The article, “e-IWO Helps Employers Comply with Garnishments,” written by APA Government Relations Task Force (GRTF) Child Support Subcommittee member Christena Verrill, is featured in the July 2022 edition of the Child Support Report, a monthly e newsletter published by the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE).
Drawing on her extensive payroll experience, Verrill, Payroll Manger for L.L. Bean, highlights the ways in which e-IWO can help employers ensure compliance with garnishments for child support.
OCSE helped implement the e-IWO process, which enables child support orders to be delivered electronically for payroll professionals to process. In the instances a child support agency sends a paper order, Verrill says she simply requests an electronic order be sent via the e-IWO process.
After providing a step-by-step overview of how her organization processes a child support order, Verrill acknowledges that there is still some room for improvement in the e-IWO process. Her recommendations include seeing more consistency in the role employers play in the child support programs from state to state. Additionally, the implementation of consistent lump-sum reporting and withholding requirements specifically in statute or regulation would make the work of employers easier and more efficient.
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Mike Linehan is the Assistant Manager of Government Relations for the APA.