AG ​Schwalb today introduced the Child Support Improvement Amendment Act of 2026 to reform the District’s child support system by ensuring that every dollar of child support collected from non-custodial parents gets to the children and families it is intended to help. Under the current child support collection system for families receiving Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), the District pays itself and the federal government back for the operational costs of administering the collection process before sending money to custodial families — meaning that children receive only a percentage, if any, of child support payments.

“We must do everything in our power to alleviate child poverty and make the District more affordable for all of its residents. Dollars paid for child support should go directly to supporting kids — not to covering the cost of government collection operations. I’m proud that, through this legislation, the District will be among the first jurisdictions in the country to adopt these long-overdue reforms. Thank you to Legal Aid DC for working tirelessly with my team to develop these proposals and to Councilmembers Pinto and Frumin for championing this much-needed legislation.” – AG Schwalb