In a recent letter, Pamela B. Reynolds states that employees of the Utah Office of Recovery Services receive monetary bonuses based on specific collection outcomes. In the past, ORS employees did receive an agencywide bonus based on the amount of overall collections the agency received, but currently, employees are awarded bonuses based on their annual performance review and other agency goals, not on the amount of revenue they collect.
Federal law and state policy is clear that child-support workers must treat all cases (Aid to Families with Dependent Children or non-AFDC) equally. Therefore, if an employee were to handle a non-AFDC case in a "slipshod manner" as Ms. Reynolds suggests, that employee could in fact be ineligible to receive his/her annual performance bonus.The purpose of the Office of Recovery Services is to collect money, but also to promote parental responsibility and reduce dependency on public assistance programs. It is true that there are many cases where the obligor (the one who owes child support) earns money "under the table" to circumvent the system. The Office of Recovery Services is working hard to track these cases and will present legislation in the next session of the Utah State Legislature that will suspend the drivers or occupational licenses of those who refuse to pay court-ordered child support.
Joyce Allred
ORS public relations coordinator
Salt Lake City