Child Support as Platform.

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Forums > All Posts > Child Support as Platform.

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2011-08-05 01:28 PM

JP Cusick
Hollywood, MD
Posts: 4

I am NOT campaigning here on this forum as I just want to discuss such things, but I am a candidate in my Maryland for the US Senate 2012, and if I win then my politics will affect the entire USA.

My point and platform is to radically reform the Child Support laws which are already under federal mandate.

As like the federal law says the Child Support must be taken as a percentage, link HERE, but instead the State Courts only order fixed set amounts which is severely abusive and detrimental to all concerned.

Thereby the laws have unjustly turned parenting into a crime and turned parents into criminals and it destroys the family unit and alienates the children.

The system needs to be stopped or dramatically reformed and yet most people are just determined to pretend that the injustices and ruin are just acceptable conditions.

Child Support claims to be helping children when it is really just playing politics with our society.

So I was wondering if anyone here has any input onto this subject?

2011-08-05 01:31 PM

JP Cusick
Hollywood, MD
Posts: 4

I forgot to post my own website, and it does not appear to be on my profile, so here it is below:

Link website here = VoteJP, 2012.

2011-08-05 05:20 PM

Schmidt
Colorado Springs, CO
Posts: 1058

JP Cusick, I don't know if you'll find too many people that want to talk about revising Child Support laws when there are a whole host of other issues that are consuming us right now. And unless you have been directly affected...perhaps a child of a deadbeat dad, or a father that is unemployed and cannot make the required child support payments, then it is hard to relate to what is fair and not fair. We are all captives of our own experiences...good and bad.

But I did take the time to go to wikipedia and try better understand the issues. See Child Support in the United States and Child Support. It gave me a better appreciation for the complexity of the issues, and that a "one size fits all" is not the solution. And there are lots of details that are lost in the debate, and for someone like me "uninterested" it would be difficult to provide an educated response to your question. I can, however, cherry pick a few items out of Wikipedia that caught my eye.

For example from Wikipedia: "Within the United States, a 2007 study conducted through the University of Baltimore estimates that 50% of all child support arrears are owed to the government to reimburse welfare expenses. Half of U.S. states pass along none of the child support they collect to low-income families receiving welfare and other assistance, instead reimbursing themselves and the federal government. Most of the rest only pass along $50.00 per month. The bipartisan 2006 Deficit Reduction Act and other measures have sought to reduce the amount of money claimed by the government and to ensure that more funds are accessible by children and families, noting that more obligors (paying parents) are willing to pay child support when their children directly benefit from payments."

And this: "A possible side effect from a capitalistic economy such as the United States, the child support system has become a good source of revenue for civil courts, attorneys and parents. It has been argued that United States Child Support laws encourage parents into a legal "tug-of-war" which results in a severe loss of time and income first from both parents (such as legal fees, court costs, and time off work), and finally to the parent who loses in court (typically the father). The premise of the law is to protect the children. In actuality, it is argued, the children are hurt the most by the system due to the alienation of the non-custodial parent. It has been recognized by various government committees that parents are alienating each other both from themselves and from their children. Non-custodial parents feel they are nothing more than a bank account to the family and can get pushed out due to increased hours at work or having to accept a second job to pay support money. This leaves little or no time for the non-custodial parent to focus on time spent with the children."

On the positive side there is this: "Parents who share an equal role in parenting are far more likely to comply, with child support compliance going up above 90% when the payer states he believes he has a relatively equal role in parenting." So perhaps that is a large part of the solution.

Citing anecdotal evidence to make a case can introduce additional biases into the system. The bottom line, from the little I read in Wikipedia, is that I don't feel qualified to make a judgment without spending hours and hours reading the various studies cited. So I'll yield to the victims to make their case.

Nevertheless, the few items above that I have bolded, have left me pondering. And if you become a Senator, there certainly is much in the legal code that needs fixing.

In a way it's like the issues around the drug laws. Relaxing possession of marijuna laws would do much to lighten the loads on our prisons, but attempts to modify these laws have hit solid opposition from the people the profit from them...law enforcement, courts, judges, lawyers and prisons...JOBS. Likewise, without deadbeat dads, many people would be unemployed.

This doesn't answer your question, but maybe I've broadened and stimulated the conversation a bit.

2011-08-05 05:36 PM

sbfriedman
Denton, TX
Posts: 931

Good to see hopeful politicians on the site. I agree with you, Cusick. A flat rate for child support is unfair. It should be a percentage of income earned.

And, while I also agree with Schmidt that there are more important issues to tackle and much like drug enforcement laws, their is money in making and upholding laws, that doesn't disqualify or discount this issue. Child support effects real people's lives in a very real way. It needs to be discussed and amended or changed completely.

2011-08-07 02:42 PM

JP Cusick
Hollywood, MD
Posts: 4

sbfriedman Wrote:

Good to see hopeful politicians on the site.

Thank you for the welcome.

The new game, new tactics, new politics is being online, but a Politician has to be able to take the harsh heat of an internet forum or else they had better stay off line, because these forums will get brutal.

sbfriedman Wrote:

I agree with you, Cusick. A flat rate for child support is unfair. It should be a percentage of income earned.

I am happy that you see that, and in fact the federal guidelines say to order percentages so the State Courts are breaking the law.

Of course people believe they are helping children by mistreating their parents, but instead they have turned parents and parenting into a crime.

sbfriedman Wrote:

And, while I also agree with Schmidt that there are more important issues to tackle and much like drug enforcement laws, their is money in making and upholding laws, that doesn't disqualify or discount this issue.

I agree that "Schmidt" gave an excellent posting, especially including the Wikipedia info on Child Support.

It can be argued that there are more important issues in the USA, but the injustices done under the Child Support laws are more personally detrimental and socially destructive.

While America tries to dominate the entire world - we beat down our own society like self destructive fools.

sbfriedman Wrote:

Child support effects real people's lives in a very real way. It needs to be discussed and amended or changed completely.

Unfortunately any such reform will not be done correctly unless I myself lead the charge, and I do wish that some one else could and would do it instead - but no one else is up to the task.

I know it seems vain to claim that only I can do it.

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