• Volunteer drivers transported families to prisons
  for visits

11
Employment and Earnings For Ex-Offenders
Extremely Limited

• Texas Only 34 of 253 released jail inmates had
  any employer-reported earnings 7.5 months
  following release with mean and median earnings
  at 695 and 1,482 per quarter
• Illinois Only 78 of 167 offenders in release
  programs found jobs earning mean and median
  salary of 1,102 and 960 per month
• Colorado Only ½ of 350 ex-offenders at WFC were
  employed full time earning an average salary of
  9/hour
• Employment programs for inmates and ex-offenders
  are often unavailable and ineffective.

12
Working with Paroled/Released Offenders

• One-Stop model
• Assistance with employment, child support,
  housing, transportation etc.
• Occupational skills training, placement help,
  strong employer outreach
• Child support modification, paternity testing,
  drivers license reinstatement
• Higher earnings, better child support payments,
  reduced rates of return to prison
• 133 Clients of the Denver Work and Family Center
  (WFC)
• Seen within 90 days of release and potentially
  out for 12 months
• 6 mos 6 mos 12 mos
• pre WFC post WFC post WFC
• Percent employed 43 77 71
• Average earnings per quarter for
  employed 3,007 3,122 4,110
• Average support paid in 6 and 12
  months 308 681 1,247
• Support paid as a percent of support
  due 17 39 38
• Percent making no payments 60 25 26
• Percent back in prison 29
• (Colorado DOC reported one

13
Addressing Child Support Arrears

• Some flexibility in dealing with hard-to-serve
  populations
• Informal procedures to hear complaints and
  requests re arrears (WA Conference Boards)
• Statute in 2001 allowing retroactive modification
  of arrears accumulated during incarceration for
  offense other than nonpayment and NCP lacked
  ability to pay(MN Repeal 1/1/07)
• Regulation (2004) granting CSE flexibility to
  adjust or settle uncollectible arrears owed to
  state by incarcerated NCPs. Terms of settlement
  might include regular payment of support or
  participation in job search, fatherhood (MA)
• Legislation allowing CSE to reduce arrearages by
  50 after 12 months of payments and 100 after
  24 (MD HB 1264, Passed House 138 to 0,
  Unfavorable in Senate)
• Other examples of flexibility in standard
  practice for newly released NCPs Protected
  Inmate Bank Accounts (OR), Rapid License
  Reinstatements (MD), Minimum Orders
  Self-Support Reserves based on FPL (CO, Wash DC)

14
Summary of Helpful Policies and Programs

• Collaborate with DOC and Judiciary
• Involve county/state-level personnel at upper
  levels
• Develop MOUs on methods of identification and
  treatment of inmates and access to them
• Educate judiciary on growth of inmate arrears,
  review and adjust needs and treatment
• Identify prisoners/parolees with child support
  issues.
• Automated data matches
• DOC and CSE and/or CSE and Parolee Boards
• Screen for CSE status at Prison Intake
• Inform prisoner about child support and review
  adjustment.
• Specialized CSE staff
• CSE video, handbook, inmate newspapers
• Inmate reception centers and prisons
• Train prison staff

• Develop simple processes for review and
  adjustment.
• Simplify request and response requirements
• Assist inmates in filing request and affidavit
• Use affidavit as testimony avoid court
• Special worker to handle prisoner requests
• Accept collect phone calls
• Make passivity work
• Respond to prisoner requests for review and
  adjustment.
• Treat incarceration as change in circumstances
• Set orders to 0 or minimum per month
• Deal with paroled/released offenders.
• Create one-stop reentry programs with CSE
• Modify orders to fit new wage levels
• Reduce arrears/interest accrued in prison
• Use effective employment programs
• Cultivate employer
• Promote family connections