Global Courant
The California Reparations Task Force is asking the Democratic-controlled state legislature to eliminate interest on back child support, as well as any back child support debts for black residents of the state.
In his final report released last week, the group claimed that “discriminatory” laws have “torn African-American families apart,” and that one of its consequences is the “damage” caused by “the disproportionate number of African-Americans being burdened with debts for child support”.
The nearly 1,100-page document said that black Californians represent a greater percentage of those in child support debt than their share of the state’s population.
It also alleged that the 10% interest the state charges on child support arrears “impedes” their ability to finance further education, receive vocational training, find employment and maintain housing because of the legal ramifications of failing to pay such debts.
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California’s Reparations Task Force released a report last week claiming black families have been torn apart by “discriminatory laws,” including one that allows interest on back child support debts. (Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
The report cited a 2003 California Department of Child Support Services study that estimated that 27% of child support owed in the state was unpaid interest, that those who owed child support had lower incomes than “the typical California worker” and that for such an interest a larger sum was required. part of their income to actually pay the debt.
“The Task Force recommends that the legislature enact legislation to terminate all accrued interest on child support arrears, requiring only payment of principal due. child support debt for low-income parents,” the report said.
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A 2003 study by the California Department of Child Support Services found that 27% of child support debt in the state is actually unpaid interest. (Justin Sullivan/Justin Sullivan)
The Task Force further recommends that the Legislature amend Section 17560 of the Family Code, the ‘offers in compromise’ provision, to allow compromise offers and forgiveness of child support debt based solely on a parent’s financial (sic) circumstances and ability to pay to make.” it added.
The report is the culmination of two years of research by the task force into what it believes is the historic discrimination faced by black Californians and their ancestors in the state.
It also provides a broad account of the ways in which it accuses the state of wronging the descendants of black slaves.
The California Reparations Task Force alleges that state child support laws contribute to the historic misconduct of black Californians. (Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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The state legislature will now determine which aspects of the report, including financial compensation for black residents, will be approved or rejected.
Brandon Gillespie is an associate editor at Fox News. Follow him on Twitter at @brandon_cg.
