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WHAT IF ALL THE MONEY CAME HOME?
Author(s) -
Turetsky Vicki
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
family court review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.171
H-Index - 4
eISSN - 1744-1617
pISSN - 1531-2445
DOI - 10.1111/j.1744-1617.2005.00042.x
Subject(s) - child support , welfare , payment , poverty , government (linguistics) , income support , work (physics) , public support , welfare reform , low income , business , public assistance , economics , economic growth , demographic economics , public economics , political science , finance , law , market economy , engineering , mechanical engineering , linguistics , philosophy , macroeconomics
Since its inception, the public child support program has functioned primarily as a welfare cost recovery mechanism: $2.1 billion of child support collected annually for current and former welfare families is kept by the government to repay welfare costs. However, Wisconsin research findings suggest that low‐income fathers pay more support and are less likely to work in the underground economy when support payments are passed through to their children. Regular support reduces poverty and welfare use, and increases child well‐being. A consensus has emerged to reform distribution rules so that more child support is paid to the families, not to the government.