You will find yourself asking the questions too. Why is the federal government so involved in child support enforcement when the collections associated with Current Assistance Cases total less than one half of what the States are collectively spending on their own contribution to the program? It is definitely time to reign in free for all welfare spending by our federal government.

Over participation continues to be a major problem in the nation’s child support enforcement program. I have highlighted important sections regarding participation numbers, collections, and undistributed child support. Net Undistributed Collections appears to make up the equivalent of about 50% of the total collections of means tested needy families. These are nationwide numbers. You will see that between former and never assistance, actual needy families are a super minority of this social welfare program.

Adding eligibility requirements into the nation’s Title IV-D/Child Support Enforcement Program will benefit needy families and will also constitute a significant savings to the taxpayers at both the federal and state levels. Removing affluent feuding families from the program will also benefit children of those divorce and child custody cases, by emphasizing on the parent-child relationship rather than encouraging bickering and fighting over who is going to receive a check and for how much.

Actual Federal Expenditures Nationwide: $5,593,864,242.00 (Billions)

Estimated State Expenditures Nationwide: $1,845,975,199.86 (Billions)

Taxpayer Expense, not including other social programs and costs of incarcerations is over $7 BILLION!

ACTUAL COLLECTIONS FOR MEANS TESTED NEEDY FAMILIES: $946,283,222.00 (Millions)

(please note there is no verification to determine if the money was distributed after collection.)

This program would be better off distributing money out of the budget directly to needy families and just get rid of the employees behind the Child Support Enforcement Agency. With Net Undistributed Collections totaling nearly 50% of the amount collected for needy families, one has to wonder how many needy families are indeed being helped by the program. There appears to be no need for federal government involvement, since the amount distributed to needy families is about HALF of what the states are spending to keep their portion of the program going.

To date, according to paawareness.org there have been THIRTEEN (13) US Proclamations and Recognitions, TWO (2) Canadian Proclamations, and ONE (1) International Proclamation declaring that April 25, 2008 is Parental Alienation Awareness Day. Indeed Parental Alienation is child abuse and it is your absolute responsibility as a citizen to spread the word to friends and family as well as government officials nationwide! Take a look at these Proclamations and Recognitions:

Be sure to contact your local libraries, local government offices, and decision makers everywhere about these proclamations. If your state is not listed, start on them for next year and show them the number of Governors and leaders that understand the simple concept that Parental Alienation is indeed Child Abuse. You can click the links above and print the PDF files and forward them to people everywhere, including printing them and getting them to your local governmental bodies to display.

Parental alienation is a group of behaviors that are damaging to children's mental and emotional well-being, and can interfere with a relationship of a child and either parent. These behaviors most often accompany high conflict marriages, separation or divorce.

These behaviors whether verbal or non-verbal, cause a child to be mentally manipulated or bullied into believing a loving parent is the cause of all their problems, and/or the enemy, to be feared, hated, disrespected and/or avoided.

Parental alienation and hostile aggressive parenting deprive children of their right to be loved by and showing love for both of their parents. These destructive actions by the alienating parent (the parent who is responsible for the manipulations and bullying) are considered a form of child abuse - as the alienating tactics used on the children are disturbing, confusing and often frightening, and rob children of their sense of security and safety.

Most people do not know about Parental Alienation and Hostile Aggressive Parenting until they experience it. Parental Alienation Awareness is put forth to help raise awareness about this growing problem of mental and emotional child abuse.

We need your help to protect the innocent, ...the children.

The Jackson Citizen Patriot, April 19, 2008 published a story called "Hunt for deadbeats is on in Jackson" but it raised some interesting points. First off, I added commentary to the online edition:

The Counties have a good thing going with wasting local, state, and federal taxpayer monies on these programs.

In 2006, the 1.399 BILLION that was collected in child support only around 36 MILLION of that went to actual means tested needy families. Did I forget to mention that around 56 MILLION was undistributed and got to be escheated back into the budget?

It is important to note that 88% of the collections for this program are people that are not means tested and only around 3% of the total collections brought in are for individual families on TANF, meaning signed up and qualified for welfare. The program is bloated and focuses on collection from middle and upper class families who should not be in the program at all. It is taxpayer waste.

For every dollar spent on creating broken homes under the guise of the best interest of children, two more federal dollars come into the state. It is like a giant slot machine that ALWAYS pays out for the state. This is done without actual accounting of the program funds, the actual expenditures by the families, and otherwise just designed to fund a growing bureaucracy based upon a largely emotional argument with adverse results to the public good.

Let's start with taking people out of the program and only providing services to means tested needy families. Let's start by mandating equal custody when there are two fit, willing, and caring parents that just don't want to be together anymore. Just by doing these things, our courts will be freed up to focus on important matters that need their attention, like actual abuse cases, neglect cases, and criminal cases.

Taxpayers should be smarter than this. Be Bold, Be Concerned, Be a Citizen.

But here is where the proof is in the pudding:

More than half the money involved in 2007 that was "owed" to parents was forgiven by them, again demonstrating that many individuals involved in the program don't want to be, or otherwise shouldn't be in the program at taxpayer expense.

Last year, they arrested 244 people and resolved about $259,952 of child-support debt. About $120,000 of that was paid to custodial parents. Mothers or fathers forgave the remaining $139,815.

This year about 2/3 of the money that was owed was also forgiven this year as a result of the local county crackdown.

Since January, Finco and deputies have arrested at least 80 people on random weekend nights, times when parents don't expect they'll be caught. In doing so, they collected $38,731 for parents and their children and resolved another $77,786 when custodial parents forgave debt owed by arrested parents.

Adding more ammunition to the arsenal of reasons that eligibility requirements should be added to the child support enforcement program instead of allowing the State and Counties to artificially increase the participation levels with "all" divorces, child custody, and paternity cases at taxpayer expense.

The Nationwide Blueprint for Title IV-D Reform

• Social Security, Welfare, and Child Support Enforcement
• Necessary Program Changes: Protecting Taxpayers, Parents, and Children
• Supporting Budget Cuts

I have been following a case recently with regard to Judge Tracey A. Yokich and she has been making the occasional flippant statement of what she believes a father's role should be in their children's lives. I certainly disagree with her and put my disagreement in writing to her. Here is what I have to say to the Honorable Tracey A. Yokich and I look forward to her response in the near future and maybe you might want to discuss the issue with her too. We have to ensure that there is equality in our family courts and that judges an see past their financial incentives for what is truly best for children.

Judge Tracey A. Yokich sits on the Family Court in Macomb County, Michigan.

The entire letter is available for review and circulation by clicking this link.

Letter to Hon. Judge Tracey A. Yokich

You might remember the article that I wrote titled "When Stealing From Children Isn't Enough" and if you don't you should probably take the time to read it. Because now we are back to the same issue again, and as you can tell its not the first and certainly won't be the last. Child support programs lack accountability nationwide.

Another occurrence of government officials stealing both from the taxpayers nationwide and children was documented by the LufkinDailyNews.Com website on April 3, 2008. In fact District Clerk Donna Phillips has all but been convicted of "allegedly" taking $15,758.16 from child support accounts.

NACOGDOCHES — Nacogdoches
District Clerk Donna Phillips has been arrested and charged with theft
by a public servant, a third-degree felony. She was arraigned Thursday
morning by Precinct 2 Justice of the Peace Dorothy Tigner-Thompson, who
set her bond at $8,500. She was immediately released after bonding out
of jail.

She also resigned Thursday, sending a letter to County Judge Joe English, in which she apologized for her "wrongdoings."

According to the arrest affidavit filed in Thompson's court,
Phillips is accused of taking $15,758.16 during 2007 from the child
support account she oversees.

Not too mention, on April 1, 2008 it wasn't a laughing matter for Cynthia Woodard who had to plead guilty to multiple charges resulting from her and her fiance' stealing $10,660.00 or more dollars from taxpayers and children. The Statesman Journal in Salem, Oregon reports:

A former Oregon Department of Justice
employee accused of stealing unclaimed child-support payments from the
state pleaded guilty to all charges in Marion County court Monday.

Keizer
resident Cynthia Diane Woodard, 50, pleaded guilty to two counts of
first-degree theft, two counts of identity theft and one count of
misdemeanor official misconduct.

Woodard received a 120-day jail sentence and five years of probation from Circuit Judge Jamese Rhoades.

Between
April and June of last year, Woodard and her then-fiancé, Glenn Edward
Huiett, stole about $10,660 in child-support payments intended for two
recipients, a Eugene woman and a Salem woman, Marion County Deputy
District Attorney Don Abar said.

Phillips isn't the first of the clerks to be caught or suspected of embezzling money from children and taxpayers. In fact, just last year I reported in Child Support Clerk Charged With Embezzlement: More Government Corruption

Another County employee, this one in Lauderdale County, has been
indicted by a grand jury on felony embezzlement charges for allegedly
stealing more than $216,000.00 of program money, paid for by taxpayers,
by writing unauthorized checks to herself from January 2002 through
April of 2007. This employee was released on a $10,000.00 bond, which
no doubt was probably a drop in the bucket considering she has already
been sitting on the $216,000.00 plus her lush salary.

Another critical story which cost taxpayers and children that was reported on this blog is Title IV-D Employee Embezzles Quarter of Million in Child Support Enforcement Money:

That's right folks. A California Department of Child Support Services
employee bilked the State Department of Child Support Services of more
than $250,000.00!!! This is just another example of how the current
Title IV-D program is abused by the various States that are voluntarily
participating in the program. The state police have indicated that
there are more than $300,000.00 worth of goods that the employee has in
her possession that were purchased with at least one government credit
card.

We also have bribery and extortion schemes going on which is lining greedy child support enforcement workers' pockets as well, demonstrating further that the child support program just continues to grow and lacks any real accountability as can be seen in the article Child Support Worker Arrested in Bribery Scheme:

According to Local6.Com another Child Support Worker was arrested, this
time in Florida for bribing individuals that were involved with child
support cases.

In the many States, Child Support Workers are funded directly through Title IV
Part D of the Social Security Act if the State programs voluntarily
comply with federal mandates on how to operate. In the beginning a
program to help needy families, it has now turned into a free for all
welfare spending program where the States focus on revenue generation
instead of helping actual needy families. For every dollar spent by the local agency, two more dollars come into the state as a result of the expenditure. This leads to very poor management of the progam and a significant forced over-participation which is costing taxpayers nationwide.

It's time to reign in free for all welfare spending where over 45% of
the participants in the Title IV-D welfare program are middle to
upper-class families that should be paying for their own disputes not
feuding on tax payer money. Shrink back the program for its intended
beneficiaries and shave off nearly 30,000 government employees
nationwide to help control taxpayer waste, fraud, and government
sponsored criminal activity.

For more information about the Title IV-D Program and It's Lack of Accountability:

Overview of Title IV-D Services: Click Here

How Federal Funding Drives Judicial Discretion... Click Here

Requesting Change: It's a Matter of Administration and Legislation: Click Here

The Weekly Standard Indicts CSE Title IV-D Welfare Program: Click Here

Will Democrats Actually Reduce Our Deficit? Click Here

Following the Title IV-D Money Machine. Click Here.

Taxpayers again should be asking for the resignation of more government employees in an effort to save the State of Montana and Federal Taxpayers millions. Why? Because of the simple fact that around a dozen blogs and media outlet services that I reviewed over the past few days are discussing the fact that Montana DHS employees within the Child Support Enforcement Office are complaining that their brand new computers didn't have the same games on them as other departments. First the government creates entitlement programs that people should not receive in the first place, like the child support enforcement program that has severe overparticipation in it, but then the government employees themselves would rather sit around and play games and bilk the federal, state, and local taxpayers out of millions believing they too are entitled to something for free from the taxpayers. Even if these 3000 employees played one of the games for just one hour per week that is 3000 HOURS times their hourly wage that is lost on the taxpayer dime each week!

For those of you not aware, for every dollar that the State of Montana puts out in guise of "Child Support Enforcement and Paternity Establishment" they receive two more federal dollars. Naturally that means the state of Montana likely has 66% more money than it knows what to do with and likely has 66% too many employees if they think they can sit around and play solitaire and minesweep all day long. Their actions also may violate federal law and should be investigated for misappropriation of Title IV-D monies under both the Grants and Incentive payment programs. (Title IV-D of the Social Security Act)

Just a Sample of the Titles of Articles Talking About Montana's Oversized Government Bureaucracy:

Games on state computers stirs flap
By CHARLES S. JOHNSON of the Missoulian State Bureau

Montana's Government Employees Complain Over Lack of Games

Computer policies — Game over State official's decision on computer games should serve as an example for all The Capital-Journal Editorial Board

Montana Public Health Department Loses Games

Andy Chalk posted on 31 Mar 2008 1:31 pm

No time for solitaire in Montana By
Times Wires Published Monday, March 31, 2008 10:10 PM

_1. http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cse/pubs/2007/preliminary_report/table_7.html

Louisiana has been reported to have a new Senate Bill that would allow for the restoration of parental rights AFTER THEY HAVE BEEN TERMINATED. In an article published in 2theadvocate.com, a joint cooperative effort of The Advocate and WBRZ News 2 in Louisiana an overview of the bill was provided.

"One bill the department is watching would affect what happens to many
children in state custody. Designed by the Louisiana Law Institute,
Senate Bill 76 would allow for the restoration of parental rights after
they have been terminated. A parent’s rights can be terminated either
voluntarily or through a court process."

The brief report goes on to talk about the fact that many kids that age out of foster care go back to their birth family. This isn't suprising, considering that children being pulled away from a parent or parents is probably not only traumatized but resistant to the government sponsored separation.

“One of the basic truths that we know about our kids that age out of
foster care is most of the time they go back to their birth family,”
Office of Community Services Assistant Secretary Marketa Garner
Gautreaux said. “It’s family. It’s who you know; it’s who you’re
connected to.”

There are some conditions to parental rights being restored that still involved tremendous government involvement, but this is a start to reverse some of the damage that government agencies are doing to family in CPS, Child Custody, Child Support and Paternity actions.

"Before rights can be restored, SB76 would require DSS to submit a
confidential report to the court detailing what has changed since the
rights were first terminated, why the rights were initially terminated,
and if both the parent and child are willing to reunite."

For more information about Louisiana SB76 you can view information at StateSurge.Com

State Surge Website: http://www.statesurge.com/bills/61305

Full Text of Bill: http://files.statesurge.com/file/202807

Fiscal Analysis of Bill: http://files.statesurge.com/file/202808

"Proposed law (Ch.C. Art. 1051) authorizes counsel appointed for a child who is in foster care and
over the age of 15 or the department to file a motion to restore the parental rights or parental
contact with a parent whose rights have been terminated."