NORTH CAROLINA

NCP WALLET CARD PROJECT

Goal:To give noncustodial parents a personalizedpocket reference of important information about paying their child support and obtaining information about their child support cases.

Strategic Plan:Supports Strategies 2, 8 of the National Child Support Strategic Plan.

Description: North Carolina developed a personalizedwallet sized card to provide a pocket reference for noncustodial parents, particularly those with new child support orders. The card contains the following information:

• address of the North Carolina Centralized Collections Operation
• telephone number of the NC CSE Customer Service Center
• URL of the CSE child support website
• amount of child support due each month
• date the first payment is due
• NCP's participant Identification number
• court docket number

The reverse of the card states, "Child Support Enforcement is not permitted to address custody or visitation. Should you have questions about custody or visitation issues, please contact an attorney."

The project is a new one so results are not yet available. All child support offices, both state-operated and non state-operated, were offered a supply of NCP wallet cards and all but one office requested cards. The intention is that the Child Support Agent will give the wallet card to the NCP when the child support order is entered and ask that he/she keep the card in his/her wallet. The card will be on hand whenever the NCP needs to know how child support should be paid or how case information may be obtained.

Results: It is anticipated that the wallet card will reduce the number of NCP calls to the child support offices and will increase child support payments, particularly for new payers. Often new payers must make one or two payments before income withholding begins to flow. The card will provide the reminder and be an informational resource for these payments.

Location:The practice of distributing NCP wallet cards will be carried out statewide in North Carolina.

Funding: Regular Federal matching funds are used.

Replication Advice:The child support amount due, the first date due, the NCP's participant number and the court document number fields should be printed so that the child support agent may fill in that information before giving the card to the NCP.

Contact:

Beth Amos

Assistant Chief for Local Operations

North Carolina Child Support Enforcement

Phone: 919-255-3805

Email: beth.amos@ncmail.net