Many parents without custody of their children work and pay their full child support
despite their meager incomes. In 2006, the New York State Legislature enacted a new
tax credit to help these parents make ends meet as they pay their child support in full.
Although the tax credit was successfully implemented in 2006, only 5,280 noncustodial
parents received the tax credit that year. This report identifies three reasons for this
result. It also describes how the law was implemented and the challenges that were
encountered during implementation. It concludes by examining who might be motivated
by the tax credit to pay their full child support.