DCL-08-05, PAID 2007 Recap

DEAR COLLEAGUE LETTER

DCL-08-05

ATTACHMENT: PAID Updates Numbers 1 - 8 (File Size: MS Word, 186 KB)

DATE: February 8, 2008

TO: ALL STATE AND TRIBAL IV-D DIRECTORS

RE: PAID 2007 Recap

Dear Colleague:

As the New Year begins, I want to thank all of you personally for your hard work on our national Project to Avoid Increasing Delinquencies (PAID) initiative. Together, the Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) and the States have accomplished a lot in the past year. I’d like to recap the impressive things we’ve done by working collaboratively and focusing our efforts on PAID.

At the core of PAID is our continued reliance on our partnership approach in the national Child Support Enforcement Program. The PAID Steering Committee, consisting of Federal OCSE Managers and the National Council of Child Support Directors Executive Management, meets regularly to focus on activities that support PAID and ensure that we understand each other’s concerns, issues, and practices as we move forward in this national initiative.

We have developed a number of tools to assist States in efforts to increase collections and prevent and/or decrease arrears as follows:

The PAID Practices Guide was published in May. See the revised attachment to DCL-07-17 at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cse/pol/DCL/2007/dcl-07-17.htm. Please contact PAID@acf.hhs.gov if you have suggestions for updates.
A PAID In Full Guide was issued on critical core processes such as income withholding, review and adjustment, Financial Institution freeze and seize, and case closure. See DCL-07-34 at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cse/pol/DCL/2007/dcl-07-34.htm.
Eight PAID UPdates (attached) were disseminated highlighting the following practices:
- #1 - Knox County, TN: Case Stratification - Employing Early Intervention
- #2 - MA: Focus on Cases with Highest Arrears - Managing Existing Arrears
- #3 - OK: Automating Workers Compensation Intercept - Improving Locate and Enforcement
- #4 - MI: Audio and Video Teleconferencing for Incarcerated Parents - Order Review and Modification
- #5 - San Francisco, CA: Enhanced Parental Involvement Collaboration - Setting Appropriate Orders
- #6 - Crawford County, PA: Employment Training Services for Noncustodial Parents - Employing Early Intervention
- #7 - IL: Working with Address Change Service - Improving Locate and Enforcement
- #8 - MO: Sorting Cases to Improve Collections - Employing Early Intervention
PAID was featured in several recent Child Support Report articles.
IV-D Director and/or internal PAID Attention Meetings on eight States were held to assess together what direct assistance OCSE can offer that could improve performance "on the ground."
An electronic PAID Workplace site was set-up to facilitate the exchange of useful information about PAID practices and guidance documents. To date, over 275 people have signed up for the Workplace and over 60 documents are posted there. To visit the Workplace, please contact PAID@acf.hhs.gov and you will receive log in instructions by e-mail. To publicize this Workplace at various conferences and meetings, we have also distributed magnets with information on accessing the site.
A PAID PowerPoint presentation was developed that States can customize for use at regional or State meetings and conferences. In addition, we have created a one-page description of the PAID initiative to publicize our work.
Workgroups, comprised of State and Federal staff, were established on a number of topics related to PAID including arrears stratification, cell phones, unreported/unearned income, and data mining. There was also an "affinity" telephone call on Financial Institution freeze and seize issues in which 50 states/territories participated. More of these affinity calls on various topics are planned for 2008.

In the coming year, we expect to continue this important focus on activities that increase collections and prevent and/or decrease arrears. We plan to issue more PAID UPdates and conduct more PAID Attention Meetings. Also, we expect to publish PAID In Full guidance documents on Licensing and using Title II, XVI, and Prisoner data available through the Federal Parent Locator Service. These efforts are directed toward our goal of making the very most of our technical assistance resources, i.e., coordinating and targeting them in a way in which they can be most helpful and effective.

I look forward to our continued success with this initiative. If you have any ideas or suggestions, please contact your Regional Program Specialist or PAID@acf.hhs.gov. Again, thank you for your efforts on behalf of the nation’s children.

Sincerely,

Margot Bean
Commissioner
Office of Child Support Enforcement

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