In April, APA sent a letter to the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement’s (OCSE) Commissioner Tanguler Gray to highlight critical issues for the payroll professional community.
The letter outlines some key areas of focus that the APA encourages OCSE to support for process improvements.
Lump-Sum Payments Is a Big Issue
While the APA requested stronger restrictions on access to new hire reporting data, the largest issue in the letter to Commissioner Gray was the management of lump-sum payments for child support.
At present, there exists a patchwork of reporting requirements and payment processing throughout the country. The APA highlighted a need for greater employer education as well as a need for more states and third parties to use the OCSE Communication Center.
Additionally, the APA requested that the OCSE require states to issue lump-sum payment orders via the e-IWO process and establish more uniform reporting requirements in areas including reporting thresholds, timeframe for state response, and the cessation of the use of “contact state” messaging.
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Mike Linehan is the Assistant Manager of Government Relations for the APA.