Audit: State doing good job on child support

LANSING (AP) — A Michigan government audit of $2.6 billion in child support payments says that the office in charge of collecting the money is doing an effective job in making sure that parents pay what they owe and care-givers get what’s coming to them. The Michigan Office of the Auditor General recently released a report on the handling of payments from June 1, 2012, to March 31, 2014.

The audit concludes that the Office of Child Support “is effective in ensuring that child support collection and distribution is accurate and timely,” according to a statement from the state Department of Human Services. The office oversees payments for about 1 million children.

“The audit confirms that we effectively collect and distribute child support dollars,” department Director Maura Corrigan said. “That means children have the support they need and deserve.”

The system’s effectiveness “helps many families achieve financial independence rather than relying on public assistance, which saves taxpayers money,” Corrigan said.

The audit found that a private contractor distributing the money did so with 99.9 percent accuracy during the 21-month period. It also found that 98.5 percent of child support payments went out within the two-day period that the federal government mandates.

The report, like an audit released in October 2012, found no deficiencies in the system.