RESEARCH REPORT Relief from Government-Owed Child Support ...

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RESEARCH REPORT

Relief from Government-Owed Child Support Debt and Its Effects on Parents and Children

Evaluation of the San Francisco Child Support Debt Relief Pilot

Heather Hahn

URBAN INSTITUTE

Daniel Kuehn

URBAN INSTITUTE

August 2019 (updated August 28, 2019)

Hannah Hassani

URBAN INSTITUTE

Kathryn Edin

PRINCETON UNIVERSITY

ABOUT THE URBAN INSTITUTE The nonprofit Urban Institute is a leading research organization dedicated to developing evidence-based insights that improve people's lives and strengthen communities. For 50 years, Urban has been the trusted source for rigorous analysis of complex social and economic issues; strategic advice to policymakers, philanthropists, and practitioners; and new, promising ideas that expand opportunities for all. Our work inspires effective decisions that advance fairness and enhance the well-being of people and places.

Copyright ? August 2019. Urban Institute. Permission is granted for reproduction of this file, with attribution to the Urban Institute. Cover image by Shutterstock/Halfpoint.

Contents

Acknowledgments

v

Executive Summary

vi

Errata

xiii

How Relief from Government-Owed Child Support Debt Strengthens

Parents and Children

1

Pilot Participant Demographics

2

National Context for the Pilot

4

Pilot Results

5

Background: How Does the Public Assistance Payback System Work?

7

Additional Penalties

7

How Did Parents Accrue Public Assistance Payback Debt?

9

Child Support Orders Are Often Unaffordable

9

Initial Orders Are Too High

9

Volatile Employment and Income

10

Providing Informal Support

11

Modifying Child Support Orders Can Be Challenging

12

Debt Increases Quickly

12

Parents Choose between Paying Court-Ordered Child Support

and Directly Supporting Children

13

What Difference Did the Debt Relief Make in Parents' Payments?

15

Lower Child Support Debt Balances

15

More Consistent Child Support Payment

16

Feeling of Relief and Reduced Stress

19

Before the Debt Relief, Fathers Felt Haunted by the Debt

19

After the Debt Relief, Most of the Fathers in the Focus Groups Described

a Dramatic Reduction in Stress

19

Improved Credit Scores

20

Reduced Barriers to Employment

22

Improved Housing Status

23

Increased Feelings of Control Over Finances

24

Improved Relationships with Children

24

Debt Had Affected Fathers' Moods and Therefore Their Relationships with Their Children 25

Debt Relief Changed the Nature of Their Relationships with Their Children

25

Improved Relationships with Coparents

26

Some Focus Group Fathers Discussed How the Stress from the Debt Affected

Their Coparenting Relationships

27

Improved Relationships with the Child Support System

28

Perspectives on Child Support before the Debt Relief

28

The Debt Relief Pilot Seemed Too Good to Be True

30

Perspectives on Child Support after the Debt Relief

31

Comparison with Traditional COAP Participants

32

Implications for Child Support System Revenues

33

Implications for the Public Assistance Payback Policy and the Child Support System

36

Concluding Observations

38

Appendix. Methods

39

Administrative Data Analysis Methods and Results

39

Focus Groups

41

Survey Methods

42

Notes

43

References

44

About the Authors

46

Statement of Independence

48

IV

CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

This report was funded by Tipping Point Community. We are grateful to Tipping Point and to all our funders, who make it possible for Urban to advance its mission.

The views expressed are those of the authors and should not be attributed to the Urban Institute, its trustees, or its funders. Funders do not determine research findings or the insights and recommendations of Urban experts. Further information on the Urban Institute's funding principles is available at fundingprinciples.

The authors would like to thank Jamie Austin and Jake Leos-Urbel, Tipping Point Community; Christa Brown and Anne Stuhldreher, Financial Justice Project, San Francisco Office of the Treasurer; Karen Maria Roye, Director, San Francisco Department of Child Support Services; and Freda Randolph, San Francisco Department of Child Support Services, for generously sharing their knowledge, time, and expertise. We also are grateful to the parents who bravely shared their stories with us to help others understand the realities of their lives. We could not have done this work without them. In addition, we thank our colleague Elizabeth Peters for reviewing and improving the draft report. Any errors or omissions are our own.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

V

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