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"Deadbeats." People who refuse to support their families even after courts order them to pay. Deadbeats are divorced partners, and sadly, 97 per cent are men. Remember - “deadbeat parent” is not synonymous with “deadbeat dad.” There are women out there who choose not to pay the child support they owe.
But this blog is not about any particular sex.
In the public perception, it seems that a “deadbeat” is anyone who’s ever fallen behind on child support payments. However, if you look at the wording of the Deadbeat Parents Punishment Act of 1998, a deadbeat is someone who chooses not to pay child support. It’s a willful act. Many parents fall on hard times and find that they cannot fulfill their child support obligations, due to sudden job loss, income reduction, or disability; but these individuals aren’t necessarily deadbeat parents.
A friend of mine posted on a social media site recently. She was asking for advise. If someone doesn't see their kids in 3 months after the onus was put on that parent you to set up their own visits, after already having been away 3 months prior to that.... can they still call themselves a single parent and wax poetic about how much they love their kids? My reply was if they are not even calling their former partner to say they cannot make it - there is no contact at all - then that makes them deadbeat parents.
No matter how you look at it, the children are the ones most hurt.
As of October 2014, deadbeat parents owe more than $3.7 billion across the country for support orders. Nearly two-thirds of all support orders in Canada are in arrears. Right now, of the two-thirds of the cases that are open, there is actually money flowing to the family.
Provincial maintenance enforcement programs started in the mid-1980s as a way to collect outstanding child and spousal support. The vast majority of cases referred are for child support. Only three jurisdictions reveal their worst offenders, and two publish their photos online. The other provinces won't reveal the highest amount owing. Child support debt, unlike other debt, is never written off no matter how the payer's situation changes, and that could explain why arrears are so high. Something special about the debt owed to a former partner for child support is that it doesn't die. It lasts forever.
Many parents believed it would be simple to collect once they were registered with Manitoba's Maintenance Enforcement Office. There is a lack of knowledge of how court-ordered support payments work. And how the whole support process works, for that matter. All maintenance enforcement offices have ways of forcing deadbeat parents to pay, including garnishments, property seizures, taking away driver and gun licences and passports, and even imposing jail time. Unfortunately, maintenance enforcement programs across Canada are seriously underfunded. Basically, for many they didn't couldn't even provide the minimal level of service that they’re supposed to be.
The system is very rigid and seems to treat all payers as if they are deadbeats. Since 1997, federal guidelines have determined how much parents need to pay for child support, but problems arise when payers try to change orders to amounts they can afford. Maintenance enforcement programs are sometimes targeting people who can't afford to pay.
For a lot of parents, when they had their job and couldn't find a job that pays the same or more since then, the parent is still ordered to pay the same amount even though the parent`s income is significantly less than it was before. There is no way in some cases that the parent could pay the court ordered amount with the new, reduced income. Then again, if the parent has no employer from whom payments can be garnisheed, the parent is obligated to send payments to the courts. This can cause problems, as the parent could forget or intentionally neglects to make payments, and can manipulates income information in hopes that a lower declared income will result in reduced payments.
These deadbeats are depriving their own children of money and a better lifestyle. There are some who believe the ex-spouse does not need the money, even if it was court-ordered. Some even think that the money is going to their ex-spouse. In their mind, they are just getting back at ex-spouse, making it about about punishment and vindication of the ex, rather than an improved lifestyle for the children. I know a lot of parents want the money accounted for. They want proof so they know the money was really spent on their children. Sometimes this is to make sure the money is going to the kids, but it can also be because they are, again, being vindictive.
Sadly, many parents who owe years and years of back child support payments are themselves destitute. They may not have a job or even a place to live. Many of these individuals rely on family members for assistance and need to get their lives back on track before they can even consider making regular child support payments. However, depending on where they live, the state may continue to charge interest on the unpaid payments, making it even more difficult for them to bring their payments up to date.
Shaming is NOT an Effective Way to Make Parents Pay Child Support. Remember, it depends on whether the person is truly a deadbeat. If an individual has fallen on hard times economically or has become disabled and cannot work, then it’s not an issue of choosing not to pay. Shaming can only work with individuals who have the means to pay and are choosing not to. People who have no means to pay child support will not suddenly begin to pay when their face shows up on a web site or on a pizza box.
If you are considering divorce, find out about your rights and obligations. You can't have all rights and no obligations. Visit Separation.ca or FamilyLawHelp.ca. Throughout your separation process, remember to put your children first.
Also remember: politicians work for you, so if the Family Law system is not working for you, speak up loudly. Ask them to tell you what they are doing to improve the divorce process. The Divorce Act is federal. The Children's Law Reform Act and the Family Law Act are provincial and govern non-married parties with children.
But this blog is not about any particular sex.
In the public perception, it seems that a “deadbeat” is anyone who’s ever fallen behind on child support payments. However, if you look at the wording of the Deadbeat Parents Punishment Act of 1998, a deadbeat is someone who chooses not to pay child support. It’s a willful act. Many parents fall on hard times and find that they cannot fulfill their child support obligations, due to sudden job loss, income reduction, or disability; but these individuals aren’t necessarily deadbeat parents.
A friend of mine posted on a social media site recently. She was asking for advise. If someone doesn't see their kids in 3 months after the onus was put on that parent you to set up their own visits, after already having been away 3 months prior to that.... can they still call themselves a single parent and wax poetic about how much they love their kids? My reply was if they are not even calling their former partner to say they cannot make it - there is no contact at all - then that makes them deadbeat parents.
No matter how you look at it, the children are the ones most hurt.
As of October 2014, deadbeat parents owe more than $3.7 billion across the country for support orders. Nearly two-thirds of all support orders in Canada are in arrears. Right now, of the two-thirds of the cases that are open, there is actually money flowing to the family.
Provincial maintenance enforcement programs started in the mid-1980s as a way to collect outstanding child and spousal support. The vast majority of cases referred are for child support. Only three jurisdictions reveal their worst offenders, and two publish their photos online. The other provinces won't reveal the highest amount owing. Child support debt, unlike other debt, is never written off no matter how the payer's situation changes, and that could explain why arrears are so high. Something special about the debt owed to a former partner for child support is that it doesn't die. It lasts forever.
Many parents believed it would be simple to collect once they were registered with Manitoba's Maintenance Enforcement Office. There is a lack of knowledge of how court-ordered support payments work. And how the whole support process works, for that matter. All maintenance enforcement offices have ways of forcing deadbeat parents to pay, including garnishments, property seizures, taking away driver and gun licences and passports, and even imposing jail time. Unfortunately, maintenance enforcement programs across Canada are seriously underfunded. Basically, for many they didn't couldn't even provide the minimal level of service that they’re supposed to be.
The system is very rigid and seems to treat all payers as if they are deadbeats. Since 1997, federal guidelines have determined how much parents need to pay for child support, but problems arise when payers try to change orders to amounts they can afford. Maintenance enforcement programs are sometimes targeting people who can't afford to pay.
For a lot of parents, when they had their job and couldn't find a job that pays the same or more since then, the parent is still ordered to pay the same amount even though the parent`s income is significantly less than it was before. There is no way in some cases that the parent could pay the court ordered amount with the new, reduced income. Then again, if the parent has no employer from whom payments can be garnisheed, the parent is obligated to send payments to the courts. This can cause problems, as the parent could forget or intentionally neglects to make payments, and can manipulates income information in hopes that a lower declared income will result in reduced payments.
These deadbeats are depriving their own children of money and a better lifestyle. There are some who believe the ex-spouse does not need the money, even if it was court-ordered. Some even think that the money is going to their ex-spouse. In their mind, they are just getting back at ex-spouse, making it about about punishment and vindication of the ex, rather than an improved lifestyle for the children. I know a lot of parents want the money accounted for. They want proof so they know the money was really spent on their children. Sometimes this is to make sure the money is going to the kids, but it can also be because they are, again, being vindictive.
Sadly, many parents who owe years and years of back child support payments are themselves destitute. They may not have a job or even a place to live. Many of these individuals rely on family members for assistance and need to get their lives back on track before they can even consider making regular child support payments. However, depending on where they live, the state may continue to charge interest on the unpaid payments, making it even more difficult for them to bring their payments up to date.
Shaming is NOT an Effective Way to Make Parents Pay Child Support. Remember, it depends on whether the person is truly a deadbeat. If an individual has fallen on hard times economically or has become disabled and cannot work, then it’s not an issue of choosing not to pay. Shaming can only work with individuals who have the means to pay and are choosing not to. People who have no means to pay child support will not suddenly begin to pay when their face shows up on a web site or on a pizza box.
If you are considering divorce, find out about your rights and obligations. You can't have all rights and no obligations. Visit Separation.ca or FamilyLawHelp.ca. Throughout your separation process, remember to put your children first.
Also remember: politicians work for you, so if the Family Law system is not working for you, speak up loudly. Ask them to tell you what they are doing to improve the divorce process. The Divorce Act is federal. The Children's Law Reform Act and the Family Law Act are provincial and govern non-married parties with children.
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Agaoin, when people think of deadbeat parents - and let's face it, most of them (but not all) are men - they imagine the deadbeat living the high life while their former partners and their children haunt food banks and live off welfare.
They are viewed as heartless men and women who have simply walked away from their family responsibilities. We all know these people who have had children but don't want to honour their obligations to them.
Now, try to wrap your mind around this. In general, statistics indicate that between 85-91% of Canadian children covered either by private or court-ordered child-support agreements actually do receive payments, the vast majority receiving regular support payments. Statistics also reveal the close association between the regularity of payment and the frequency of contact between fathers and their children.
I know we have all heard the stories to the contrary, but studies also show that many non-custodial fathers who do not pay child support simply can't afford to. Some are unemployed or on sick leave. In fact, one of the best predictors of nonpayment is the unemployment rate. Higher incomes are associated with higher compliance rates, and lower incomes with lower rates. One study suggests that a father's ability to pay, in addition to his willingness to pay, determines the extent to which he fulfills his child-support obligations. Remember, many parents who are unable to pay child support due to hard times or physical disability care deeply about their children and continue to be a part of their lives. Love is not only expressed through financial support.
Burdened by unrealistic court-imposed support payments, continuing legal fees, increased taxes, and estrangement from their children, some men find themselves caught in a downward spiral of depression and have resorted to the ultimate escape: suicide. With a divorce, funds that were unable to support one household are now expected to support two. Add to this the cost of expensive litigation, the fact that one party may be trying to use money as a means of obtaining concessions such as access or custody, and we have a recipe for disaster -- with children often caught in the maelstrom
87% of children end up living solely with their mothers after a parental separation (only 7% live with their fathers). Only 30% of children report visiting their fathers every week. One quarter of children visit their fathers irregularly -- once a month or on holidays. A whopping 15% never see their fathers.
Finding solutions that are in the best interests of the children was the aim of the 1998 Senate-Commons Joint Committee on Child Custody and Access. Understanding that children of divorce are entitled to a close and continuing relationship with both parents, the committee recommended that the terms "custody" and "access" be stricken from the Divorce Act and a new term, "shared parenting," be incorporated. Both parents would have access to information and records regarding the child's development and social activities, such as school and medical records and other relevant information. The federal government has apparently shelved the committee's recommendations, however, in the interests of further study.
Yes, there are some deadbeats who don't care about their kids. But it's unfair to label every father who falls behind in his support payments a "deadbeat." Falling behind on child support payments does not make a parent a “deadbeat.” A true deadbeat, remember, is someone who willfully chooses not to pay child support. These are individuals who are (or could be) gainfully employed and are able to come up with money to pay for what’s important to them, but say they have no money to support their children. Sadly, many parents who’ve fallen on hard times get lumped in with these self-centered individuals and are labeled “deadbeats.”
While each state handles the non-payment of child support differently, the Deadbeat Parents Punishment Act (DPPA) can be used to prosecute parents who owe outstanding child support to a child living in another state. Under the DPPA, a parent who falls behind once or twice would not likely face charges. In order to face federal prosecution under the DPPA, parents must have willfully failed to pay child support for at least twelve months, or owe more than $5,000 in unpaid support.
They are viewed as heartless men and women who have simply walked away from their family responsibilities. We all know these people who have had children but don't want to honour their obligations to them.
Now, try to wrap your mind around this. In general, statistics indicate that between 85-91% of Canadian children covered either by private or court-ordered child-support agreements actually do receive payments, the vast majority receiving regular support payments. Statistics also reveal the close association between the regularity of payment and the frequency of contact between fathers and their children.
I know we have all heard the stories to the contrary, but studies also show that many non-custodial fathers who do not pay child support simply can't afford to. Some are unemployed or on sick leave. In fact, one of the best predictors of nonpayment is the unemployment rate. Higher incomes are associated with higher compliance rates, and lower incomes with lower rates. One study suggests that a father's ability to pay, in addition to his willingness to pay, determines the extent to which he fulfills his child-support obligations. Remember, many parents who are unable to pay child support due to hard times or physical disability care deeply about their children and continue to be a part of their lives. Love is not only expressed through financial support.
Burdened by unrealistic court-imposed support payments, continuing legal fees, increased taxes, and estrangement from their children, some men find themselves caught in a downward spiral of depression and have resorted to the ultimate escape: suicide. With a divorce, funds that were unable to support one household are now expected to support two. Add to this the cost of expensive litigation, the fact that one party may be trying to use money as a means of obtaining concessions such as access or custody, and we have a recipe for disaster -- with children often caught in the maelstrom
87% of children end up living solely with their mothers after a parental separation (only 7% live with their fathers). Only 30% of children report visiting their fathers every week. One quarter of children visit their fathers irregularly -- once a month or on holidays. A whopping 15% never see their fathers.
Finding solutions that are in the best interests of the children was the aim of the 1998 Senate-Commons Joint Committee on Child Custody and Access. Understanding that children of divorce are entitled to a close and continuing relationship with both parents, the committee recommended that the terms "custody" and "access" be stricken from the Divorce Act and a new term, "shared parenting," be incorporated. Both parents would have access to information and records regarding the child's development and social activities, such as school and medical records and other relevant information. The federal government has apparently shelved the committee's recommendations, however, in the interests of further study.
Yes, there are some deadbeats who don't care about their kids. But it's unfair to label every father who falls behind in his support payments a "deadbeat." Falling behind on child support payments does not make a parent a “deadbeat.” A true deadbeat, remember, is someone who willfully chooses not to pay child support. These are individuals who are (or could be) gainfully employed and are able to come up with money to pay for what’s important to them, but say they have no money to support their children. Sadly, many parents who’ve fallen on hard times get lumped in with these self-centered individuals and are labeled “deadbeats.”
While each state handles the non-payment of child support differently, the Deadbeat Parents Punishment Act (DPPA) can be used to prosecute parents who owe outstanding child support to a child living in another state. Under the DPPA, a parent who falls behind once or twice would not likely face charges. In order to face federal prosecution under the DPPA, parents must have willfully failed to pay child support for at least twelve months, or owe more than $5,000 in unpaid support.
Lisa Says:
I don't know the stats (and I’m sure Norm can find them), but a lot of "deadbeat dads" were never married to their baby momma's. I think there is a big difference between "deadbeat dads: of the 80's and 90's and I would be very curious to see current stats on deadbeat dads. First off when I had my first child in 1985 I was just 17 (ya ya I know I am aging myself) and there was no such thing as teen moms. I did not know anyone else that was single or 17 and had a kid. In fact, most of the single moms I knew then were divorcees. A lot has changed since then. Teen pregnancy is the norm these days. In fact it is not uncommon to be a teen with more than 1 kid with more than one baby dad. That is if the teen even knows for sure who the dad it.
There is a fine line between dead beat dads and deadbeat dads. We need to distinguish between parents who are deadbeat dads because they do not support their children and dead beat dads who cannot financially support their children and still not see their children. Then again, there are moms who would not even ask for a cent, just that the dead beat dad see their child. In addition, with so many young women having babies a lot of people are on assistance. This goes for the dads again. I know Norm mentioned finances. However, I think the line Norm never draw that I am drawing is one with parents who see their kids and parents who do not. Current child support can always be adjusted depending on the financial earnings and basic needs.
I know we can be influenced by our beliefs which in part are influenced by how we were raised. However, my perspective has always been a dead beat dad is someone who does not see their child. Emotional support is so much more important than financial support.
In fact I believe the term "single parent" is over rated. Sure technically you can be well of and be a single parent but the struggles you face are nothing in comparison to a single parent who lives paycheck to paycheck. They just do not have the same resources. They are not left to decide if they need to spend their last 20 or diapers or if they can make the diapers stretch so they can buy formula.
I do agree however, with Norms comments regarding a person not wanting to give money to the other parent because of the fears that the parent will not spend it on the child. And in fact, I know a few single parents who spend way too much money (even welfare and Fam allowance) on drugs and clothes and going out every month. However, is it really up to one person to judge what someone else spends their money on? I see both arguments Add to that the fact that a single mom may be on welfare and getting her income supplemented by dad. There is a lot of controversy about whether people on welfare should be screened for drugs. However, there is an avenue to deal with this . . . . It is called CFS. I have to believe at the end of the day that the child's needs are being met. If mom is a good mom then her money is already meeting the needs of her child before her own anyways.
In summery I feel that it is worse to be a dead beat dad who will not even acknowledge their child then it is to be a deadbeat dad who is not financially supportive of his child. Again thought, my thoughts are influenced when the dad has money and just won’t support his child or lies about working to not support his child.