About Department of Child Support Services Case Type

OAH conducts state hearings for the California Department of Child Support Services (DCSS) pursuant to an Interagency agreement. The Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) who hears the issue does not represent the Local Child Support Agency (LCSA), DCSS, or the complainant but an impartial judge employed by OAH.

A state hearing is a fact-finding process to resolve administrative issues about how the LCSA has handled the specific child support case. The Complainant’s Request for State Hearing is submitted to the DCSS. After reviewing the complaint, DCSS submits the request to OAH.  The hearing gives complainants the opportunity to present testimony and documents (i.e., evidence) about their complaint against the LCSA. The LCSA also has the opportunity to respond to the complainant’s request by summarizing the issue(s) the complainant has raised, presenting evidence and to submit a Position Statement, noting the applicable law to substantiate the basis for its actions.

Hearings are conducted within 45 days of receipt of a complete request for hearing and all hearings are conducted telephonically.  This case types is handled directly within the OAH Sacramento office. 

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