Either parent can file a complaint with the court asking for child support. In CalWORKS cases, the Department of Child Support Services (DCSS) will automatically file the complaint and the court order will be made payable to the county (to reimburse CalWORKS benefits paid to the Parent/Party Receiving Support (PRS)).

A child support order is established based on both parents' ability to pay support, the amount of time each parent spends with the child, and the financial needs of the child. The Department of Child Support Services and the court will follow the child support guidelines established by state law in Family Code § 4055. This state law provides a standard formula for determining child support, although the court may change the amount under specific circumstances.

The Department of Child Support Services will also ask the court to require the Parent Paying Support (PPS) to provide health insurance coverage, including vision and dental care, for the child. If it is available at a reasonable cost, the court will order the Parent Paying Support (PPS) to maintain health coverage for the child. In most cases, the cost is considered reasonable if the coverage is employment-related group health insurance or other group health insurance. If coverage is not available at a reasonable cost, the court's order for support will state that health insurance coverage will be obtained by the parent if and when it becomes available at a reasonable cost.

A notice of how much child support is collected by the Department of Child Support Services and how support is distributed for each month of the reporting period will be periodically mailed to the Parent/Party Receiving Support (PRS). The Parent/Party Receiving Support (PRS) is entitled to see the payment history of the Parent Paying Support (PPS) who is required, by a court order, to make support payments.

In General, payments received by the Department of Child Support Services are applied in the following order:

• To the current monthly support, unless otherwise specified in the court order
• To the interest owed on past-due support
• To the arrearages (unpaid past-due child support) or CalWORKS reimbursements (repayments to CalWORKS for past payments) OR
• To future obligations (for example: future child support payments that come due)

The Parent/Party Receiving Support (PRS) or the Parent Paying Support (PPS) can request that the current support order be reviewed for possible modification to change the amount of support ordered to be paid, or to provide health insurance for the children. The requesting party should complete and return an Income and Expense Declaration along with their written request.

The Parent/Party Receiving Support (PRS) and/or the Parent Paying Support (PPS) has the right to request that the Department of Child Support Services review the support order to determine if the amount of support should be changed based on state-wide criteria. The Department of Child Support Services is not required to review an order if:

• The order was reviewed for modification within the prior 12 months
• The order was established or adjusted within the prior 24 months or
• One of the parents cannot be located and there is no new information regarding his or her whereabouts

The Department of Child Support Services will review an order even if it was reviewed or adjusted recently if there has been a significant change in circumstance. In this instance, a significant change in circumstance is limited to either a parent becoming involuntarily unemployed, a parent becoming employed or a change in custody. Seasonal or intermittent employment that was considered by the court when establishing the support order does not qualify as a significant change in circumstance. Once the Department of Child Support Services has determined that an order will be reviewed, the review and modification process should be completed within 180 days.

The Department of Child Support Services must attempt to modify an order in any of the following circumstances:

• Application of the state's child support guidelines indicates that the amount of support ordered should be increased by at least $50.00 or 30%, whichever is greater.
• Application of the state's child support guidelines indicates that the amount of support should be decreased by at least $50.00 or 30%, whichever is greater, and the reason for the decrease is expected to last at least six months.
• There is no medical insurance provision in the order and medical insurance is available at reasonable cost to the non-custodial parent.

If the Department of Child Support Services is not required to modify the order, the Department of Child Support Services must provide to either the Parent/Party Receiving Support (PRS) and/or the Parent Paying Support (PPS), upon request, information on how they can get forms to request the court to increase or decrease the amount of the support order.