Parents who are not making payments of court-ordered child support will be given a one week amnesty period to pay up or face arrest. Amnesty week will begin this Monday, June 5, and last until the close of business on Friday, June 9.

Individuals can choose one of two ways to pay child support debt next week.

Any parent with an outstanding arrest warrant on a child support case can simply come in to the Family Support Division of the King County Prosecutor's Office during amnesty week and pay their child support or ten percent of the bail amount on the arrest warrant. The existing arrest warrant would then be quashed. The amnesty call in phone line is (206) 296-8955.

Or, non-paying parents can pay a child support debt during a special "one-stop quash" court calendar which is designated only for quashing bench warrants in child support cases. Public defenders will be available to assist represented parents with their cases.

The one-stop calendar will be held on June 9 from 1:30 to 4:00 p.m. at King County Family Court in the King County Courthouse, courtroom W-275.

The King County Sheriff's Office has a dedicated unit which executes civil contempt warrants year round; however, after amnesty week, there will be a concentrated effort to make arrests in the most egregious cases.

Sheriff's deputies will target individuals with years of child support debts where all attempts at administrative collection have been exhausted, and the parent must have also failed to appear in court at least once. There are more than 140 parents in King County who have arrest warrants because they owe more than $40,000 each in unpaid child support and have failed to appear in court.

The Division of Child Support of the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services is providing assistance in the collection effort. The state and county pursue these cases to provide support to children who might be living near or below the poverty line, and also to reduce the financial burden on taxpayers.

King County's METRO transit is providing assistance during amnesty week by placing billboards on buses calling attention to unpaid child support and its affect on children. The billboards encourage parents to take advantage of amnesty week. King County's television station is also running a public service announcement which encourages non-paying parents to take advantage of this annual program.

Once again, non-paying parents can either simply appear at the one-stop quash warrants calendar (only for child support cases) or make arrangements to have their arrest warrant quashed by calling or coming in to the Family Support Division of the King County Prosecutor's Office, King County Courthouse (room E-400), 516 Third Avenue in Seattle.

They can also make similar arrangements at the Kent Office, 610 West Meeker Street, suite 203. The telephone number for the Family Support Division in Seattle is (206) 296-9020, and in Kent, (206) 296-9579.

Dated: June 1, 2006