Brown and Kenosha counties in Wisconsin will receive $2.6 million in federal funds as part of a five-year initiative to help parents make child support payments and reduce the number of delinquent payments. The counties will have some discretion in deciding how the federal funds will be used as long as the funds are used to provide non-custodial parents with resources that will help them support their families.

Examples of the types of services for which the counties may use the funds include helping a non-custodial parent find a job or providing transportation so the parent can get to work. These services will help the parent meet his or her support obligations. The focus of the program will be parents who have not made their monthly payments for child support in the last year after receiving a support order.

In Wisconsin, the amount of child support owed by a non-custodial parent is calculated based on a percentage of the parent’s monthly income according to statutory guidelines. Other factors, like both parents’ incomes and the number of overnight stays the child has with each parent, are considered when the parents share physical placement. Despite use of these standard guidelines, some parents may believe their support obligation is unfair. Failure to pay is not the answer. Timely child support payments are crucial to a child’s quality of life and also reduce the family’s need for government assistance.

An experienced child support attorney can help a parent obtain a fair child support settlement, modify a prior support order when one or both parties’ circumstances have changed materially, and enforce a child support order when one parent does not pay.

Source: FOX 11, “Counties receive funding to improve child support,” Oct. 28, 2012