An Examination of the Use and Effectiveness of Child Support Enforcement Tools in Six States

The authors of this brief studied child support enforcement practices in six different states. The states had a wide range of caseload sizes and collection percentages for both current support and arrears and had different program structures. The study found five areas where practices varied: the use of judicial or administrative procedures; the use of automated procedures; extent of caseworker discretion; centralized as opposed to county-level decision making; and the case assignment model.