The Montgomery County Child Support Agency utilizes many resources when attempting to locate (address or income/asset information for Putative Parents, those ordered to pay child support or those ordered to provide medical insurance). SETS (Support Enforcement Tracking System), which is the statewide computer system for the Child Support Program, automatically initiates location utilizing many resources and provides for tracking of location efforts. Automated location begins when the non-custodial parent/putative parent's address becomes invalid and continues until an address is located. SETS will accept any incoming income information regarding a person even when an address is valid. In addition to the automated location efforts, the CSEA will utilize other resources available such as the Internet, Bureau of Motor Vehicles and Prison Locator. The SETS system separates the Location Process into three types: Local Locate - This is a manual locate tracking system that allows the CSEA worker to track all locate efforts that have been worker initiated. The custodial parent is usually the best source of information when attempting to locate a non-custodial parent. Some of the other sources that a worker may utilize can include: State Locate - Once a non-custodial parent address is invalidated in SETS the automated location process begins. Requests will automatically be made to State Location sources, through data exchange, every 7 and 30 days until location of the non-custodial parent is found.
Central Paternity Registry (CPR)
Current or Last Known Employer
Financial Institutions
Court Records
Internet Locate Sites Other Relatives
U.S. Postal Service
Utility Companies
Telephone Books
Prison Locator
State Location Sources include:
Federal Locate - SETS cases are submitted to the federal locate sources every 60 days until information is returned. Federal Location Sources include:
For most location searches to be successful it is necessary to have as much identifying information on a non-custodial parent as possible. The most important piece of information is the Social Security Number. For some federal sources the social security number is mandatory for the search to take place. If no locate information is returned from all automated and manual locate requests the case may meet closure criteria. A case may be closed when an non-custodial parent, whose social security number is known, cannot be located for a period of three years. A case may be closed when a non-custodial parent whose social security number is unknown cannot be located for a period of one year.