Oregon Public Broadcasting

The state of Oregon is planning to streamline the way parents make child support payments. Kristian Foden-Vencil has more.

When a couple gets divorced, a judge usually orders one parent to pay the other -- to help support the kids.

The order goes directly to the Oregon Department of Justice, which in turn requires employers to make the necessary deduction.

It's a complex process, but most families choose to keep the state as a neutral middleman -- to receive and distribute the funds.

Tony Green, a spokesman for the Oregon Attorney General says using half-a-million dollars in federal grants and matching funds, the state will shorten the process.

Tony Green: "The grant is going to allow purchasing primarily software that's going to make that process much easier for the employers -- much simpler, much more streamlined and that's the point."

The Oregon Child Support Program collects more than $300 million a year, which it distributes to about a quarter of a million children.