Smyth v. Rivero

No. 00-2453 (4th Cir. Feb 21, 2002). ; Clearinghouse Number: 51346

Description

Needy Children Born Out of Wedlock Challenge Virginia’s Cooperation Requirements

Abstract

The parties have moved for summary judgment in this class action against the Virginia Department of Social Services (DSS) paternity identification policy. Plaintiffs, poor mothers and their children born out of wedlock, allege that DSS disqualifies them from receiving Aid to Families with Dependent Children unless the mother can provide the first and last name of the child’s father or of all men with whom she has sexual intercourse who may be the father. This requirement applies even when the mother does not know the full name of the father of her child and has no way of finding out. Plaintiffs allege that DSS’s policy places an insurmountable barrier between their families and the minimal assistance they need to survive. Granting a preliminary injunction, the district court held that plaintiffs were likely to succeed on the merits because DSS’s absolute paternity identification policy contradicts the plain language of the applicable regulation, 45 C.F.R. § 232.12(b). Subsequently the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) granted DSS’s request for a waiver of section 232.12(b)’s requirements, provided that the state "establish criteria for cooperation in those instances where it determines that the applicant/recipient cannot reasonably be expected to know the identifying information relating to the child’s father." DSS’s revised policy’s exceptions to the absolute paternity identification requirement are for cases when (1) the child’s mother lacks the mental capacity to identify the father or (2) the child was conceived as a result of an undocumented rape and the mother does not know the father’s identity. Plaintiffs argue that DSS’s revised policy still unfairly discriminates against children born out of wedlock who do not know their fathers’ identities, contradicts the definition of cooperation at 45 C.F.R. § 232.12(b), and is irrational and discriminatory in violation of their right to equal protection. Before DSS implemented the HHS waiver, according to plaintiffs, the policy violated Title IV-A of the Social Security Act and its implementing regulations.

Additional Information

Attorney Information
Plaintiffs represented by Steven L. Myers, Virginia Poverty Law Center, Inc., 201 Broad St., Suite 302, Richmond, Va. 23220 ((804) 782-9430); Edward M. Wayland, 2665 Plank Rd. North Garden, VA 22959 ((804) 295-0279).
Docket Date
2002-02-21 00:00:00+00:00

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