DCL-04-25, FPLS Release 04-01
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Administration for Children and Families US Department of Health and Human Services

DEAR COLLEAGUE LETTER

DCL-04-25

DATE: June 9, 2004

TO:  ALL STATE IV-D DIRECTORS

RE:  FPLS Release 04-01

Dear Colleague:

In August 2004, the Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) will implement provisions of Federal Parent Locator Service (FPLS) Release 04-01.  This release includes enhancements to the Federal Case Registry (FCR), the Child Support Enforcement Network (CSENet) and the Federal Offset system.  These enhancements were developed in response to state feedback provided to OCSE during conference calls and through on-going interaction with the states.  The enhancements are in line with continuing efforts to promote automated use of FPLS data and to improve data quality.  Similar to previous FPLS Manifest Releases, the August 2004 changes are deemed minor since implementation of the enhancements can be delayed until state planning and resources can accommodate the changes.  

These two enhancements being made to the FCR will:

  • Modify the FCR to no longer allow the use of asterisks and backslashes in the FCR Case Identifier (ID) field.  Any add, change, or locate record containing an asterisk or backslash in any position of the Case ID field will be rejected.  This enhancement is in line with OCSE’s goal of improving interstate communications through ongoing Case ID synchronization and the Interstate Case Reconciliation (ICR) effort.

  • Provide states with a Self-Employment Indicator in the FCR Locate Response Record for the Social Security Administration (SSA) locate responses.  This indicator provides states with additional employment information.  An annual wage amount field will be added to the record; however, for this release the wage field will not contain data.  The field will be populated in a future release.  State systems will need to be programmed to accept the new Self-Employment Indicator field.

The enhancements to CSENet will:

  • Add a new transaction to CSENet 2000 to indicate that a Case ID match was not found based on the Case ID provided by the sending state for an L01, MSC, ENF, EST, PAT or COL transaction.  This enhancement will allow states to use CSENet 2000 to identify a Case ID that is not synchronized with the other state and take the necessary actions to begin the reconciliation process.  

  • Modify Case ID and Other-Case-ID validation criteria to match FCR Case ID validation criteria.  This enhancement supports OCSE’s goal for improving interstate communications through ongoing Case ID synchronization and the ICR effort.

This release includes six items related to the Federal Offset system designed to:

  • Provide states with a more efficient method of submitting case updates.  This enhancement improves the synchronization of data between state and Federal files by enabling the states to submit multiple updates in a single cycle on the same case; enhances states’ ability to track past enforcement actions for a case; reduces the volume of records returned in the reject/warning field; and reduces the number of error codes received by states.

  • Allow for additional date fields on the DoS Certification or Withdrawal Screen.  This modification will enhance the states’ ability to take action on a case by providing accurate information regarding the obligor’s status in the Passport Denial Program.

  • Provide states with an enhanced Current Year Query Screen for case information.  This enhancement improves access to case information held at the Federal level and expands detail history for better case management and tracking of state data maintained at the Federal level.

  • Offer states whose notices are generated by OCSE an option to request that a Pre-Offset Notice be generated at any time on an existing case.  This modification will enable states to easily request the issuance of a Pre-Offset Notice at any time on an existing case.

  • Give additional warning code counts in the Reject Control Record and on the Weekly Update Report.  This enhancement will improve reconciliation between the actual number of records in the Rejected Case Submission and Update field and the counts reported in the control record of the Rejected Case Submission and Update File.

  • Provide states with a filing status indicator (single or joint) in the offset detail record on the online query screen.  This enhancement improves the accuracy of collection information provided to states when querying case collection information.

For a copy of the Release Manifest for the August 2004 release, or for the detailed specifications regarding these modifications to the FCR, CSENet and Federal Offset systems, refer to the following OCSE website: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cse/newhire/.

States may contact their State Technical Support (State TS) liaisons with any questions regarding the August 2004 enhancements, or to discuss programming enhancements that would enable state systems to effectively process the data and maximize data usage.  For a listing of the State TS liaisons refer to: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cse/newhire/contacts/fcrtscontacts.htm.  States also may contact Christine Jennings at cajennings@acf.hhs.gov.

Sincerely,

Sherri Z. Heller, Ed.D.
Commissioner
Office of Child Support Enforcement

cc:  Regional Program Managers
   ACF Regional Administrators