Financials Background, Agency Responsibilities and Workflow
In this Topic
Background
The Financials section provides a foundation for understanding the maintenance of financial support obligations; the interface with the NJFSPC for billing and collection; and the distribution and disbursement processes. It provides detailed information regarding the policies and procedures dealing with the financial portion of a child support case.
At the core of financials is the state’s responsibility to track payments from collection to disbursement. Federal rules and regulations govern how money is distributed to multiple cases and to various obligations within a case. To meet the requirements, extensive record keeping is needed, as distribution of child support payments is a complex function of the financial process.
Financial records of child support activity are needed to meet federal standards, but they also serve to explain case activity. In addition, financial processing must meet accounting standards and provide an audit trail to ensure accountability for all who participate in the process.
Agency Responsibilities
Division of Family Development
The DFD is responsible for the coordination and oversight of Title IV-D activities. The DFD administers New Jersey’s welfare program, Work First New Jersey, through the CSSAs. In accordance with the Cooperative Agreement, the DFD and the Judiciary ensure that the functions of the Title IV-D CS Program are performed as federally required. Components of the Judiciary that are involved in the Title IV-D CS Program include the AOC, the Family Division, the Finance Division, and the Probation Division.
County Welfare Agencies
The CWAs are responsible for the following major tasks related to financials:
- Conducting TANF audit
- Accounting and reconciling of payments received and disbursed through the CWA
Family Division (Superior Court)
The Family Division (Superior Court) is responsible for the following major tasks related to financials:
- Entering initial support obligations
- Calculating arrears for initial support obligations
Vicinage Finance Divisions
The Vicinage Finance Divisions are responsible for the following major tasks related to financials:
- Manually adjusting arrears
- Conducting audits on disputed financial reviews
- Processing payment holds
- Making changes and adjustments to financial obligations
- Collecting over-the-counter cash payments and depositing into the Judiciary bank account
- Processing changes to the obligation
- Conducting complex financial reviews (audits)
Probation Child Support Enforcement
The PCSE Unit in each county is responsible for the following major tasks related to financials:
- Requesting account adjustments
- Requesting holds
- Requesting release of holds
- Enforcing the collection of obligations
- Processing all routine financial reviews
Workflow
After a financial obligation is established through the court and entered, the account is charged based on the terms of the support order. Support payments are sent to the NJFSPC, which is operated by a contracted vendor. When a support payment is collected from a NCP, it is posted to the NCP’s case(s) and disbursed according to the Code of Federal Regulations, 45 CFR 302.32. Click on the workflow boxes to go to the detailed procedures.
