At the Tuesday Senate Judiciary Committee meeting we had a great opportunity to get our story heard.  I presented a 15 minute PowerPoint presentation to the committee, and when it was over I think they were somewhat surprised.  I used numbers and analysis rather than stories and personal experience.  The numbers did tell the story.  The story of the gulf between gross income and ability to pay.  The distance between the models that determine child support amounts, and the financial reality faced by noncustodial parents.  It may have fallen on a few deaf ears, but I think it was worthwhile.  Some of what we do is education, and I think we need to do it with hard facts.  Yes, it is also important to tell the personal stories, but they have heard many.  So I have approached the situation with data and reasoning, hoping to give them something new to think about.

I will continue, and I will keep telling this story that the numbers tell, in hopes that someone will realize that this is the reality that the noncustodial parent deals with.  I will be putting some links on the website that I hope will be useful.

We need to talk to our Senators and Reps about at least these two bills, Senate Bill 23 (child support increase) and House Bill 15 (suspend driver's license)!  I talked to the ORS today and asked them what I could do if I lost my job.  Could I call them the day I lost my job and let them know, so they could start a modification.  They said that I could not get them to put through a mod unless I had a job.  I asked if they could do a mod based on unemployment insurance, they said no, that is temporary, but they would take 50% of the payment and apply it to the support owed.  They said I would probably go into arrears if I were unemployed for any length of time, and I would just have to catch it up later.  I asked how support could be based on income I was no longer making, they said to get it modified I would have to get a lawyer, the ORS wouldn't touch it unless I had a job.  I asked if I did get a job, and had ORS do the mod would the change be retroactive to when I contacted them, they said I would have to pay support based on my old income, until the mod was complete, they don't do retroactive.  To do retroactive I would have to get a lawyer.

House bill says they can take away the driver's license after someone is just 60 days behind, yet the bill is for the worst offenders.  Sorry but you can be 60 days behind very easily.  The above case, where someone loses a job, and it takes awhile to get a job at close to the same income level, say 3 - 6 months, they would be in major arrears.  So lets take the license so he can't drive to job interviews.  I also could see how the 60 day threshold might be reached with just $1 of arrearages.  If you were behind $1, in January, then paid your full child support in Feb, they do not apply any of your payment to the January $1, so when you pay in March, you still owe the $1 from Jan, you are now 60 days in arrears.  Basing the arrears on a date doesn't work with this system, it should be based on amount past due.  And if this is for habitual offenders, since when was 60 days habitual?

Senate bill 23 is on the 2nd senate reading calendar.  Contact your Senators and talk to them about this bill.  Do the same for House Bill 15, contact your rep.  It is up for 3rd reading in the house.