Wed, Nov 01, 2006
The Message: Pay Up Before You Leave The Country
Authorities in Australia believe
they've found a way to catch deadbeat parents who fail to pay their
child support... by stopping them as they're waiting to board
airline flights.
The Australian newspaper reports 482 parents were stopped by the
Child Support Agency in the past fiscal year, and ordered to pay up
combined debts of more than $6.7 million before they were allowed
to leave on overseas vacations.
That's out of roughly 1200 people -- mostly wealthy fathers,
according to The Australian -- on the agency's list. And the number
of parents caught at airport gates is expected to double this
year.
A departure prohibition order gives the Australian Federal
Police authority to stop parents at the airport from leaving the
country -- a move that's earned kudos from Lone Fathers Association
president Barry Williams.
"It had to happen because it's not fair just to leave like
that," he said.
Minister for Human Services Joe Hockey says the government makes
"no apologies" for the crackdown on those trying to skip out on
paying child support.
"I am warning serious avoiders -- pay up before you reach the
departure lounge," he said. "This is a very successful mechanism
for collecting outstanding child support, of which many other
countries are envious."
"Some serious avoiders of child support believe they can escape
their payment obligations by leaving the country," Hockey added.
"Obviously people are given ample opportunity to resolve their
childcare debts before reaching an airport but it is important they
know that they could be stopped."
Since the program's inception in 2001, 1151 parents with child
support debts have paid about $12.2 million before heading
overseas.
More News
Aero Linx: International Business Aviation Council Ltd IBAC promotes the growth of business aviation, benefiting all sectors of the industry and all regions of the world. As a non->[...]
"During the annual inspection of the B-24 “Diamond Lil” this off-season, we made the determination that 'Lil' needs some new feathers. Due to weathering, the cloth-cove>[...]
Also: Bushcat Woes, Hummingbird 300 SL 4-Seat Heli Kit, Carbon Cub UL The newest Junkers is a faithful recreation that mates a 7-cylinder Verner radial engine to the airframe offer>[...]
Also: Seaplane Pilots Association, Rotax 916’s First Year, Gene Conrad After a decade and a half of struggling with the FAA and other aero-politics, G100UL is in production a>[...]
Also: Martha King Scholarship, Montaer Grows, Textron Updates Pistons, FlySto The FAA is hiring thousands of air traffic controllers, but the window to apply will only be open for >[...]