Kansas gets $31.8 million from federal program


TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A U.S. Treasury Department program brought $31.8 million to Kansas last year, and that number could grow in the future.

The Treasury Offset Program helps states collect debts owed by tax deadbeats and welfare cheats. The Wichita Eagle reports  Kansas plans to join a part of the program that helps states recover improperly paid unemployment benefits.

The program intercepts all or part of federal tax refunds or other federal payments to pay debts to the state. It can also garnish vendor payments, part of federal employees’ salaries and capture up to 15 percent of a person’s Social Security check.

Most of the money Kansas collects through the program is from delinquent child support, which made up $23 million of the $31.8 million sent to the state last year.
