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Research on child support compliance has focused on the characteristics of noncustodial parents (NCPs) that are associated with compliance, finding that compliance with child support orders is primarily related to the ability to pay support as demonstrated by earnings. Yet, there is evidence linking social support networks to both earnings and noncustodial parents' relationships with children. Using a social poverty framework, we show that relatively few NCPs are completely isolated: most have at least some people in their network who can loan money, provide a place to stay, or provide a ride. We explore whether the size of these instrumental support networks is positively linked to child support compliance both directly and indirectly through earnings. We find evidence of a direct association between instrumental support network size and child support compliance, but no evidence of an indirect association via increased earnings. These findings suggest the importance for researchers and child support practitioners to consider the contextual and relational factors of the social networks in which parents are embedded, and to more thoroughly examine the process by which support from one's network can lead to child support compliance., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Costs and the likely effects of assured child-support benefits on poverty and welfare participation are estimated under two scenarios: with and without incorporating the labor supply changes of custodial parents. Results indicate reductions in poverty rates, poverty gap, welfare caseloads, and expenditures. Changeable hours will increase costs. (Author/EMK)

Reviews implementation and effects of three child support reforms in Wisconsin to determine the child support policies that yield the greatest benefit to dependent children. Expressing child support orders as a percentage of noncustodial parent's income increases amount of orders and payments. Withholding payment from noncustodial parents' income increases support payments. (SNR)

Examines Wisconsin divorce cases (n=3,774) before and after income-sharing guidelines were implemented relating to child support. Found that the negative impact of the mother's income on the size of child support orders has fallen substantially since the guidelines have been effective. Discusses implications. (RB)

Most children in the United States will spend at least part of their childhood living apart from one of their parents; the child support system is designed to ensure that they nonetheless receive financial support. While the system is largely effective when noncustodial parents have substantial regular earnings, many noncustodial parents, including a disproportionate share of those whose children live in poverty, have limited earnings and ability to pay child support. The system's response to nonpayment is primarily "sticks," that is, threats and punishments. Nonexperimental evaluations of alternative approaches have shown promise. The National Child Support Noncustodial Parent Employment Demonstration (CSPED), a large‐scale random‐assignment evaluation enrolling more than 10,000 noncustodial parents across 18 locations in eight states, was designed to test the effectiveness of an alternative approach—adjusting child support orders, reducing punitive enforcement, and offering employment and parenting services. We find that CSPED, using carrots in place of sticks, substantially increased the satisfaction of noncustodial parents with child support services, lowered the amount of support owed, and increased noncustodial parents' sense of responsibility for their children. However, CSPED had limited to no effects on child support compliance, child support payments, or employment outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although previous qualitative research in the United States suggests that noncustodial parents have difficult experiences with the child support system, there is no large-scale study of satisfaction. We use data on more than 1,800 socioeconomically disadvantaged noncustodial parents to explore their level of satisfaction and whether it is related to later child support payments. In contrast to qualitative research, we find that nearly half the noncustodial parents are satisfied with child support services. The level of satisfaction is found to be related to several agency actions and agency inflexibility. Non-Hispanic Black noncustodial parents who are satisfied pay more in support than those who were not satisfied; no relationship between satisfaction and payments is detected for other race and ethnicity groups or the sample as a whole. Our findings provide implications for policy makers and practitioners for understanding participant satisfaction and effectively addressing it in policies and services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the determinants of child support compliance in nonmarital child support cases in Wisconsin, U.S. by focusing on the father's ability to pay and the stringency of the child support enforcement system. It is found that tougher enforcement rules positively affect compliance rates. Higher incomes are associated with higher compliance rates, and lower incomes, with lower rates. The percentage of income that is owed in child support also has an effect on compliance. Orders that represent a high percentage of income relative to existing guidelines are associated with lower compliance rates. However, owing a low percentage of income only has an effect on compliance for fathers with very low incomes; for these fathers, obligating them to pay low amounts of support positively affects compliance. These results suggest that a father's ability to pay, in addition to his willingness to pay, determines the extent to which he fulfills his child support obligation. The article concludes with the fact that, to increase child support collections, both the earning power of noncustodial parents and the stringency of the enforcement system should be increased.

ABSTRACT The economic impact of a child support assurance system (CSAS) is simulated with microdata on custodial families in Wisconsin. The CSAS includes a uniform child support standard, automatic wage withholding, a minimum child support benefit, and wage subsidy for eligible families. The simulation incorporates a model of the labor supply decision representing the custodial parent's choice of whether to participate in CSAS or in the current AFDC system. The results suggest that CSAS can significantly reduce poverty as well as welfare caseloads. If child support collections increase by one-half of the difference between estimated ability to pay child support and current collections, CSAS will be less costly than the current system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]