There are many Texas fathers who do not live in the same households as their children. According to a study, fathers who are delinquent on child support may spend less time with their children, are likely to have children with multiple partners and may work fewer weeks a year than those fathers who stay current.

. Parents in the United States paid $32.4 billion in child support though the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement in fiscal 2015. Typically, the parents who do not live with their children have to submit child support payments to the parents who do.

In an effort to explore the link between father involvement and delinquent child support, two researchers evaluated the data from a survey of 4,897 urban families with children born between 1998 and 2000. The researchers claim that their study was the one of the first to use national data to determine if fathers who do not reside with their children are less likely to see them and provide in-kind assistance.

When reviewing the data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, the researchers focused on the data that was related to paternal participation and child support when the children would have been nine years old. The researchers found that the more than 30 percent of fathers who were delinquent owed an average of $7,705 in back child support. They also discovered that fathers in arrears were less involved with their children and were less likely to participate in daily activities, such as reading books or playing outside.

A family law attorney may work to ensure that clients receive their child support payments in a timely manner. The attorney may request child support modifications for a cost of living increase or may ask that the court begin enforcement measures to obtain delinquent payments.

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