NEW DIRECTIONS In CHILD SUPPORT: Increasing the Focus on HELPING FATHERS AND FAMILIES

1. www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cse/ • Jennifer Burnszynski • jennifer.burnszynski • @acf.hhs.gov • 202.401.5068 • Shirley Decker • Shirley.decker@acf.hhs.gov • 202.401.5291 • Debra Pontisso • Debra.pontisso@acf.hhs.gov • 202.401.4528 NEW DIRECTIONS In CHILD SUPPORT:Increasing the Focus on HELPINGFATHERS AND FAMILIES • NPCL’s 13th Annual International Fatherhood Conference

2. New Directions in Child Support • Our goal is to help families by promoting family self-sufficiency and child well-being. • We’re updating our policies and building new partnerships for service delivery.

3. Child Support is a major antipoverty program • It serves 1 in 4 children and 1 in 2 poor children. • Child support lifted 1 million people out of poverty in 2008. • 35% of poor and 43% of low income custodial mothers received child support.  • 94% of child support goes to families.

4. 5% 100% 10% 90% 29% 9% 21% 40% 80% 23% 70% Child Support 15% 24% 3% 60% TANF 14% Other Income 17% 50% Earnings 40% 57% 30% 50% 43% 39% 20% 10% 0% 1997 2007 1997 2007 All Poor Custodial FamiliesPoor Custodial F amilies who Receive Child Support Child Support is 40% of income for poor families who receive it Source: Urban Institute

5. 100% 5% 15% 90% 38% 30% 80% 17% 63% 70% 60% Child Support 25% 23% TANF 26% 50% Other Income Earnings 40% 4% 9% 16% 30% 43% 43% 20% 24% 20% 10% 0% 1997 2007 1997 2007 All Deeply Poor Custodial Families Deeply Poor Custodial Families who Receive Child Support Child Support is a 63% of income for deeply poor families who receive it Source: Urban Institute

6. Child Support is about more than money. • Encourages mothers and fathers to be involved in their children’s lives. • 1.7 million paternities established for children of unwed parents • Has a positive effect on children’s educational success, and appears to have a greater impact than other types of income.

7. Creating a family-centered child support program Child Support Prevention Engagement of Fathers from Birth Family Violence Collaboration CSE Core Mission: Locate Parents Establish Paternity Establish Orders Collect Support Economic Stability Health Care Coverage Healthy Family Relationships

8. Prevent the need for child support services To prevent the need for child support services by promoting responsible childbearing and raising awareness– especially among teens– of the financial, legal, and emotional consequences of parenthood. Child Support Prevention

9. Early Engagement of Fathers To improve child support and child well-being outcomes by increasing father involvement in the lives of their children. Engagement of Fathers from Birth

10. Improve Economic Stability To increase the economic stability of custodial and noncustodial parents. Economic Stability

11. Promote Healthy Family Relationships To improve child support and child well-being outcomes by helping parents build healthy relationships with their children and with eachother. Healthy Family Relationships

12. Increase Health Care Coverage To assist in securing health care coverage for children and their parents. Health Care Coverage

13. Prevent and Reduce Family Violence To reduce the risk of family violence by working collaboratively with domestic violence organizations and child welfare agencies. Family Violence Collaboration

14. “To encourage fathers to take responsibility for their children and to promote strong family relationships” administration’s FY 2012 Proposed Budget: Child Support and Fatherhood Initiative

15. Specific Child Support/ Fatherhood Proposals • Improved child support distribution policiesto ensure that when noncustodial parents do the right thing and pay child support, their children benefit. • Fostering fathers’ engagement in their children’s lives. • Increasing and improving collections and improving program efficiency and effectiveness.

16. Additional FY 2012 Administration Budget Proposals Healthy Marriage Responsible Fatherhood • $75 million Funds may be used for a number of services including pre-marital education; marriage enhancement programs, divorce reduction programs; marriage mentoring programs; and marriage education, marriage skills and relationship skills programs. • $75 million Funds may be used for fatherhood activities intended to promote or sustain marriage, responsible parenting, economic stability and media campaigns that reach families with important messages about responsible fatherhood.

17. Current (FY 2011) ACF Healthy Marriage/Responsible Fatherhood Grants • The Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood synopses posted to HHS Forecast website http://www.acf.hhs.gov/hhsgrantsforecast/provide general notification and brief descriptions of the funding opportunities that the agency intends to publish.   The information contained in the HHS Forecast system is subject to change.  • Email notification of any changes to posted ACF Forecasts are provided to those who sign up at the HHS Forecast website.   If you are a potential applicant, you may sign up at www.Grants.gov to receive the official notice that the Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood Funding Opportunity Announcements have been published. 

18. Current (FY 2011) ACF Healthy Marriage/Responsible Fatherhood Grants There are seven Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOAs) Four Healthy Marriage FOAs • Community-Centered Healthy Marriage and Relationship Education Grants • http://www.acf.hhs.gov/hhsgrantsforecast/index.cfm?switch=grant.view&gff_grants_forecastInfoID=33419 • Community-Centered Healthy Marriage and Relationship Education Strategies for Ex-Prisoners • http://www.acf.hhs.gov/hhsgrantsforecast/index.cfm?switch=grant.view&gff_grants_forecastInfoID=33405 • Field-Initiated Healthy Marriage and Relationship Education Grants • http://www.acf.hhs.gov/hhsgrantsforecast/index.cfm?switch=grant.view&gff_grants_forecastInfoID=33440 • National Resource Center for Marriage and Relationship Education • http://www.acf.hhs.gov/hhsgrantsforecast/index.cfm?switch=grant.view&gff_grants_forecastInfoID=33412

19. Current (FY 2011) ACF Healthy Marriage/Responsible Fatherhood Grants Three Responsible Fatherhood FOAs • Pathways to Responsible Fatherhood Grants • http://www.acf.hhs.gov/hhsgrantsforecast/index.cfm?switch=grant.view&gff_grants_forecastInfoID=33398 • Community-Centered Responsible Fatherhood Strategies for Re-Entering or Recently Released Fathers • http://www.acf.hhs.gov/hhsgrantsforecast/index.cfm?switch=grant.view&gff_grants_forecastInfoID=33433 • Field-Initiated Responsible Fatherhood Grants • http://www.acf.hhs.gov/hhsgrantsforecast/index.cfm?switch=grant.view&gff_grants_forecastInfoID=33426

20. OCSE Discretionary Grant Programs A Rich History of Funding NCP-Related Projects

21. A Substantial Commitment of Resources • Over the past two decades, OCSE has committed millions in discretionary grant resources to support research and demonstration projects – including waivers – aimed at assisting and/or removing the barriers to NCPs fulfilling their financial obligations to their children. Examples of major demonstration projects: • Parent’s Fair Share (1994) • Child Access Demonstrations (1996) • Responsible Fatherhood Programs (1998) • Partners for Fragile Families (2000) • Community Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood Demonstration Initiatives (2003)

22. OCSE Grants:A Means for Addressing the Needs of Fathers and Their Families OCSE offers two discretionary grant program opportunities to further our common goals – Section 1115 Demonstration Grants and 2. Special Improvement Project (SIP) Grants

23. OCSE 1115 Grants • Section 1115 (a) grants • time-limited demonstration projects • develop and test innovate child support practices—strong evaluation • certain specified statutory or regulatory requirements may be waived • only state child support agencies (or their umbrella agencies) can apply directly for the grants, although they can partner with many other entities.

24. OCSE SIP Grants • Special Improvement Project (SIP) grants • projects that further the national child support mission and goals and to help improve program performance. • research and demonstration programs and special projects • eligible applicants include state and local public agencies, non-profit agencies (including neighborhood dad faith-based organizations), for-profits and tribal organizations—must partner with Child Support

25. OCSE Discretionary Grant Activityre: Fatherhood Current/On-going Grants New Grant Announcements • Family-Centered Services to Unwed Parents in the Child Support Caseload • Sudden and Prolonged Effect of the Economic Downturn • Partnership to Strengthen Families • Prisoner Reentry Initiative • Building Assets for Fathers and Families • Child Support Needs of Active Duty Military Members • Projects to Avoid Increasing Delinquencies (PAID) • Partnership with Child Support Services to Develop Workforce Strategies and Economic Sustainability • Partnership to Strengthen Families • Address Economic Downturn (and Impact) on Child Support Operations • Test a Predesigned Data Warehouse Model

26. Partnerships with Child Support:Develop Workforce Strategies & Economic Sustainability • To enable state child support agencies to develop workforce-related partnerships that would assist NCPs in securing transitional and subsidized jobs, etc. • Eligible applicants for these Section 1115 demonstration grants are State Child Support Enforcement agencies. • Collaborations are encouraged with child support agencies and responsible fatherhood, workforce agencies, etc. • Interested in partnering with your state child support agency? Read the announcement; then call your IV-D agency! http://www.grants.gov HHS-2011-ACF-OCSE-FD-0152 Application Due-Date: 6/29/11

27. Basic Tips for Writing a Successful Grant Application • Include a D-U-N-S number. • Keep the audience in mind. • Start preparing the application early. • Follow the instructions and application guidance carefully. • Be brief, concise, and clear. • Be organized and logical. • Be careful in the use of appendices. • Carefully proofread the application.

28. Access and Visitation Grants Reaching Out to Unwed, Divorced, and Separated Fathers

29. Statutory Goal • The goal of the Access and Visitation (AV) Grant program is to assist noncustodial parents (NCPs) gain increased access to and visitation with their children. • This program was authorized by Congress as part of the welfare reform legislation in 1996 (Section 469B of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act)

30. Allowable Services Allowable Services Funding • Mediation • Development of parenting plans • Counseling • Parent education • Supervised visitation • Neutral drop-off/pick-up • $10 million per year distributed among 50 states, D.C., and three trust territories • Since FY 1997, over $160 million has been made available to states for the provision of AV services.

31. AV Grant Program: Nearly 900,000 NCPsand Their Families Served Nationwide

32. The “BIG” Disconnect:Unwed NCPs and Formal Parenting Time Orders Married Couples Automatic Paternity est. Divorced NCPs Child Support Order Custody Agreement Parenting Time Order Family Court Divorce specialists Co-parenting services Custody evaluators Supervised Visitation Birth Certificate • Unwed NCPs • Possible IV-D Order • without • Parenting Time Rights Unwed Parents Hospital-based Paternity est.

33. The Unwed Parent Factor

34. State Out-of-Wedlock Birth PercentagesCompared to National Average of 42%

35. 3 Things You Should Know… • The Access and Visitation (AV) Grant Program is administered by the Office of Child Support Enforcement. • However, itis not a child support program per se; it is a stand-alone program that does not require that states only provide services to parents in the child support system. • Roughly ½ of the state entities designated responsibility for the AV grant program are Child Support Agencies; another ¼ are State Offices of the Court; and the remaining ¼ are a variety of other state agencies.

36. How the AV Grant Program Works To find out what type of services are being provided in your state – or to see how to compete for State AV Grant funds – go to: www. acf.hhs.gov/ programs/cse/ access_visitation/

37. On-Line Information Resources National Fatherhood Clearinghouse www.fatherhood.gov HHS Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships Subscribe to get newsletter www.hhs.gov/fbci ACF Peer TA Subscribe to get announcements www.peerta.acf.hhs.gov/ Federal Grants Subscribe to get daily grant announcements www.grants.gov

38. Child Support and Fatherhood: Collaborations

39. Collaboration is the way we do business. Child support collaborates with fatherhood, workforce, criminal justice, veterans, domestic violence, child welfare, and many other programs to address family issues.

40. Today, about half of state child support programs have partnerships with at least one fatherhood program. Source: Robert Johnson Celebrate Dads 2010

41. What We Have Learned about Collaboration • Parents need supportive and wrap-around services, yet few receive them • Partnerships are effective when each player relies on its core competencies: • child support programs can address issues of recruitment and retention; • partner agencies can provide comprehensive program models that build on what they do best. • Fatherhood curricula and peer support can be the glue to programs targeting low-income men. • Fatherhood programs help noncustodial parents navigate the child support system, reduce conflict with the other parent, resolve access and visitation issues and sign up for public assistance programs.

42. Federal Initiatives and Partnerships • Building Assets for Fathers & Families • Workforce development • Veterans and military families • Incarcerated and reentering parents • Increasing safety and reducing domestic violence • CHIP and minority male health outreach

43. Resources US HHS Homepage: http://www.hhs.gov ACF Homepage: http://www.acf.hhs.gov Child Support Homepage: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cse State Links: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cse/extinf.html Grant Information: http://www.grants.gov