Child support provides a significant source of income for poor families. Child support also reduces the number of poor children by a half million and lessens income inequality among children eligible for it. Unfortunately, about 70 percent of poor children eligible for child support were not getting it in 1996. In addition, it will probably be more difficult to obtain child support for these children because their parents are, on average, more disadvantaged that the parents of poor children who already receive child support. The report is based on the 1997 National Survey of Americas Families.