New Rule Helps Child Support Programs During States of Emergency

New Rule Helps Child Support Programs During States of Emergency

Allows Secretary to Waive Certain Financial Penalties Amid Natural Disasters and Other Calamities

Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), announced a final rule  (PDF) that helps child support programs during states of emergency. The rule allows the ACF Office of Child Support Services (OCSS) to provide temporary relief to states from certain child support program performance standards and penalties when states are affected by natural disasters and other calamities.

“Natural disasters are an increasing fact of life and our programs must be flexible and adapt in the face of emergencies,” said ACF Acting Assistant Secretary Jeff Hild. “This rule will help ensure child support programs have the funding to help families when they need it the most in the aftermath of disasters.”

State child support programs are required to achieve performance levels in paternity establishment, support order establishment and current collections. Failure to meet these performance levels subjects a state to financial penalties. The need to offer relief to states from penalties during natural disasters and calamities became apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic. During the pandemic, states experienced significant workload burdens and service backlogs due to disruptions to child support program operations and court closures. In response, ACF added a rule [45 CFR 305.61(e) ] to provide time-limited relief by modifying the Paternity Establishment Percentage for federal fiscal years 2020, 2021 and 2022. 

Due to the lengthy rulemaking process necessary to provide temporary relief to states, ACF sought to find a quicker solution for future emergencies. This final rule allows OCSS to provide prompt relief to state programs without having to engage in a rulemaking process. The rule allows OCSS to modify performance measure requirements and waive penalties for failure to meet these requirements when an emergency impacts a state’s ability to achieve the paternity establishment, support order establishment and current collections standards. The rule also allows OCSS to set aside adverse data reliability audit findings that may also result in a financial penalty. 

“Child support programs were incredibly resilient and innovative in finding ways to continue providing services to families during the pandemic,” said OCSS Commissioner Tanguler Gray. “This rule is an important tool to help programs weather future emergencies.” 

ACF Office of Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response Director Natalie Grant added, “Every day, human services are key to helping individuals and families transition from crisis to recovery. This rule supports the quick restoration of providers and gives them the flexibility to act rapidly during a disaster.”

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