Kenton County Child Support Program

The Kenton County Child Support Office will never contact you via text message regarding your account or status.  If you have questions, please call our office at 859-491-4114.

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Title IV-D of the Social Security Act is a direct result of the United States government’s efforts to assist custodial parents with the process of receiving child support payments and health insurance.  Federal agencies enlist the state governments to provide these services to their citizens.  The states generally contract with each county attorney to collect and monitor child support payments.

The goals of the Child Support office are:

Federal law requires that every state have a system for administering and collecting child support.  Kentucky, as well as most other states, uses a program that incorporates a child support office in each county. The Kenton County Child Support office provides a wide range of services including:

• Establish paternity

• Set and modify child support obligations

• Establish Medical Support Orders

• Monitor child support payments

• Enforce child support orders

• Fulfill the performance goals set by the Commonwealth of Kentucky

The Kenton County Child Support Office currently has over 11,000 open child support cases, making it the third largest and most active county in the Commonwealth behind only Jefferson and Fayette.  The Kenton County office receives over 1,500 phone calls weekly. In addition, they conduct more than 180 client appointments as well as taking court cases in excess of 250 each month.

A child support case can be initiated by calling or coming into the office to complete an application for services if Kenton County is the appropriate venue for the case.  A photo ID and copies of any existing Court Orders will be required.  If there is not an existing Order for support, a case will generally be filed with the Kenton Family Court.  The office also assists parents in pursuing their action with other states if the other parent resides outside the Commonwealth.

Once a Court Order is established requiring a parent to pay child support, the Child Support Office will take steps to collect the payments by sending a Wage Withholding Order to the paying parent’s employer.  Those payments are tracked and disbursed based on calculations of the arrears as they accumulate and change. If the paying parent fails to comply with the Court’s Order, there are a number of enforcement tools available.  In Kentucky, a parent not providing for their child can be subject to civil contempt, misdemeanor non-support, or felony non-support charges.

The Child Support Office is open to the general public and services are provided to all Kenton County residents regardless of income.  The office is open for walk-in visits, without an appointment, from Tuesday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to noon and from 1:30 to 4:30.  Appointments with attorneys and paternity workers are necessary to file matters with the Court, so please call to make an appointment.  Parties may speed up the time required to secure a court date or receive payments by having important information with you when first contacting the Child Support office.  Knowing the address, phone number and place of employment for the parent ordered to pay child support can save a great deal of time.

It is important to understand that the attorneys at the Child Support office do not provide legal representation to the parent or guardian as a private attorney would, but rather administers the laws of Kentucky to see that support is set and paid according to Kentucky Law.  No attorney/client relationship is formed.  All of these services are provided by the state so there is no cost or fee to the public.