Collecting Child Support
by: Legal Aid Services of Oregon
CONTENTS
How is child support collected if I am working?
Can my employer fire me if my wages are being withheld?
What happens if the child support I owe cannot be collected by wage withholding?
How long can back child support be collected?
How is child support collected if I am working?
The Department of Justice (DOJ), the District Attorneys (DA), and private attorneys can get orders to withhold wages if the person who is supposed to make child support payments is working. All Oregon employers must now report to the DOJ within 20 days of the hiring or rehiring of a worker.
For support orders dated after January 1, 1994, wage withholding is automatic from the time when the support order is first issued unless the parents agree in writing not to have it, or a judge finds that there is a very good reason to avoid withholding. This is the law even if the case is not being handled by DOJ or the DA. In DOJ or DA cases, usually the only way to avoid withholding is by the electronic transfer of wages to the other parent's bank account.
For support orders dated before January 1, 1994, wage withholding may begin when the support is first ordered, when an arrearage exists, or when either parent requests.
For withholding by Oregon employers:
If you are current in paying your support, the amount that can be withheld from your wages is the monthly support amount, but only up to a maximum of 50% of your take-home pay (up to 65% in some cases, if a court agrees after a hearing).
If you are behind in making your monthly support payments, the amount that can be withheld is 120% of the monthly support amount, up to a maximum of 50% of your take-home pay (up to 65% in some cases, if a court agrees after a hearing).
If you do not owe current support, only arrearages (unpaid back support), the amount that can be withheld is the amount of the last monthly order, if there was one, or an amount based on your income and calculated under the child support guidelines. In either case, you must be left with an income equal to a full time federal minimum wage. If these arrearages are owed only to the state (not to the custodial parent), you may be able to have the monthly withholding reduced if you have another child to support.
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Can my employer fire me if my wages are being withheld?
No. It is not legal for an employer to fire you, discipline you, or refuse to hire you just because there is a wage withholding order. If you think you were fired because your wages were withheld, you should talk to the Department of Justice, the District Attorney, or a private attorney.
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What happens if the child support I owe cannot be collected by wage withholding?
Other types of income such as Unemployment Compensation, Worker's Compensation, and Social Security Disability can be withheld for child support. Usually no more than 25% of these payments can be taken each month, and only 15% (or the amount of the last monthly order) can be taken if there is no current order. In some cases, a collection agency can assist in collecting child support.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) and the District Attorney (DA) can also take state and federal tax refunds for back child support as well as lump sum payments on veterans benefits, personal injury awards, non-SSI disability and social security, pensions, and insurance proceeds. You may be able to exempt some of these amounts from garnishment with a "claim of exemption." If your unpaid back support exceeds $2,500 and a payment plan is not being followed, DOJ and the DA can suspend your driver's license, occupational or professional license, passport, as well as your recreational, hunting or fishing license. In addition, the DOJ is required to report delinquent cases to credit agencies. If the DOJ or the DA feel you could work or pay child support some other way and you are not paying, they can ask the judge to hold you in contempt of court. In contempt cases, fines and jail sentences are possibilities; you may have the right to a court-appointed attorney. You will usually be given a chance to start making child support payments to avoid going to jail.
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How long can back child support be collected?
Unpaid child support from an Oregon child support order can now be collected for 25 years after it was ordered. (For some orders dated before January 1, 1994, it may not be possible to collect the order by foreclosing on real property, but all other methods of collecting the support are available. Also, for some orders dated before January 1, 1994, the enforcement period could run twenty years from the date of the delinquency.)
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