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If an employer fails to enroll a child in an available medical plan, DCS may fine the employer $200 for the first month of non-enrollment, $300 for the second month, and $500 for the third month, not to exceed $1,000 for each Notice of Enrollment. RCW 48.01.235 requires the employer not to wait until the next open enrollment to enroll the child, but to enroll the child immediately.
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DCS can assess a fine of $100 for each failure to comply with an inquiry, subpoena, lien, or withholding instrument.
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DCS may impose fines when an employer fails to report the hiring of a new employee at $25 per employee per month, or $500 if failure to report is the result of a conspiracy between the employer and employee.
Despite recent record improvements in paternity establishment and child support collections, much more needs to be done to ensure that all children born out-of-wedlock have paternity established and that all non-custodial parents provide financial support for their children. Currently, only about one-half of the custodial parents due child support receive full payment. About twenty-five percent receive partial payment and twenty-five percent receive nothing.
In an effort to strengthen and improve state child support enforcement activities, several federal laws were passed, including a national new-hire reporting system. These laws required states to pass uniform interstate child support laws, automate enforcement actions, and provide for tougher noncompliance penalties, such as driver's license revocation.