Non-Custodial Parent Employment Program - Glossary

Connecting H.O.P.E.

Administrative procedure – the method that an executive agency uses to make and enforce support orders. It is typically less formal than a judicial procedure held in a courtroom, and in which judicial officers make and enforce support orders.

Administrative modification – the method an executive agency uses to modify a child support order, typically without having a court hearing. (See administrative procedure) Arrears/arrearage – past-due child support payments.

Change of Circumstances – the condition that indicates a need for modification of a support order.

Child support agency – an agency in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as 60 Native American tribes, that handle child support cases. It’s often called the “IV-D” (pronounced “Four-D”) agency because the federal legislation that established the child support program is in Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act.

Child Support Services Program – the federal, state, local, and tribal partnerships established under Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act to locate parents; establish paternity; and establish, modify, and enforce child support orders.

Custodial parent (CP)/ Custodian – the person who has primary care, custody, and control of a child. Some states use the term “residential parent.” Some states use the term “custodial party” or “caretaker” if the child resides with a relative, legal guardian, or some other legally responsible adult. When parents are separated or divorced, the court order usually designates which parent is the custodial parent.

Custody order – a legal determination that establishes who has care and control of a child, and who the child lives with. State and tribal laws vary with regard to custody issues (such as joint custody, sole custody, shared custody).

Default – the failure of a defendant to appear, or file a timely answer or response, in a civil case after the person has been served with a summons and complaint.

Default judgment or default order – a decision that a tribunal makes when the defendant fails to respond or appear after proper notice.

Defendant – the person against whom a civil or criminal proceeding is begun. The defendant in a civil proceeding is also called the “respondent.”

Enforcement – the process of obtaining payment of a child support or medical support obligation. The most effective enforcement remedy is income withholding. Other enforcement remedies include federal and state income tax refund offset, license suspension, lottery intercept, passport denial and seizure of bank accounts.

Establishment – the legal process of determining parentage or obtaining a child support order.

Federal Office of Child Support Services (OCSS) – the federal agency responsible for oversight of the Title IV-D child support program. OCSS writes regulations that govern the state child support agencies, which are responsible for day-to-day processing of child support cases. OCSS also operates the Federal Parent Locator Service. OCSS is part of the Administration for Children and Families within the Department of Health and Human Services.

Federally Assisted Foster Care – a federal/state/tribal program that provides financial support to individuals, families, or institutions raising children who are not living with their parents.

Financial Responsibility Program (FRP) – a policy directive in the Federal Bureau of Prisons that encourages each sentenced inmate to meet their legitimate financial obligations. Staff will help the inmate develop a financial plan for meeting those obligations and monitor the inmate’s efforts to fulfill the plan throughout their period of incarceration.

Finding – the formal determination by a court or an administrative agency that has a legal effect.

IV-D (pronounced “Four-D”) Child Support Program – the federal/state/local and tribal child support programs established under Title IV-D of the Social Security Act.

Garnishment – an enforcement remedy to withhold part of a person’s wages and other types of income for the payment of a debt. Some states refer to a garnishment as a “withholding” or an “attachment.”

Genetic testing – DNA analysis of inherited factors (usually by tissue or saliva test) of the mother, child, and alleged father that can help prove or disprove that a particular man fathered a particular child.

Guidelines – the numerical formulas that states and tribes use to set child support obligations. Support guidelines are based on the income of the parent(s) and other factors as determined by state and tribal law. Tribunals must use guidelines to determine the child support amount, unless there is a written finding that applying the guidelines would be inappropriate in a particular case.

Interest accrual – the amount of interest that accrues on an unpaid child support obligation.

Judicial procedure – the method by which judicial officers make and enforce support orders. It is usually held in a courtroom.

Judicial modification – the method by which a modification occurs in a court proceeding. (See judicial procedure)

Judgment – the legally binding decision by a tribunal on the rights and claims of the parties to an action. A judgment may also be called a “decree” or an “order.”

Jurisdiction – the legal authority that a court or an administrative agency has over particular persons, certain types of cases, and in a defined geographical area.

Legal father – a man recognized by law as the male parent.

Medicaid program – a program administered state by state that provides federally funded medical support for low-income families.

Medical support – health care coverage provided to a child according to a support order. It includes insurance coverage; cash medical support, including paying health insurance premiums; and paying health care bills (including dental and eye care). Indian Health Service and TRICARE are also acceptable forms of medical support.

Noncustodial parent (NCP) – the person who does not have primary care, custody, and control of a child.

Obligation – the duty of support that a parent or spouse owes to a child or spouse. A support order usually expresses that obligation as an amount of money that the parent or spouse must pay as financial support or medical support for the child(ren) or spouse.

Order – the legally binding decision by a tribunal on the rights and claims of the parties to an action. An order may also be called a “decree” or “judgment.”

Parentage – the legal parent-child relationship as determined by state or tribal law.

Party – a person involved in a legal transaction or court proceeding.

Paternity – the legal determination of fatherhood.

Presumption of paternity – A rule of law that permits a court to assume a man is the father of a child if certain facts exist. This rule may be rebutted by presenting factual information that shows the man could not be the father.

Probability of paternity – the statistical likelihood that the alleged father is the biological father of the child, as indicated by genetic test results.

Public assistance – money granted from the state, tribal, or federal government to a person or family for living expenses. Eligibility is based on need and varies among programs. Applicants for certain types of public assistance (for example, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families or TANF) are automatically referred to their state or tribal child support agency for child support services. This allows the state or tribe to seek support payments from the noncustodial parent so the custodial party can become more self-sufficient, and the state or tribal government can recoup some of its public assistance expenditures.

RAC – a federal correctional institution’s Reentry Affairs Coordinator who has responsibility for coordinating local reentry efforts, which include fostering partnerships and developing resources that help offenders successfully return to their communities.

RRC – a Residential Reentry Center (halfway houses) is a Bureau of Prisons contract facility that provides assistance to inmates nearing release. They provide a safe, structured, supervised community environment, as well as employment counseling, job placement, financial management assistance, and other services. RRCs help inmates gradually rebuild their ties to the community and help supervise inmates’ activities during this readjustment phase.

Retroactive support – support for a period prior to the entry date of the order. For example, in paternity cases, state law may require that support be retroactive to the child’s birth date. Some states have laws requiring support retroactive to the date the legal action was filed.

Statute of limitations – the cutoff point on the length of time a person has to take a particular legal action. State and tribal laws vary on the statute of limitations for collecting child support arrears.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) – The TANF program, which is time limited, assists families with children when the parents or other responsible relatives cannot provides for the family's basic needs. The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) with TANF. The TANF program provides parents with job preparation, work, and support services to help them become self-sufficient. Applicants for TANF benefits are automatically referred for child support services. This allows the state or tribe to seek support payments from the noncustodial parent so the custodial party can become more self-sufficient, and the state or tribal government can recoup some of its public assistance expenditures. Non-TANF refers to families that have not received TANF assistance.

Tribal IV-D Program - a child support program administered by a federally recognized Indian tribe or tribal organization and funded under Title IV-D of the Social Security Act.

Tribunal – a court, an administrative agency, or a quasi-judicial entity authorized to establish, enforce, or modify support orders, or to determine parentage.

Unit Team – a part of Bureau of Prisons’ Unit Management concept to determine inmate program needs, and monitor inmate participation to encourage pro-social institution and community behaviors that benefit inmates, staff, victims, and society. Unit Teams are comprised of a Unit Manager who supervises assigned case managers, correctional counselors, and unit secretaries in a designated housing unit. The Unit Team also includes unit officers, an education advisor, and a unit psychologist.

Visitation – a term for the time a noncustodial parent spends with their children. States may also use the term “access” or “parenting time.” Parents can agree on parenting time in a parenting plan, or the court can establish parenting time in its order.

Voluntary unemployment – a law or policy that prohibits modification when a parent is incarcerated or when an individual decides to stop working or to not seek employment.

Wage withholding – a procedure of automatic deductions from a person’s earnings or other income to pay a debt, such as child support. Wage withholding may also be called “income withholding,” “income attachment,” “income assignment,” or “garnishment.”