LegiStorm

Summary:

The Child Support Enforcement (CSE) program was enacted in 1975 as a federal-state program. Its mission is to enhance the well-being of children by helping custodial parents and children obtain financial support from the noncustodial parents. Although states were always required to provide CSE services to members of Indian tribes and tribal organizations who were part of their CSE caseloads, tribes were not specifically included in the CSE statute until the 1996 welfare reform law (P.L. 104-193). The 1996 law allowed any state that has Indian country within its borders to enter into a cooperative agreement with an Indian tribe if the tribe demonstrated that it had an established tribal court system with the authority to establish paternity, and establish, modify, and enforce child support orders. In addition, P.L. 104-193 gave the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) the authority to make direct payments to Indian tribes that have approved CSE programs. There are currently 55 tribal CSE programs (38 comprehensive tribal CSE programs and 17 start-up tribal CSE programs). In contrast to the federal matching rate of 66% for CSE programs run by the states or territories, the tribal CSE program provides direct federal funding equal to 100% of approved and allowable CSE expenditures during the start-up period, provides 90% federal funding for approved CSE programs operated by tribes or tribal organizations during the first three years of full program operation, and provides 80% federal funding thereafter. In FY2010, the 38 tribes or tribal organizations with comprehensive tribal CSE programs had an aggregate of 38,642 cases and collected over $27 million in total child support collections. Tribal CSE program services include parent location, paternity establishment, establishment of child support orders, review and modification of child support orders, enforcement/collection of child support payments, and distribution of child support. Indian tribes and tribal organizations that choose to operate a tribal CSE program must run programs that conform to the objectives of the state CSE program and that are in compliance with the tribal CSE program regulations. However, federal regulations provide some flexibility that allows tribes and tribal organizations to develop and administer tribal CSE programs that are consistent with the tribe's law and tradition. In 2010, about 52% of the nearly 1 million American Indian and Alaska Native children were living with only one of their parents. In 2010, about 66% of American Indian and Alaska Native children were born to unmarried women. Given that only 55 of the 564 federally recognized tribes are operating comprehensive or start-up tribal CSE programs, these statistics suggest that many Native American children are without adequate CSE services and may not be getting the child support to which they are entitled. This report presents some demographic data on the number of Native Americans living in the United States and also provides statistical data on tribal CSE programs. Although the data are useful in developing an understanding of tribal CSE programs, they should not be used to draw conclusions regarding the effectiveness of tribal CSE programs. This report describes the components of tribal CSE programs and discusses issues related to jurisdictional matters, paternity establishment, child support enforcement methods, nonpayment problems, and consistency of tribal programs with each other and with state CSE programs. The report also includes three appendices. Appendix A includes six tables that arrange each tribe according to its ranking in FY2010 on several CSE program indicators. Appendix B displays FY2010 information that shows the 38 comprehensive tribal CSE programs. It also shows the 17 start-up tribal CSE programs. Appendix C shows the American Indian and Alaska Native household population for 2005 for tribes with CSE programs.