Washington, DC – Committee on Ways and Means Human Resources Subcommittee Chairman Dave Reichert (R-WA) and Ranking Member Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) issued the following statements upon this week’s House passage of H.R. 1896, the “International Child Support Recovery Improvement Act of 2013.”  The legislation which passed June 18 by a vote of 394-27, makes no-cost improvements to the State-administered child support enforcement program.  This bipartisan legislation implements the 2007 Hague Convention on International Recovery of Child Support.  It promotes data standardization in the child support enforcement program and expands researcher access to the National Directory of New Hires for use in evaluating the employment outcomes of Federal programs.  In addition, this legislation will save valuable taxpayer dollars. 

Chairman Reichert: “This legislation continues my work as Sheriff and will ensure those evading the law are held accountable to the needs of their children.  When a mother or father leaves the country, they do not cease to be a parent and their responsibilities to their children do not end.  This legislation gives States the tools they need to hold these parents accountable, and I look forward to the Senate completing their work on this important legislation.”

Ranking Member Doggett: “This legislation will help ensure that borders don’t become barriers to children receiving the financial support their parents are obligated to provide.  It does right by children and saves taxpayers’ dollars. I hope that the Senate will act upon it quickly so it can be signed into law.” 

Additional information on H.R. 1896, including statements from supporting organizations, can be found here.