Protecting America's Children:Executive Action for Child Support Enforcement

Protecting America's Children: Executive Action for Child Support Enforcement

June 18, 1996

Taking executive action on child support. Today, President Clinton is
announcing a three-part strategy to help promote parental responsibility
and strengthen the child support system nationwide. Today's announcement
builds on the actions the President has taken already which helped child
support collections in 1995 increase nearly 40 percent over those in 1992.
Today's actions include:
* Tracking deadbeats across state lines and from job to job. This pilot
program will help track parents who cross state lines to avoid their
child support obligations. States which have new hire reporting
programs can send their information to the Department of Health and
Human Services, where it will be matched against a list of non-paying
parents sent to HHS from all the states.
* A challenge to 25 states to implement new hire reporting. Today, 25
states have new hire reporting programs in place. President Clinton
is challenging the other 25 to join them, increasing their collections
and helping more of our children.
* New regulations requiring mothers to cooperate with paternity
establishment efforts. President Clinton directed the Department of
Health and Human Services to issue new regulations which:
1. Requires mothers to cooperate with paternity establishment before
receiving benefits,
2. Imposes a penalty on mothers who do not cooperate by taking away
their benefits,
3. Gives a more strict definition of "cooperation", requiring
mothers to identify and help locate the father. A good cause
exemption exists for rape or threat to the mother's safety. This
provision builds on the President's 1993 in-hospital paternity
establishment program.

A quiet revolution in 40 out of 50 states. With today's announcement of a
waiver for New Hampshire, President Clinton has granted 63 welfare reform
waivers to 40 states, allowing them to bypass existing welfare rules and
set time limits on benefits, require recipients to work or stay in school,
provide child care and give employers incentives to hire welfare
recipients. By granting states these waivers, President Clinton is making
work and responsibility a way of life for 75% of all welfare recipients.

Responsible welfare reform: Tough on work and fair to children. President
Clinton has introduced a sweeping welfare reform legislation that:
* Imposes time limits and requires work,
* Provides adequate funding for child care to move people from welfare
to work,
* Strengthens child support enforcement and protects children.

We have made great progress.
* Food stamp rolls and welfare rolls are down. Since President Clinton
took office in January 1993, the welfare rolls have fallen by 1.3
million individuals, a decrease of nearly 10%. Welfare rolls are down
in 42 states, some by as much as 30%.
* Child support collections are up. Through partnerships with states,
tougher enforcement, waivers and executive orders, the Clinton
Administration has led an unprecedented crackdown on child support
enforcement. Child support collections have grown nearly 40% since
1992, to $11 billion.
* The Administration proposed the toughest child support enforcement
measures ever, including suspending drivers' licenses and tracking
delinquent parents across state lines. In February 1995, President
Clinton signed an executive order to ensure federal employees pay
their child support.
* Rewarding work over welfare. The Clinton Administration has provided
tax relief for 15 million working families by increasing the Earned
Income Tax Credit to allow more families to qualify for tax rebates.
* Breaking the cycle of dependency, ending teen pregnancy. In May 1996,
the Clinton Administration took executive action to require teenage
mothers to stay in school and sign personal responsibility contracts
Taking executive action on child support. Today, President Clinton is
announcing a three-part strategy to help promote parental responsibility
and strengthen the child support system nationwide. Today's announcement
builds on the actions the President has taken already which helped child
support collections in 1995 increase nearly 40 percent over those in 1992.
Today's actions include:
* Tracking deadbeats across state lines and from job to job. This pilot
program will help track parents who cross state lines to avoid their
child support obligations. States which have new hire reporting
programs can send their information to the Department of Health and
Human Services, where it will be matched against a list of non-paying
parents sent to HHS from all the states.
* A challenge to 25 states to implement new hire reporting. Today, 25
states have new hire reporting programs in place. President Clinton
is challenging the other 25 to join them, increasing their collections
and helping more of our children.
* New regulations requiring mothers to cooperate with paternity
establishment efforts. President Clinton directed the Department of
Health and Human Services to issue new regulations which:
1. Requires mothers to cooperate with paternity establishment before
receiving benefits,
2. Imposes a penalty on mothers who do not cooperate by taking away
their benefits,
3. Gives a more strict definition of "cooperation", requiring
mothers to identify and help locate the father. A good cause
exemption exists for rape or threat to the mother's safety. This
provision builds on the President's 1993 in-hospital paternity
establishment program.