Child Support Collection Under Review

Hoping to improve on the spotty record of the Orange County district attorney’s child-support operation, some county officials are suggesting that a private firm take over a portion of the collection effort.

Several county supervisors have expressed interest in examining privatization, which is opposed by Dist. Atty. Michael R. Capizzi.

On Wednesday, Capizzi proposed beefing up the family support office by hiring 87 new workers to track down “deadbeat parents” and handle other duties.

But before acting on Capizzi’s request, the Board of Supervisors plans to hold a March 18 study session on the issue and discuss alternative methods for improving the collection rate.

“We want to talk about how to make the system work better, and certainly privatization is one area that will be looked at,” said Stacy Leff, an aide to Supervisor Todd Spitzer, who proposed the meeting.

“There is no doubt in my mind that family support needs more resources,” added board Chairman William G. Steiner. “Especially with welfare reform coming, it’s very important that we improve collections to protect the economic security of children.”

A 1996 study by Children Now, a legal aid and advocacy group, ranked Orange County 47th out of California’s 58 counties, in terms of collecting child support for children from their absent parents.

Officials acknowledge some shortcomings, but insist that collections improved significantly after the family support office was reorganized last year.

Child support collections jumped 22% in 1996, to $65.6 million. Collections are expected to go up by 30% to $85 million this year. Officials also credited the improvements to the 45 new workers hired over the last two years.

In a statement, Capizzi said the 87 new workers would help handle the office’s growing caseload, which jumped 50% in three years and is now at 151,000 active cases.

The office has twice studied the idea of privatizing the family support operation, but concluded that it would not save money or improve operations, said Karen Davis, the administrative director.

Several private firms handle child support collections, most notably Lockheed Martin IMS and Maximus. Representatives from both said they are usually able to collect more payments than government agencies because their workers are paid bonuses based on how much money they recover.