A main objective of the Child Support Enforcement program is to make sure that child support payments are made regularly and in the correct amount.  While many parents are involved in their children’s lives and are willing to pay child support, lapses in payments occur.  When they do, a family’s budget can be quickly and seriously threatened, and the anxiety the parent who receives the child support feels can easily disrupt the family’s life.

At the time a new child support order is issued an immediate wage withholding is also delivered to an employer.    In addition, a child support payor may be required to set up an automatic bank deduction to make required monthly payments.   These are effective options for those who are regularly employed.

Ohio also has laws which allow our office to use other enforcement techniques, such as seizing state and federal income tax returns, liens on real or person property, and the suspension of a driver’s or commercial license (CDL).  These techniques often result payments to a family.

Contempt of court proceedings can also be initiated when child support payments are not paid as ordered.  The payor will be summoned to court to show why he or she should not be help in contempt for not paying child support as ordered.  Depending upon whether it is a 1^st, 2^nd or 3^rd offense, the payor can be sentenced to jail for 30, 60, or 90 days and be ordered to pay a fine.

If an obligor does not pay child support for a total accumulated period of twenty-six weeks out of one hundred and four consecutive weeks, whether or not the twenty-six weeks are consecutive, the payor could be guilty of nonsupport of dependents (a fifth-degree felony) and be subject to possible time in prison and a large fine.  This has become a very successful tool in our efforts to enforce child support.