Good Cause for Refusing to Cooperate 447-10-60-05

(Revised 5/15/07 ML #3087)

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In Section 208 of Public Law 94-88 in August 1975, Congress recognized that the AFDC custodian may have “good cause” not to cooperate with the child support collection effort.  Accordingly, all custodians must be given the opportunity to claim a “good cause” exemption. This is accomplished by providing each with a SFN 443, Notice of Right to Claim ’Good Cause’, at time of application. The notice briefly summarizes the legislative intent of the Child Support Enforcement Program, defines the custodian’s responsibility to cooperate in the support enforcement effort, and provides a detailed explanation of the procedure for filing an exemption if the individual is interested in pursuing this course of action.  he custodian shall be given sufficient time to read the notice(s) and raise questions before signing.  Any custodian wishing to claim a “good cause” exemption shall so indicate in writing by completing SFN 446, Request to Claim ‘Good Cause’.  

 

EVIDENCE NEEDED TO ESTABLISH GOOD CAUSE - There must be evidence to substantiate a claim of “good cause.” Congress clearly intended that exemptions on the basis of physical or emotional harm, either to the child or to the custodian, which in turn could be expected to reduce his or her capacity to care for the child, would be allowed only for circumstances of a genuine and serious nature. Mere belief that cooperation might result in harm is not a sufficient basis for finding “good cause.” Evidence upon which the county social service board bases its finding on the “good cause” issue must be supported by written statements and contained in the case record.

 

     

 

Note:

Do not invoke good cause based on your assessment of the family financial situation.  Continue to refer cases even if there seems to be a financial burden on the family.  It is the responsibility of Child Support Enforcement to always take into account the financial situation when they work the case.

 

It is the custodian’s responsibility to provide the county social service board with the evidence needed to establish "good cause." The custodian is normally given 20 days from the date of claim to collect the evidence although in exceptional cases the county social service board may grant reasonable additional time to allow for difficulty in obtaining proof. Records of law enforcement, social service, or adoption agencies may be readily available to document instances of rape, physical harm, or pending adoption, perhaps without requiring further investigation by the county social service board. Documentation of anticipated emotional harm to the child or custodian, however, may be somewhat more elusive. Whenever the claim is based in whole or in part on anticipated emotional harm, the county social service board shall consider the following:

  1. The present emotional state of the individual subject to emotional harm;
  2. The emotional health history of the individual subject to emotional harm;
  3. Intensity and probable duration of the emotional impairment;
  4. The degree of cooperation to be required; and
  5. The extent of involvement of the child in the paternity establishment or support enforcement activity to be undertaken.

COUNTY SOCIAL SERVICE BOARD ROLE IN OBTAINING EVIDENCE - Upon request, the county social service board is required to assist the custodian in obtaining evidence necessary to support a "good cause" claim. This, however, is not intended to place an unreasonable burden on staff by allowing the claimant to require a "fishing expedition" in order to delay or frustrate a final determination. The county social service board's obligation to assist in this process, if requested, does not shift the custodian's basic responsibility to produce evidence to support the claim. Eligibility staff will promptly notify the custodian if additional evidence is necessary and indicate the specific type of document needed and how to go about obtaining it. Additionally, the staff is expected to actively assist in obtaining evidence when the individual is not reasonably able to obtain it. Even then the custodian may be able to provide specifics as to the type of document or record he/she believes will support the claim, and its source.

 

The county social service board is obligated to assume direct responsibility for investigating a "good cause" claim when it believes that the custodian's claim is authentic even though confirming evidence may not be available. This need may occur when the claim is based on a fear of serious physical harm and the claim is believed by agency staff. Such investigation will be conducted without requiring corroborative evidence by the custodian and may involve a careful review of the case record, evaluation of the credibility of the custodian's statements, and/or a confidential interview with an observer who has good reasons for not giving a written statement. Based on such an investigation and on professional judgment, the county social service board may find that "good cause" exists without the availability of absolute corroborative evidence.

 

During an investigation of a "good cause" claim, care must be taken to ensure that the location of the child is not revealed. In some circumstances, contact with the absent parent or alleged father may be deemed necessary to establish the claim. Before doing so, however, the custodian must be notified of this in order to be afforded the opportunity to (1) present additional information that makes contact with the absent parent unnecessary, or (2) have the "good cause" claim denied.

 

"GOOD CAUSE" CLAIMS TO BE PROCESSED PROMPTLY - Except for extenuating circumstances, the "good cause" issue must be determined with the same degree of promptness as for the determination of other factors of AFDC eligibility (45 days). The county social service board may not deny, delay, or discontinue assistance pending the resolution of the "good cause" claim. In the process of making a final determination, eligibility staff is required to give Child Support Enforcement staff the opportunity to review and comment on the findings and basis for the proposed decision. It is emphasized, however, that responsibility for the final determination rests with eligibility staff after consultation with supervisory and Child Support Enforcement staff, and sometimes with social service personnel.

 

CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT STAFF TO BE KEPT INFORMED OF "GOOD CAUSE" STATUS - It is essential that eligibility staff keep Child Support Enforcement staff informed on the status of all "good cause" claims. This includes:

  1. Promptly notifying Child Support Enforcement of all custodians who claim "good cause" exemptions and requesting suspension of child support activity pending a determination;
  2. Promptly reporting to Child Support Enforcement all cases in which it has been determined that there is "good cause" for refusal to cooperate. If good cause is claimed, it temporarily suspends the effort of the child support unit to recover any costs expended for the child’s care, for the period when good cause is in effect.  It does not forgive those obligations. If good cause no longer exists, or the child returns home, the child support unit has an obligation to make recovery efforts for those funds expended while good cause was in effect; and
  3. Promptly notifying Child Support Enforcement of all cases in which it has been determined that "good cause" for refusing to cooperate does not exist and that child support enforcement activity can begin or resume.

CLAIMANTS OF "GOOD CAUSE" TO BE INFORMED OF DECISION - The custodian must be advised, in writing, of the county social service board's final decision that "good cause" does or does not exist and the basis for the findings. A copy of this communication shall be placed in the file. If "good cause" was determined not to exist, the communication must remind the custodian of the obligation to cooperate with the child support effort. It must also advise him/her of the right to appeal this decision. In the event the custodian does appeal, the Child Support Enforcement Agency shall be advised to delay its activity until the results of the appeal are known.

 

PERIODIC REVIEW OF "GOOD CAUSE" CLAIMS - The county social service board is required to review, not less frequently than EVERY 6 months, cases in which "good cause" was previously found to exist. Rather than routinely conducting full scale re-reviews on every case, however, a complete follow-up needs to be done on only those in which the original finding of "good cause" was based on a circumstance that is subject to change. If it is found that circumstances have changed so that "good cause" no longer exists, the recipient shall be so advised in writing. If "good cause" is found to continue to exist, the claimant must again be informed in writing.

 

Once the child support enforcement unit collects all the funds that were expended while good cause was in effect, any remaining child support that is collected is paid out on behalf of the child. For a family where both parents reside together, the remaining unassigned child support can be forgiven by court order.

 

It is important to locate any existing health insurance coverage for the child and determine whether the policy covers foster care expenses incurred by the child. Applying insurance proceeds to the foster care costs benefits, the child and the family by reducing or eliminating the family’s obligation to reimburse taxpayers for assistance and, at the same time, saves money for county, state, and federal governments.