{
  "id": "RL31467",
  "type": "CRS Report",
  "typeId": "REPORTS",
  "number": "RL31467",
  "active": false,
  "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
  "versions": [
    {
      "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
      "id": 101289,
      "date": "2002-06-24",
      "retrieved": "2016-05-24T20:08:11.275941",
      "title": "Paternity Establishment: Child Support and Beyond",
      "summary": "The public policy interest in paternity establishment is based in part on the dramatic increase in\nnonmarital births. The poorest demographic group in the United States consists of children in single-\nparent families. In 2000, 33.1% of all U.S. births were to unmarried women, compared to 3.9% in\n1950. Moreover, in FY2000, 51.9% of the children in the Child Support Enforcement (CSE)\ncaseload (which includes Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) and certain other welfare\nfamilies and non-welfare families who apply for CSE services) were born outside of marriage. The\npercentage of CSE children who were born outside of marriage varied by state, ranging from 7.8%\nin Kansas (4% in Puerto Rico) to 79.8% in Delaware.\n  The main goals of the CSE program are to reduce spending on actual and potential recipients\nof public welfare by obtaining ongoing support from noncustodial parents; and to establish paternity\nfor children born outside of marriage so that child support can be obtained. Most experts now agree\nthat use of highly reliable DNA tests greatly increases the likelihood of correct identification of\nputative fathers. DNA tests can be used either to exclude unlikely fathers or to establish a high\nlikelihood that a given man is the father.\n  With more paternities being established each year than children being born outside of marriage,\nprogress is being made in reducing the number of children who do not have legally established\nfathers. Nonetheless, Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) data indicate that in FY2000,\npaternity had been established or acknowledged for only about 65% of the 10.1 million children on\nthe CSE caseload who were born outside of marriage. Some proposals or programs that may\nincrease the numbers of paternities established include: voluntary acknowledgment of paternity\nespecially via hospital-based programs (which increased 781%, from 78,129 in FY1994 to 688,510\nin FY2000); a renewed emphasis on older children perhaps through media campaigns; continued\noutreach to fathers acknowledging their importance to their children; and more cooperation between\nparents and the CSE agencies. Although many paternity concerns are intermingled with the\neffectiveness of the CSE program, some are beyond the scope of the CSE program. \n  This report provides background information on paternity establishment, gives a detailed\nanalysis of the paternity establishment process, describes federal CSE and TANF provisions related\nto paternity establishment, discusses some policy options to increase the numbers of paternities\nestablished, and examines some of the issues related to the establishment of paternity. Specifically,\nthis report examines how genetic testing developments have added to the complexity of determining\nwhat is in the best interest of the child and presented challenges to the historical precept of presumed\nfatherhood in the case of married couples. In addition, Appendix A provides a legislative history of\nprovisions related to paternity establishment. This report does not attempt to tackle any of the legal\nissues concerning parentage that arise from the new reproductive technologies, such as the legal\nstanding of sperm donors, egg donors, or surrogate mothers. This report will not be updated.",
      "type": "CRS Report",
      "typeId": "REPORTS",
      "active": false,
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      "topics": []
    }
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Domestic Social Policy"
  ]
}