Impact of Adding Revenue Canada Databases Under FOAEA—Part 1 Tracing For Locating Persons
Final Report

2004-FCY-10E

6.0   CASE CHARACTERISTICS

6.1   Enrollments and Multiple Files

Eight percent (25/315) of the sample had been enrolled in FMEP twice, while one recipient had been enrolled three or more times. The dates of the most recent enrolments for the sample are described in Table 8.

Table 8   Most recent year case enrolled in FMEP
Year of most recent enrollment Number %
2000 21 7%
1999 26 8%
1998 64 20%
1997 40 13%
1996 43 14%
1995 26 8%
1994 22 7%
1993 20 6%
1992 or previously 52 17%
No information 1 0%
Total 315 100%

Thirteen percent (41/315) of the payors were involved in multiple files; that is, they were involved in payments to other recipients. However, an analysis of these other files was not undertaken.

6.2   Maintenance Orders

6.2.1   Date of Issuance and Term

Thirty-one percent (98/315) of the maintenance orders were issued in 1991 or previously (see Table 9).

Table 9   Maintenance Order fate of issuance
Date of order Number %
1999 6 2%
1998 22 7%
1997 38 12%
1996 38 12%
1995 35 11%
1994 22 7%
1993 27 9%
1992 28 9%
1991 or previously 98 31%
No data 1 0%
Total 315 100%

The term of the maintenance order was documented on only 120 cases (Table 10). In half of the cases, the term ranged from 16 to 20 years. The average term was 14 years.

Table 10   Term of Maintenance Order
Term of Maintenance Order Number
N=120 		%
1-5 years 5 4%
6-10 years 9 7%
11-15 years 44 37%
16-20 years 60 50%
21-25 years 1 1%
26+ years 1 1%
Total 120 100%

Almost three quarters of the Maintenance Orders were issued at the Family Court level and in 83 percent of the cases it was a British Columbia order.

Table 11   Maintenance Order court level
Court level Number %
Family Court 234 74%
Supreme Court 79 25%
Unknown 2 1%
Total 315 100%

In 95 percent (300/315) of cases, the type of order was for the child only, while in four percent (12/315) it was for the spouse. In two cases (less than 1 percent) it was for both child and spouse; in the other case, the type of order was not recorded.

Table 12 describes the number of children attached to the Maintenance Orders.

Table 12   Number of children attached to Maintenance Order
Number of children on Maintenance Order Totals
N=303 		%
1 child on order 152 50%
2 children on order 118 39%
3 children on order 28 9%
4 children on order 5 2%

The data recorded on the FMEP database indicated that in 68 percent of the cases, both the payor and recipient were living in the province. Twenty-five percent of cases were described as RDI (REMO: payor living in).

Table 13   Case group
Case group designation Number of cases %
RDI (REMO: payor living in B.C.) 78 25%
RDO (REMO: payor living out of province) 13 4%
VOL (Both recipient and payor living in province) 215 68%
DEEM (older court designation: payor and recipient live in province) 8 3%
No data recorded 1 0%
Total 315 100%

The most frequently recorded jurisdiction for these 13 RDO (REMO: payor out) cases was Alberta (eight), followed by Ontario (four) and one unknown.

The type of payment required under the Maintenance Order was not always recorded on FMEP records, particularly if the payor owed only arrears. Data indicated that 83 percent (262/315) of the payors were required to make periodic maintenance payments. The majority (89 percent or 232/260) of these payments were stipulated as monthly payments.

6.3   Total Arrears and Payments to Date

The amount of arrears owed by payors ranged from zero to $211,291 (see Table 14). The average amount owing was $16,741.

Table 14   Amount of maintenance arrears owing
Amount owing Number of payors %
$0 20 6%
$1-499 21 7%
$500-1,999 24 8%
$2,000-4,999 34 11%
$5,000-9,999 53 17%
$10,000-19,999 81 26%
$20,000-39,999 53 17%
$40,000-59,999 15 5%
$60,000-89,999 7 2%
$90,000-124,999 5 2%
$125,000-159,999 1 0%
$160,000 or more 1 0%
Total 315 101%

Eighty-eight percent (277/315) of payors had made some level of maintenance payments, while 12 percent (38/315) had not. The average amount paid by payors was $8,040; the highest amount was $112,835.

Table 15   Arrears payments made by payors
Amounts Number of payors %
No payments 38 12%
$1-499 21 7%
$500-1,999 53 17%
$2,000-4,999 71 22%
$5,000-9,999 58 18%
$10,000-19,999 49 16%
$20,000-39,999 20 6%
$40,000-59,999 4 1%
$60,000-89,999 - -
$90,000-124,999 1 0%
Total 315 99%

Of the 277 payors who had made maintenance payments at least once in the past, the majority (61 percent or 168/277) had made relatively recent payments. However, 14 percent had made no payments for two or more years.

Table 16   Elapse time since last maintenance payment
Elapse time since last maintenance payment Number
N=277 		%
Under 6 months 168 61%
From 6 months to under 1 year 35 13%
From 1 year to under 2 years 35 13%
From 2 years to under 3 years 14 5%
From 3 years to under 4 years 8 3%
From 4 years to under 5 years 8 3%
From 5 years to under 6 years 3 1%
6 years or over 6 2%
Total 277 101%

Because length of time since last payment is not necessarily an indication of the regularity of maintenance payments, an attempt was made to assess the overall regularity of payments in the past.

On the basis of this assessment, only six percent of those who had made payments had made regular payments, or payments that closely matched maintenance order requirements. Over 70 percent had made occasional, very occasional or no payments.

Table 17   Assessment of frequency of payments
Frequency of payments Number %
No payments 38 12%
Very occasional (several times over a period of years) 101 32%
Occasional (2 to 5 times over a 12‑month period) 95 30%
Somewhat regular (6 times over a 12‑month period) 63 20%
Regular (match or close to requirements) 18 6%
Total 315 100%

6.4   Type of Payments

Data was collected on the type of last payment in order to determine whether payments were voluntary or derived from deductions. Data fields represented broad categories, however, and only the "federal payments" category clearly indicated source (involuntary federal payment deductions).

Table 18   Source of last maintenance payment
Type of payment Number %
Cheque 65 23%
Money order (payor/attachees money orders, bank drafts, bank orders, certified cheques made payable to the recipient) 24 9%
Post-dated cheque (any payment with a date in future) 5 2%
Transfer funds on behalf of recipient (received from large companies or reciprocating jurisdictions, made payable to the program and deposited into trust accounts) 19 7%
Federal payments (Federal Intercept Funds) 115 41%
Direct payment (payment made directly to recipient through regional office or reciprocating jurisdiction) 25 9%
Other 24 9%
Total 277 100%

Table 18 indicates that 41 percent of the last payments made by payors were from a federal source.

An attempt was also made to assess the entire history of payments in terms of whether payments were primarily voluntary or deducted. Table 19 provides an approximate description of payors' payment histories. In most cases, payments were a combination of voluntary and deducted payments

Table 19   Whether payments are voluntary or deducted
Type of payment Number %
Payments primarily voluntary 42 15%
Payments primarily deducted 70 25%
Combination voluntary and deducted 154 56%
No data 11 4%
Total 277 100%