CT_March-April_2022_Mag_Web

A ccording to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), the average parent enters prison with approximately $10,000 in child support debt and leaves with twice that amount. 1 This debt can create large barriers for parents working to successfully return to their communities and can discourage parents from entering the formal labor market. 2,3 With nearly half of individuals in state prisons and more than half of those in federal prisons being parents to minor children, corrections can play a large role in promoting successful reentry by helping parents address their child support concerns. 4 Research shows modifying child support order amounts for incarcerated parents based on their ability to pay results in less debt accrual and more consistent child support payments upon release. 5 Additionally, rightsiz- ing the child support order to the parent’s ability to pay can reduce the amount of debt parents face upon release, may facilitate parents reconnection with their families and children, and consequently may reduce recidivism rates, improving outcomes for corrections. 6 Rightsizing the child support order to the parent’s ability to pay can reduce the amount of debt parents face upon release, may facilitate parents reconnection with their families and children, and consequently may reduce

to comply with the modernization rule including notifying incarcerated parents of their right to request to have their child support order reviewed for modification, automati - cally conducting this review or suspending a child support order once a parent has been incarcerated for a certain length of time. Corrections can play an important role in helping state and county child support offices identify incarcerated parents who may benefit from this rule change. Described below is information on how corrections can support the child support order modification process to improve reentry outcomes. Opportunities for corrections and child support collaborations to improve outcomes for incarcerated parents and their children Incarceration Data In order to conduct reviews for modification, child support offices must know when parents are incarcerated and for how long. Child support offices rely on multiple data sources to collect the key data elements (such as name, date of birth, incarceration status and release date) necessary to identify eligible parents and modify their child support orders. One common way child support of- fices identify this data is by establishing data exchanges with criminal justice agencies through automated data matches or manual updates. In automated data matches, departments of corrections partner with state child support offices to establish data sharing agreements that allow child support to identify when an individual with a child support order becomes incarcerated. In some instances, information about incar- ceration of individuals on the child support caseload is automatically updated in the child support agency data- base. For example, in Texas, there is an automated data match between the Office of the Attorney General (the state child support agency) and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ), which oversees all state jails and prisons. The TDCJ provides data on a weekly basis that automatically populates incarceration-related fields in the Texas Child Support Enforcement System if an individual is incarcerated.

recidivism rates, improving outcomes for corrections.

In line with this research, the Office of Child Sup - port Enforcement at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services updated the federal child support rules in 2016 in what is known as “the modernization rule,” in part to promote child support modifications for eligible incarcerated parents. 7 States use a variety of approaches

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Photo illustration opposite page: Shadow: istock/AlexLinch; Hands in bars: istock/sakhorn38

Corrections Today March/April 2022— 31