Three Weeks Left to Get 'On the Road Again' with Child Support Payments

BATON ROUGE - Only three weeks remain for the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) "On the Road Again" child support project, which allows parents whose driver's licenses were suspended for nonpayment of child support to get the suspension removed for a reduced amount. The deadline is September 30.

DCFS collected $121,693.95 in overdue child support in the first month of the project, which began August 1, allowing 174 children to receive much-needed financial support while giving 140 child support payors the opportunity to get their licenses reinstated.

Typically, a payor who has fallen behind in their child support payments, and had their license suspended as a result, must come into subsequent or partial compliance with their court-ordered support payments before the license may be reinstated. Subsequent compliance requires the payor to be up-to-date with current child support payments; have paid all past-due support or be making periodic payments in accordance with either a court order or a written agreement with the DCFS analyst; and have provided health insurance, if required to do so.

With the "On the Road Again" project, DCFS Child Support Enforcement (CSE) has offered to reduce those requirements for eligible payors, who can begin the license reinstatement process by paying, on each case:

• Two months of their court-ordered child support,
• $100 toward arrears or past-due support, and
• Administrative fee, if court ordered.

This payment does not include any reinstatement fees or fines that may be required by the Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles (OMV).

Interested payors can request an appointment or speak to their caseworker by:

• Going online to www.dcfs.la.gov/cafe and sending their caseworker a direct message (If you do not have an online CAFÉ account, you may create one); OR
• Contacting CSE by email at OntheRoad.DCFS@la.gov; OR
• Contacting the DCFS Customer Service Center at LAHelpU.DCFS@la.gov or 1-888-524-3578, from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday; OR
• Visiting the nearest CSE office from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. A list of CSE offices throughout the state can be found at www.dcfs.la.gov/offices.

Payors are encouraged to make an appointment with their caseworker to determine the exact amount needed for a cashier's check or money order to qualify. After making the full payment required, the payor will be given the necessary paperwork to take to their nearest OMV office to have their license reinstated.

For more information about the "On the Road Again" project, visit www.dcfs.la.gov/ontheroadagain.

For more information about DCFS Child Support services, visit www.dcfs.la.gov/CSE.

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