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Lake County child support office reports $35.4 million in unpaid arrears affecting 2,193 children
Summary
Child Support Services reported $35,418,714 in total unpaid arrears affecting 2,193 children; supervisors pressed for a year‑by‑year breakdown and options to increase collections after staff said some enforcement tools have been limited by state changes.
Tammy Weidner, director of Lake County Child Support Services, told the board on Jan. 27 that total unpaid child support arrears in the county stand at $35,418,714 and affect 2,193 children.
Weidner said the office increased payments to families (from $4,863,634 to $5,043,957) and completed a transition to the state child support system, upgraded hardware and compliance safeguards, and maintained the caseload while increasing disbursements. She added that many arrears are old and may be effectively uncollectible; the state has limited some enforcement tools historically available to counties, such as certain license suspensions.
Supervisors reacted strongly to the arrears number and requested staff provide a year‑by‑year breakdown, assess trends in collections, and identify additional policy options that might increase disbursements to families. Director Weidner said the office is largely fully staffed and uses automated enforcement actions (income withholding, bank levies) where possible, and agreed to follow up with more granular data and options to the board.
