Tribal Child Support Enforcement

1. Tribal Child Support Enforcement First Steps Checklist National Tribal Child Support Association - PO Box 154 - Ada, OK 74821

2. It’s All About the Children ! • Tribal Child Support Programs assist families in obtaining and maintaining self-sufficiency through: • Paternity Establishment • Establishment, Modification and Enforcement of Child Support orders; • Location of Absent Parents

3. Introduction • Whether your Tribe already has a child support program that you want to enhance or you are planning on establishing a new program, there are several things to consider once your Tribal leaders approve the project.

4. Federal Mandates • Impact on Tribal Infrastructure • Self-Assessment

5. Primary Federal Mandates: • Paternity Establishment • Establishment of Child Support Orders • Modification of Child Support Orders • Enforcement of Child Support Orders • Location of Absent Parents

6. 14 Secondary Mandates • These secondary mandates address the structural requirements your programs will have to follow to qualify for federal funding.

7. Checklist:Infrastructure How will a new child support program affect our Tribal Infrastructure? • Legislative – You will need codes to support the child support program. • Judicial – Codes / laws will need to be enforced. Judges must have the authority to issue an order and the judicial system must be able to carry out the order. • Executive – Collaboration and Cooperation between Tribal, state and federal offices of child support and between Tribal programs will ensure a successful outcome.

8. Checklist: Positive Impact on Tribe • Enhancement / Improvement of Tribal Courts; • Enhances services with other Tribal programs (T.A.N.F., ICW, schools, work programs); • Improved services to Tribal Members; • Community Education.

9. Checklist:Self-Assessment • What needs to be done first? • Who needs to be involved? • How many staff hours will this require? • How do you determine what you have or what you need in order to proceed? • Who can you contact for guidance?

10. Checklist:Additional Things to Consider In your assessment, you also need to consider the following: • Collaboration • Automation • Cooperative Agreements • Action Plan • Timelines

11. First • Decide where you will “house” the TCSA • Some Tribes choose to put their child support program within their judicial structure; • Some choose to house it within their social services or family services structure. • A Project Leader must be identified along with supporting staff. • Staff hour involvement will vary Tribe to Tribe

12. SecondIdentifying what you have and what you need… • Review the Federal Regulations, point-by-point to identify what you already have and what you are already doing. • Then identify those components you cannot meet and determine what you need to do to meet them.

13. Collaboration • Which of the following options meet my Tribes’ needs the best? • Establishing our own, individual program? • Forming/Joining a consortia with other Tribes? • Entering a Cooperative Agreement with our state?

14. In choosing an option, consider the following: • Will my Tribe have enough cases to justify having our own program? • Are there nearby Tribes willing to form a consortia to establish a new child support agency? • Are there nearby Tribes currently operating a child support program with which my Tribe could form a consortia with? • Is our Tribal/State relationship conducive to collaborating? • What kind of child support program does my Tribe want?

15. Automation • At this time, Tribes are not required to have an automated system as long as they have the means to manage cases and track collections and payments. • Tribes may be required to automate in the future.

16. Currently, your options are: • Manually manage and track your child support cases. • Develop your own automated system. • Contract with your state to use their system.

17. Cooperative Agreements • It’s important to have Cooperative Agreements with the other agencies you will be interacting with. • Tribal Social Services • Tribal Court (Judges, Attorneys, Clerks of Court) • Law Enforcement • Process Server; • State – if applicable;

18. Third Action Plan • After making your initial assessment, you will need to develop an action plan that includes a timeline and designated staff to carry out the tasks.

19. Last Write and Submit TCSA Plan • Once all your structural pieces are in place: • Write your TCSA Plan • Develop your Budget • Package the information • Submit through your Tribal process and obtain required signatures • Submit to OCSE

20. Timelines • Existing Tribal Infrastructure will determine how long your timeline will be; • Allow 6 – 12 months for the initial assessment and preparation; • Allow another 3 – 6 months for review and approval/denial from OCSE.

21. Contact Information • Jerry Sweet / Chickasaw Nation 580-310-6009 • Martha Renville / Sisseton-Wahpeton 605-698-7131 • Tami Lorbecke / Chickasaw Nation 918-272-6909 • Kate Christnot / OCSE 202-401-4842

22. It’s for the children…. • Every child has a right to know who their father is. • Every child has the right to be financially and emotionally supported by both parents.