Many Arizona fathers who do not reside with their children as a result of a divorce have been ordered by the court to pay child support. According to a study, fathers who are delinquent in making child support payments are likely to be employed fewer weeks out the year and have children with more than one partner. Parents in the United States paid $32.4 billion in child support through the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement in fiscal year 2015. The money went to the care and upbringing of their children.
Two researchers teamed up for a study that examined the link between father involvement and delinquent child support. The data that was examined came from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study. The longitudinal survey included input from 4,897 urban families with children who were born between 1998 and 2000. The researchers focused on the data relating to paternal participation and child support when the children were 9 years old, using a sample of slightly more than 1,000 fathers.
A number of observations were drawn from the results. Over 30 percent of fathers were delinquent with their child support payments and owed an average of $7,705. Delinquent fathers tended to have lower educational achievements and had a higher likelihood of having been imprisoned and having children with multiple partners. The fathers were not as involved with their children as fathers who were current with their child support payments and were less likely to provide in-kind assistance, such as toys, medicine or clothing.
Parents who are owed back child support may have legal recourse. A family law attorney may petition the court to enforce the order through such measures as wage garnishments and tax refund interceptions.