State Guidelines Study

DEAR COLLEAGUE LETTER

DCL-08-42

DATE: November 12, 2008

TO: ALL STATE AND TRIBAL IV-D DIRECTORS

RE: State Guidelines Study

Dear Colleague:

At the request of OCSE, the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) conducted a survey of State child support enforcement guidelines. The survey covered three broad areas:

• Content – including economic basis of the guidelines, types of models used and numerous guideline policy decisions that concern State policymakers, such as medical support, parenting time adjustments, child care expenses, retroactive support, and treatment of low-income parents;
• Review Process – including how States conduct their reviews and the process, such as what State entity conducts them, who is involved, and how much public input is solicited;
• Case Data Reviews – including methodology, rates of deviation found, and common reasons for deviations.

Two products are available:

• A report on the survey and its broad findings
• A searchable database on:
  • How medical support, parenting time, child care expenses, retroactive support, and low-income parents are treated by the guidelines, and
  • What entities in the States are responsible for conducting the reviews

While this survey was conducted in 2005, it has been updated.

The information can be found on NCSL's website.

Sincerely,

Margot Bean
Commissioner
Office of Child Support Enforcement

cc: Regional Program Managers