When Child Support Is Not Paid

All child support payments become delinquent the day after they are due and owing. The Nebraska Child Support Payment Center identifies delinquencies and reports the delinquencies to the Court and to the County Attorney (Lancaster County Attorney's Office, Child Support Division, 402-441-8208) or other authorized attorney. In cases with delinquencies, the person required to pay the support may be required to appear in court and show cause why such payment was not made.

Order to Appear

If required to appear in court, the person required to pay support will be served with something called an Order to Show Cause. The person will be ordered to appear before a judge or before the District Court Referee to show cause, if there be any, why he or she should not be found guilty for contempt of court for having willfully and contumaciously failed to comply with the prior order and judgment of the Court relating to child support. If the person summoned fails to appear, a warrant will likely be issued for his or her arrest.

Civil Contempt of Court

A person may be incarcerated for civil contempt for willfully failing and refusing to comply with a court order, such as a purge plan, for child support. 

Any person found guilty of contempt of court for failure to pay permanent child support payments and imprisoned on that basis may be permitted to participate in a court-supervised work release program. 90% of earnings realized from such program shall be applied to payment of delinquencies in support payments minus appropriate deductions for the cost of work release. 

Costs, including reasonable attorney's fees, may be taxed against a party found in contempt.

Enforcing a Child Support Order

If you need assistance with regard to enforcing a child support order, you may contact the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services Child Support Enforcement, contact a private attorney for assistance, or otherwise take appropriate action.