This Office of Child Support Enforcement Information Memorandum notes that state and tribal child support agencies are eligible for a funding and regulatory waiver, in order to create employment services for noncustodial parents struggling to make child support payments if these parents are unemployed or underemployed. This waiver is allowed under Section 1115 of the Social Security Act which provides limited demonstration authority to use federal funds for employment services.

The Information Memorandum also notes that state and tribal child support agencies that seek waivers must also utilize new funds - rather than existing resources - to cover their share of the cost of the pilot activities. With this Information Memorandum in place, the Office of Child Support Enforcement will provide technical assistance on how to apply for waivers and will be creating a toolkit of resources for assessment, design, and development of employment service programs for noncustodial parents.

To support Child Support Awareness Month, the Office of Family Assistance, in collaboration with the Office of Child Support Enforcement, will host a webinar on Wednesday, August 21, 2019 from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. ET on state pass-through and disregard policies. By attending the webinar, participants will deepen their knowledge of pass-through and disregard policies and identify factors to consider when adopting a programmatic change like a pass-through option. Speakers will include representatives from the Colorado Department of Human Services who will share their experiences implementing a full pass-through and the effects of the policy change.