The economy and South Carolina's high unemployment rate appear to be affecting child support payments in the state. Larry McKeown, child support enforcement director for the state Department of Social Services, says, "I can't specifically attribute it to the economy, but we have seen a decrease of about a little over two percent in collections, when comparing January of '09 to January of '08."
DSS doesn't handle all child support cases in the state. Some are worked out privately. But McKeown says DSS does handle about 80 percent of them.
The amount of child support is set by a Family Court judge, based on a parent's gross monthly income. If that income changes, the parent can ask for the payment amount to be changed. "I know anecdotally from the clerks of court they are getting requests for the review and the modification of orders," McKeown says. An attorney we contacted, who handles child support cases, says he's also seeing some parents who've lost their jobs seeking a change in their payments.
DSS has about 225,000 child support cases statewide. Last year, it collected $261 million in child support.
If someone loses his job, that doesn't mean the child support he owes will be eliminated. Custodial parents rely on child support to make ends meet, and the children still need food, shelter and clothing.
McKeown says, "If someone does lose their job, then they may be eligible for unemployment benefits. And we, working with the clerks, can intercept those benefits, or at least a portion of them, to at least satisfy a part of that order."
He says if you're a parent who's supposed to be receiving child support and you're working with DSS, your case is supposed to be reviewed every month. If the other parent is not making those payments, because of the economy or any other reason, a rule to show cause should be issued and the non-custodial parent would be brought in to explain why they're not paying.
If you're the parent who's supposed to be paying support but you've lost your job, McKeown says you should contact the clerk of court where your child support order was issued and let them know about your change in circumstances. If your case is handled by DSS, you should also contact them and ask for a review of your order.
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