By: Andrew Moore, Intergovernmental Policy Analyst, Michigan Office of
Child Support
 |
| Andrew Moore |
The federal Office of Child Support
Enforcement (OCSE) accepted public comments regarding possible forms revisions and
subsequently convened a federal-state work group in 2014 to analyze options for
revising the forms. The work group primarily
sought to ensure that revisions to the intergovernmental forms comport with
UIFSA 2008 as required by P.L. 113-183. The work group also identified
several important opportunities for improvement – gleaned from public comments.
These improvements included: protecting personally identifiable information; addressing
modern family structures, such as a couple in a same-sex marriage, by changing
terminology where practical (e.g., establishing parentage instead of paternity);
and reflecting advancements in communication methods and technology.
On January
12, 2017, OCSE announced the updates to the intergovernmental forms.[2] OCSE updated the
existing forms and created four new forms to reflect the changes, giving states
a year to implement the new forms.
There are
some overall differences that caseworkers should take note of, but workflow
should not be substantially impacted.
New Forms
Two of the four
new forms are the new coversheets that now house all the personal information
that used to be on the forms themselves (discussed below). The new forms are:
- Child Support Enforcement Transmittal #1 – Initial Request Acknowledgment[3]
- Child Support Agency Confidential Information Form
- Personal Information Form for UIFSA § 311
- Child Support Agency Request for Change of Support Payment Location Pursuant to UIFSA § 319.[4]
Filing Restrictions
It is
important to note that some of the new intergovernmental forms have
restrictions on how they can be used by the IV-D agency and the court.
The “Child Support Agency Confidential
Information Form” has the disclaimer: “FOR IV-D AGENCY USE ONLY – DO NOT
FILE WITH A TRIBUNAL OR PROVIDE TO THE OTHER PARTY.”
The following
forms have the disclaimer: “THIS FORM CONTAINS SENSITIVE INFORMATION – DO NOT
FILE THIS FORM IN A PUBLIC ACCESS FILE”:
- Child Support Locate Request;
- Declaration in Support of Establishing Parentage;
- General Testimony;
- Letter of Transmittal Requesting Registration;
- Personal Information Form for UIFSA § 311.
The
Michigan Trial Court Case File Management Standards, maintained by the State Court Administrative Office (SCAO),
directs that all intergovernmental forms besides court orders are to be placed
in the FOC file.[5] The FOC file is a nonpublic file that is only viewable by
FOC staff and, in the case of certain documents, parties to a case.
Confidential documents that are not sharable with the parties are placed in a
“confidential” portion of the FOC file that should be removed when a request to
view the file is made by a party. Placing the documents in the FOC file and
directing certain forms into the confidential portion of the file meets the
federal directives indicated on the forms.
Personal Information Coversheets
The creation of the two
personal information coversheets is the biggest change. Almost all personal identifying
information (PII) such as names, residential addresses, and Social Security numbers
have been removed from the existing forms and will now be housed on the
coversheets. While nearly identical, each coversheet serves a distinct function.
The “Child Support Agency Confidential
Information Form” contains fields for all of the PII that may be required
to open and take action on a case. Caseworkers will use this form exclusively
in IV-D cases, and must keep this form in the “confidential” portion of the FOC
file. Caseworkers should note that because this form is intended for internal
IV-D agency use only, PII on this form is not automatically suppressed by the MiCSES
case management system when a case is flagged with family violence.
IV-D workers
are required to send the “Child
Support Agency Confidential Information Form” with the:
- Transmittal #1 – Initial Request;
- Transmittal #2 – Subsequent Actions when it includes PII;
- Transmittal #3 – Request for Assistance/Discovery when it includes PII;
- Letter of Transmittal Requesting Registration.
In contrast,
the “Personal Information Form for
UIFSA § 311” contains the specific PII that UIFSA § 311 requires to be
filed with pleadings and can be provided to the parties on the case. This form
must be attached when filing the:
- General Testimony
- Declaration in Support of Establishing Parentage
- Uniform Support Petition
The form can
remain attached to the pleadings upon filing with the court, and the
information can be shared with parties to the case and filed in the FOC file,
but should not be made publically available in the court file. MiCSES will
suppress this information if the case is flagged for family violence.
Parentage and Gender
OCSE designed
the new and revised intergovernmental forms to be more gender-neutral and to
reflect changes related to UIFSA 2008. Gender-neutral language on the
intergovernmental forms makes case processing more straightforward for cases involving
same-sex couples and families using assisted reproductive technology. For
example, OCSE has replaced the term “paternity” with “parentage” throughout the
forms. The forms also reflect a person’s role in the case rather than using
terms such as “mother” or “father.”
Additionally,
where the forms ask for the gender of a party, OCSE has changed the form to
have an “other” checkbox for individuals who do not identify as male or female.
The available gender selections for children remain “male” or “female.”
Encryption Requirements
Every form
includes encryption requirements. This provides notice that anyone who
transmits a form electronically must use encryption methods that meet federal
standards. IV-D workers can send a document directly to a caseworker via e-mail
or other electronic means only if it is in compliance with the encryption requirements
stated in the Michigan IV-D Child Support Manual.
Transition to the New Forms
OCSE required
states to start using the new forms by January 15, 2018. Michigan updated the
forms and made them available in the Michigan Child Support Enforcement System
(MiCSES) on December 8, 2017.
Many states
were not able to meet the OCSE deadline and are still sending intergovernmental
referrals on the expired forms. OCSE has indicated that states should continue
to accept the old forms to allow states the time to implement the new forms.
Because of this, there will be a period where caseworkers get intergovernmental
cases on both the old and new forms.
Impact
The biggest impact
these new forms will have is to better protect the PII of families while
providing courts the necessary information to process intergovernmental cases.
For more
detail, Michigan caseworkers can review IV-D Memorandum
2017-026, “New Intergovernmental Policy Sections and Revisions to
Intergovernmental Forms.” Caseworkers can also review the OCSE
intergovernmental forms training series and the OCSE
intergovernmental forms matrix.
To troubleshoot
UIFSA 2008 forms questions, Michigan intergovernmental caseworkers may e-mail
Andrew Moore, OCS Policy Analyst, at MooreA24@michigan.gov,
Elizabeth Stomski, SCAO Management Analyst, at StomskiE@courts.mi.gov, or post the
question on the intergovernmental Google Group. Caseworkers who are not already
a member and would like access should e-mail either of the group’s
administrators, Elizabeth Stomski or Wendy Amell from the Livingston County FOC
(WAmell@livgov.com), for an invitation
to join.
[1] OCSE Dear
Colleague Letter (DCL-15-12), August 4, 2015, Notice of Open Comment Period –
Standard Intergovernmental Forms (https://www.acf.hhs.gov/css/resource/notice-of-open-comment-period-standard-intergovernmental-forms-2015).
[2] OCSE
Action Transmittal (AT-17-01), January 12, 2017, OMB-approved Standard
Intergovernmental CSE Forms – December 2016 (https://www.acf.hhs.gov/css/resource/omb-approved-standard-intergovernmental-cse-forms-december-2016).
[3]
Technically this is a new form because this information was previously included
on the Transmittal #1 – Initial Request.
However, most states, including Michigan, had separated this portion of the
form to act as its own form.
[4] The
Michigan IV-D program has decided not to implement the payment redirection
processes outlined in UIFSA §319(b), so this form is not available to Michigan
IV-D workers. If a worker receives this form from another state, the worker
must consult Section 7.10 “Responding States,” of the Michigan IV-D Child Support Manual for Instructions how to
proceed.
[5] “Documents,
other than orders, that are received under the Uniform Interstate Family
Support Act shall not be placed in
the court file but shall be forwarded to the friend of the court office.” Michigan Trial Court Case File Management
Standards, 1.1.1 Component 9 (pg. 13). (http://courts.mi.gov/administration/scao/resources/documents/standards/cf_stds.pdf)
