# Fees Associated With Child Support Payments

- Link: https://thechildsupporthustle.com/fees-associated-with-child-support-payments-2/
- Published: 2024-05-06T14:23:36+00:00
- Author: MsRockMon

Kenya N. Rahmaan

States do not force parents to pay specific fees when the family is receiving public
assistance directly. Still, there is always some form of fee associated with the
child support system. According to the Fiscal Management Extranet or FMX based in
Texas, courts are authorized to charge a fee to cover any court-ordered attorney
fees. These fees are to be collected with the actual child support payment. The 
courts can also force payment for costs relating to an action to enforce child support
withholding orders (FMX). These withholding orders are forwarded to employers across
the country.

ADP is one of the leading payroll processing companies and is responsible for following
federal regulations associated with income withholding. ADP explains that most states
allow an employer to charge a fee to the employee for the administrative costs of
processing court-ordered support withholdings. In most states, the prices range 
from $1 to $5, which is money that could be included in the actual payment or kept
by the payee. Other states charge much more for the same processing. Texas and Washington
both charge $10 for the first remittance, but Washington charges an additional $
1 for each deduction after the first (ADP). This money can add up quickly in states
with many child support orders and working parents.

For example, in the Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE), 2012, there was 
a total of 1,345,121 open child support cases on record. To grasp the scope of the
amount of money being charged, one might consider that these cases have not received
any public assistance. This number decreases to 895,805 when all cases related to
public assistance have been eliminated. For this example, when adding the number
of employed parents and subject to wage withholding, employers would make quite 
a hefty sum. Texas employers would have netted $4,299,025 in fees charged for processing
income withholdings using the scenario mentioned above and the data.

Georgia charges a $25 fee for applying for child support services and authorizes
a $25 payment for employers to process the first deduction. Employers are permitted
to retain $3 after the first $25 is collected. The fees, unfortunately, do not end
there. There is an annual maintenance fee of $25 and the charges associated with
the 7% interest rate charged on all child support judgments. Interest is charged
automatically when the noncustodial parent becomes 30 days delinquent (Georgia Department
of Social Services).

It becomes more apparent how the child support system is not really about the welfare
of the children. This system is a multi-billion collection agency, and plenty of
businesses have a hand in the collection pot. There is a hefty fee for this request
for any parents who file a modification due to uncontrollable circumstances causing
a decrease in monthly income. According to the Georgia Department of Social Services,
the non-refundable $100 fee is due for each child support case, regardless of the
final result.

Since the approval of modifications is based on the judge’s discretion, people who
pay the fee will be stripped of their money and have a decreased monthly payment.
These only increase revenues for the states. This $100 fee could be better used 
to support the children that the system was supposedly designed to assist. It seems
more and more that the only beneficiaries of the child support system are the courts,
local and state governments, and businesses.

Banks are part of the scheme to make money off of the backs of innocent children,
too. Due to the technological advancements of automated banking, child support payments
are now uploaded to a bank card in almost all states. Ohio uploads child support
payments on an e-QuickPay card. Each transaction comes with a cost. There is a $.
40 fee for balance inquiries and a $.75 fee for ATM withdrawals.

In 2012, OCSE reported having a child support caseload of 925,740 open cases in 
Ohio. If every one of those cases collected child support on an uploaded bank card,
the bank would profit $685,047.60 for withdrawals and $370,296 for balance inquiries.
This amount does not include the possible surcharges of $1 to $3 that may be charged
by the banks that operate a particular ATM. It is clear that the government regulating
the child support system benefits more from the money collected than the majority
of the children who are supposed to be the beneficiaries.

The government blames parents who cannot afford the payments and adds the label 
of a deadbeat as an extra insult. The truth is that the government is the real deadbeat
as they collect revenues on behalf of less fortunate children. The banks and other
private entities can also join the list of deadbeats as they nickel and dime parents
to death before releasing the money. As long as we say nothing about these questionable
tactics, the government will continue to grow its revenues while growing the debt
owed by Americans who happen to be parents. The only way to do this is to reform
the system so that children’s best interest is observed.

References:

_ADP, Inc (2014). Guide for child support and garnishment processing. Retrieved 
June 6, 2014, from _

_Child Support Withholding and Fees – Texas Payroll/Personnel Resource. (n.d.). 
Retrieved June 6, 2014, from https://fmx.cpa.state.tx.us/fm/pubs/paypol/mandatory\
_deductions/index.php?section=child\_support&page=child\_support_

_Georgia Department of Human Services (n.d.). Office of Child Support Services (
OCSS) Fees | Division of Child Support Services. Retrieved June 6, 2014, from http://
dcss.dhs.georgia.gov/office-child-support-services-ocss-fees_

_Office of Child Support Enforcement (2014, April 1). FY2013 Preliminary report.
Retrieved June 6, 2014, from www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/css/resource/fy2013-preliminary_

_Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (2013, September 30). ODJFS Online |
Office of Child Support. Retrieved June 6, 2014, from _[_https://jfs.ohio.gov/Ocs/OCSFAQs.stm_](https://thechildsupporthustle.com/fees-associated-with-child-support-payments-2/\"https://jfs.ohio.gov/Ocs/OCSFAQs.stm\")