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Congressional Research Service
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The Child Support Enforcement (CSE) Program
Introduction
The Child Support Enforcement (CSE) program was
enacted into law on January 4, 1975 (P.L. 93-647). When
the program was first established, its goals were to
reimburse the states and the federal government for the cash
assistance payments they provided families, and to help
other families remain off cash assistance by obtaining
consistent and ongoing child support payments from the
noncustodial parent. Over time, the CSE program has
evolved from a cash assistance cost-recovery program to a
family-first program that seeks to enhance the well-being of
families by making child support a more reliable income
source.
This federal-state program has the potential to impact more
children and for longer periods of time than most other
federal programs. It may interact with mothers, fathers, and
children for 18 years and in some cases longer, such as if
the noncustodial parent owes past-due child support. In
recent years, it served about 17% of children in the United
States. (CSE program data are published by the federal
Office of Child Support Services [OCSS] in the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services [HHS]. All
FY2022 figures in this report are drawn from its FY2022
Preliminary Data Report released on June 15, 2023.)
Scope of CSE Programn
Families who are required to enroll in the CSE program are
those receiving cash assistance under the Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, Medicaid
coverage, or, at state option, Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program (SNAP) food assistance. The program
is also available to non-assistance families if they choose to
enroll. Families who are not required to enroll must pay a
one-time $25 fee when they apply for services, and an
annual $35 user fee if the CSE agency collects at least $550
per year for them.
The program is available in all 50 states; the District of
Columbia; the territories of Guam, Puerto Rico, and the
U.S. Virgin Islands; and 60 tribal nations. Program services
are generally provided locally within states, usually by
county.
The CSE program is administered at the federal level by
OCSS, which helps CSE agencies develop, manage, and
operate their programs effectively and according to federal
law. Specifically, OCSS administers federal matching funds
and awards grants to states, provides policy guidance and
technical assistance, conducts program audits, and supports
research through demonstration grants. OCSS is also
responsible for the Federal Parent Locator Service, which
includes the National Directory of New Hires.
Updated July 19, 2023
Program Components
The CSE program increases the reliability of child support
paid by noncustodial parents by
* locating noncustodial parents,
* establishing paternity,
* establishing child support orders,
* reviewing and modifying child support orders,
* collecting child support payments from noncustodial
parents,
* establishing and enforcing medical child support, and
* distributing child support payments to custodial parents.
CSE Collections and Methods
In FY2022, the CSE program collected $27.4 billion on
behalf of families. More than two-thirds of CSE collections
were for families that had never received cash payments
from the TANF program.
Table I. CSE Collections by Family Type, FY2022
Collections
Family Type (billions) Percentage
TANF Families $0.6 2%
Former TANF $7.6 28%
Never TANF $19.2 70%
Source: Congressional Research Service (CRS), based on data from
the HHS FY2022 Preliminary Data Report. Amounts and percentages
may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
The majority of the collected payments in FY2022 (96%)
went to families and the remainder went to the states and
federal government, primarily as reimbursement for public
assistance dollars that went to families.
Most child support payments are collected from
noncustodial parents through income withholding. In
FY2022, 69% of collections were obtained through income
withholding. Other methods of enforcement include
* intercepting federal and state income tax refunds;
* intercepting unemployment compensation;
* filing liens against property;
* sending insurance settlement information to CSE
agencies;
* intercepting lottery winnings, judgments, or settlements;](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.crs/govemhv0001&div=1&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)