Fact or Fiction: Deadbeat Parents Don't Pay Child Support Because They Are "Broke"?

The non-custodial parent's rights groups would like you to believe that is why most people don't pay child support - because they can't afford to pay it. Because they are "broke". To support this theory, these enablers of deadbeats are now relying on an Editorial type Article published in the Orlando (Florida) Sentinel on January 24, 1999 entitled "Deadbeat Dads More Myth Than Reality". One of the most vocal groups (ANCPR) is encouraging their members to take action and contact elected representatives in their never ending quest to make it easier for deadbeats to avoid paying child support in an E-mail to their Members on January 29, 1998.

The article that supports these enablers of deadbeat parents points out that two private collection agencies (Lockheed-Martin and Maximus) that had a contract with the State of Florida had failed miserably in their efforts to collect money from deadbeat parents in Florida. The article stated in part that what "Maximus and Lockheed Martin learned in the process of tracking down non-paying parents is that most who don't make child-support payments are, in a word, broke. You can't give what you don't have".

Nothing could be further from the truth! Maximums and Lockheed Martin discovered that the contract that they had with the State of Florida was not "profitable" for the companies to continue working the cases. There are a number of factors why the contract was not "profitable":

• The compensation for pursuing deadbeat parents was not sufficient to allow the companies to do anything more than "cream" the cases. In other words - these companies go after the easiest cases - and if they do not get a response after contacting a deadbeat parent three or four times, they move on to the next case.
  
  
• The contract requires the private companies to follow the same or similar polices that the State of Florida Department of Revenue (the State IV-D Agency) must follow. What this means is that they must follow rules and laws that are designed to "protect" deadbeat parents. They must "encourage" the deadbeat parent to pay what is owed - and can not offend him or her. This means that they can not be aggressive. So, when a deadbeat parent tells the collector that he is "broke" and "can't afford to pay child support" - the collection agency can't do anything else with the case. As a result, the case gets closed, or is determined to be "uncollectable".

The article correctly points out that the State of Florida spends $1 for every $4 that is collected. It is no secret that no state agency is able to collect child support - especially with a national average of only 20% success by public agencies. One of the reasons that public agencies are not successful for more people is because they are under requirements to be compassionate, understanding and "more father friendly" by the year 2000. This is a practice that MUST stop.

To further dispel the myth that deadbeat parents are actually broke and can not afford to pay child support is the singular fact that private collection agencies that contract directly with custodial parents are collecting for up to 73% of their clients. Thousands of custodial parents around the country have placed their cases with private agencies - and are getting results.