State to Tap Deadbeats’ Tax Funds, Lottery Prizes for Child Support

A new state program will make it easier for middle-class, single parents to collect delinquent child support by allowing them to petition the state controller to intercept lottery winnings and state tax refunds of deadbeat parents, it was announced Tuesday.

The Child Support Claim Program, which went into effect July 1, allows parents with custody of children to bypass local government when seeking unpaid child support. Under previous law, parents had to apply to district attorneys to intercept support payments, and often did not see any money for more than six months because of heavy caseloads.

“Local government has not done a good job. They are overburdened or under-funded, but whatever the reason, literally hundreds of thousands of children in this state are going without child support,” State Controller Gray Davis said.

Take a Back Seat

Davis said working middle-class parents have had to take a back seat to recipients of Aid to Families With Dependent Children. The state encourages local governments to give priority to welfare parents, and that can leave non-welfare parents “at the bottom of the pile,” Davis said.

“This allows them to circumvent the bureaucracy at the local level,” he said.

Under the new program, parents owed child support can fill out a single short form and apply for a court order through the controller’s office authorizing the intercept of lottery winnings and tax refunds. If the claim is uncontested by the delinquent spouse, the court is required to issue the intercept authorization within 30 days.

If the claim is contested, a court hearing on the matter must be scheduled within 30 days.

Growing Problem

Unpaid child support is a growing problem in California. Of almost $2 billion due in support to custodial parents in 1988, nearly three-quarters is still unpaid, said Sen. Henry Mello (D-Watsonville), who carried the bill enacting the new program. According to Department of Social Services figures for April, 1988, 64.8% of support due to non-AFDC recipients went unpaid in Los Angeles County, 37.8% in San Diego County and 34.7% in Orange County.

“This program is a modest step. The real answer is a statewide law mandating that child support be deducted from (the parent’s) payroll,” Davis said.