2017 Regular Session ENROLLED
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 4
BY SENATOR MILLS AND REPRESENTATIVE HUVAL
A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
To commend the family court for the parish of East Baton Rouge for successfully utilizing
litter abatement in lieu of imprisonment in certain circumstances of unpaid child
support and to urge and request courts across the state to exercise this option when
appropriate.
WHEREAS, according to a January 2017 report issued by the Louisiana Department
of Children and Family Services, hereinafter referred to as "DCFS", there were 283,165
active child support enforcement cases involving 286,573 children in Louisiana; and
WHEREAS, in the same report, DCFS identified $567,814,635 in current child
support due for federal fiscal year 2016, with a total of $1,754,488,752 in arrears due as of
January 2017; and
WHEREAS, fulfilling the financial obligation to provide for your child is a
fundamental responsibility of every person that brings a child into this world; and
WHEREAS, parents who fail to pay what they have been held to be accountable for
by a court of law in this state should bear consequences for failure to pay; and
WHEREAS, it is evident that perpetual fines and fees compounded with jail time
throw people into a spiral of debt with little or no way of paying, thereby helping no one,
including the child; and
WHEREAS, it is also evident that having gainful employment is a key component
to an individual's ability to pay; and
WHEREAS, as a judge is considering consequences for failure to pay, he should
avail himself of every option that ultimately yields payment of the funds due; and
WHEREAS, one such option is R.S. 13:4611, which allows a judge in a contempt
case for failure to pay child support to impose, in addition to or in lieu of monetary penalties
and imprisonment, litter abatement work or community service in a court-approved program
for each day he was to be imprisoned; and
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WHEREAS, the provisions of R.S. 13:4611(1)(d)(i) and (ii), regarding litter
abatement and community service, were passed as Act No. 330 of the 2014 Regular Session
of the legislature, authored by the late Representative Alfred Williams at the request of and
in partnership with Judge Lisa Woodruff-White of the family court for the parish of East
Baton Rouge; and
WHEREAS, Judge Woodruff-White's past years of experience with the agency
formerly known as the Department of Social Services, now DCFS, has given her unique
insight and perspective on the matter of child support enforcement and the realities of
securing funds from delinquent parents; and
WHEREAS, she is a pioneer in the state for utilization of litter abatement and
community service in lieu of jail time as penalties for parents who fail to pay child support
and is keenly aware of the negative impact that spiraling debt and impediments to
employment have on both the responsible parent and child; and
WHEREAS, nationally, there is a growing realization that practices such as
compounding fines and fees, imprisonment, and loss of driving privileges continue to hinder
a person's ability to pay the amount originally due, and that alternative methods to allow
people to meet their obligations in a manner that holds them accountable but gives them a
way to move forward is far more effective in securing the desired outcome; and
WHEREAS, it is the desire of the legislature to ensure that parents pay the child
support they are required to pay with the realization that a parent incarcerated for failure to
pay may lose wages and possibly his job, thereby ensuring an inability to pay anything in
the future, much less any arrears already owed; and
WHEREAS, it is also the desire of the legislature to have the many family courts and
judicial district courts of the state utilize this option, when appropriate, to ensure that parents
stay employed and earn income that can be used to pay the support duly owed to their
children.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
commend the family court for the parish of East Baton Rouge for successfully utilizing litter
abatement in lieu of imprisonment in certain circumstances of unpaid child support and
requests courts across the state exercise this option when appropriate.
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BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to Judge
Lisa Woodruff-White and the family court for the parish of East Baton Rouge and to the
Louisiana Supreme Court for dissemination to the judicial district courts and family courts
in Louisiana.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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