The goal of public assistance should never be permanent dependence. It should be stability, employability, and a path forward. If we are serious about helping families move out of poverty, Rhode Island needs to build better offramps from public assistance.
Changes proposed to the Rhode Island Works Program (House bill 7690) are a small but important step in that direction.
Under current law, when a family receives Rhode Island Works assistance and child support is collected from the noncustodial parent, the family receives only a limited pass-through amount. The state may retain the rest to offset the cost of assistance. We understand the state’s argument. Taxpayers are helping support the household, and there is a legitimate interest in making sure public dollars are used responsibly.
But there is something fundamentally wrong with a system that says a family is poor enough to need help, then captures part of the child support paid for that child. Child support is not state revenue. It is not an agency funding stream. It is not a budgetary convenience. It is money paid by a parent to support his or her child.
This bill would increase the amount of child support that reaches families on Rhode Island Works. Instead of only the first $50 per month going to the family, the bill would allow $100 per month for one child and $200 per month for more than one child.
That is a modest change, but it reflects an important principle: child support should support the child.
From a conservative perspective, this is not about expanding welfare. It is about reducing the state’s claim on private family support. The money is already being paid by a parent. The question is whether more of it should reach the child, or whether government should continue to seize most of it.
If we want parents to accept responsibility, we should not punish the family when they do. We tell noncustodial parents they must pay support. We say we want personal responsibility --but when that parent pays, the state intercepts part of the support before it fully reaches the child. That sends the wrong message.
Worse, it can push parents farther apart. A paying parent may feel the effort is being appropriated to the state rather than used for their child. A custodial parent may still struggle, even though support is being paid. Instead of encouraging both parents to stay invested, the system can create resentment and distance.
Children need support from both parents whenever possible. They prosper when both parents are encouraged to contribute, cooperate, and remain connected to their responsibilities. Public policy should draw parents closer around the needs of the child, not insert the state in a way that weakens that connection. The custodial parent should be afforded stability, and the paying parent should know the money is helping his or her child, not being absorbed into state accounting.
That stability matters. A single parent who can count on even a little more support each month may be better able to pay for transportation, childcare, school expenses, rent, clothing, or food. Those are building blocks that allow a family to function.
And once a family is stabilized, we can begin working toward the real goal: helping them no longer need assistance. That is what an offramp looks like. It does not begin punishing parental support. It begins by encouraging it. It begins by making sure child support actually reaches the child.
The taxpayer interest still matters. Rhode Island should track the cost, report how much child support is collected, how much is passed through, and whether higher pass-through amounts improve payment compliance or reduce long-term dependence. But fiscal responsibility should not require the state to take money meant for poor children.
H7690 encourages parental responsibility, respects the purpose of child support, helps stabilize families, and moves Rhode Island toward an assistance system with real offramps, not traps.
Child support should support the child. The state should not steal from that responsibility. It should build on it.
Michael W. Chippendale is Rhode Island House minority leader. Paige Parks is executive director of Rhode Island Kids Count.