Illinois parents who are at the end of their rope trying to collect child support from their ex-spouses or partners now have another resource at their disposal. The federal Office of Inspector General (OIG) of the Health and Human Services last week said it has created a web site of fugitive deadbeat parents that is accessible to the public.

With the new website, the public can see if they recognize anyone listed on the website based on the photographs and other information that will be posted there. Visitors to the site can then provide information to the OIG online or via a telephone hotline.

While most child support cases fall under state jurisdiction, the federal government sometimes gets involved if various conditions are met: if parents have been delinquent with their payments for more than a year; if noncustodial parents live in a different state from their children and owe more than $5,000; or if noncustodial parents leave the state or country in order to evade their child support obligations.

In the last five years, the federal government has tracked down and convicted more than 500 offenders who collectively owed more than $33 million. The current most wanted parent on the website owes more than $1 million to his three children. His case goes back to 1996.

While many deadbeat parents in Illinois do not flee the state or country to avoid child support payments, it is still a good idea for people who have issues receiving payments via their current child support agreement to consult with a family law attorney.

Source: Office of Inspector General, "OIG Launches Child Support Enforcement Web Page: Introduces 'most wanted' list of deadbeat parents," Jan. 17, 2012