Adams County child support cases are handled by Adams County Child Support Services, a division of the county’s Human Services Department that establishes orders, collects payments, and enforces overdue support for families in the county. Applying is free, the process can start online through Colorado’s statewide portal, and every payment moves through the state’s Family Support Registry rather than directly between parents. You can reach the local office at 720-523-2600.1Adams County, CO. Child Support Services
How to Open a Case
You can apply online through Colorado Child Support Services at any time. There is no application fee.2Colorado Child Support Services. Apply for Services
Before you start, gather everything you can about the other parent: full name, current address, employer, Social Security number, and date of birth. You’ll also need identifying information and birth dates for each child, plus recent pay stubs and tax returns from the last year or two. If you already have a court order involving the children, or you’re receiving public assistance, bring those details as well.
Accuracy at this stage saves weeks. Missing or wrong information about the other parent’s employer or address stalls the case while the office tries to locate them.
Once the application is in, a technician is assigned and a case number is created. The office requests financial information from both parents, runs the numbers against Colorado’s guidelines, and serves the other parent with formal notice through a sheriff’s deputy or private process server. From there, the parties either sign a stipulation on the calculated amount or a judge or magistrate enters the order after a hearing.
Establishing Parentage When Parents Weren’t Married
Colorado presumes a spouse is the legal parent of a child born during a marriage. If the parents weren’t married, parentage has to be established before an order can be entered, and this is where cases most often stall.
The simplest path is a Voluntary Acknowledgment of Parentage, a form both parents sign at the hospital or later. The acknowledgment takes effect 60 days after signing, or when a court case involving the child is filed, whichever comes first. Signing does not by itself grant custody or parenting time; those come from a separate court proceeding.
If the other parent won’t sign, either the county or the custodial parent can request genetic testing. When both parents agree to it, they sign a joint agreement and share the cost. When the alleged parent refuses, the person seeking testing has to file a motion, pay for the test upfront, and serve the other parent with the paperwork.3Colorado Judicial Branch. Determine Parentage
How the Support Amount Is Set
Colorado uses the Income Shares Model under C.R.S. 14-10-115. The premise is that a child should receive the same share of parental income they would have if both parents lived together. The calculation adds both parents’ gross monthly incomes, then finds the base support obligation for the number of children on a standardized table.4Justia. Colorado Code 14-10-115 – Child Support Guidelines
Gross income under the statute is broad. It covers salaries, commissions, bonuses, self-employment earnings, Social Security, workers’ compensation, unemployment, disability, pensions, rental income, capital gains, dividends, trust income, and even monetary gifts. Overtime counts only when the employer requires it. Expense reimbursements that offset a parent’s personal living costs can also be included.
Overnights Matter
When each parent has the child for more than 92 overnights per year, Colorado treats it as shared physical care and adjusts the base obligation to reflect that both households are already spending on the child.
Added Costs
After the base amount, the calculation folds in the child’s health insurance premium and work-related childcare, usually split between parents in proportion to their incomes. Extraordinary expenses, such as mandatory school fees and uncovered medical costs, also factor in.
Voluntary Unemployment or Underemployment
A parent who quits or cuts hours to shrink their income won’t lower their support. Colorado courts can impute income, meaning support is calculated on what the parent could earn rather than what they actually earn. Income is not imputed to a parent who is physically or mentally unable to work, who is caring for a child under 24 months for whom both parents share legal responsibility, or who is incarcerated for 180 days or more.
Making and Receiving Payments
Every child support payment in Colorado moves through the Family Support Registry, whether the case is county-managed or private. The registry keeps the legal record that protects both sides if a dispute comes up later. You can pull payment history any time through an online account, and customer service is available Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Mountain time.5Colorado Child Support Services. Family Support Registry
Do not hand cash to the other parent, even if they ask. Payments outside the registry don’t show up in the official record, and you can end up credited for none of it.
What Happens When Payments Fall Behind
Adams County has a wide range of enforcement tools, and small arrears grow into much larger problems as they compound.
Wage Withholding
Income withholding is the default. Once an order is in place, the county can direct the paying parent’s employer to deduct support from wages, commissions, and bonuses before the parent ever sees the money.6Colorado Child Support Services. Income Withholding
Tax Refund Intercepts
Colorado can intercept state tax refunds for past-due support after certifying the arrearage to the Department of Revenue, with written notice to the paying parent before the offset.7Justia. Colorado Code 26-13-111 – State Income Tax Refund Offset Federal refunds can also be taken under the federal offset program.
License Suspension
If you owe arrears and haven’t entered into or followed a payment agreement, the state can trigger suspension of your driver’s license through the Department of Revenue. The statute sets no minimum dollar threshold; the failure to comply is what matters. Professional and recreational licenses are also on the table.8Justia. Colorado Code 26-13-123 – License Suspension
Passport Denial
Once arrears exceed $2,500, the case can be sent to the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement, which refers the name to the U.S. Department of State. State will then refuse a new passport and can revoke or restrict an existing one.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 652 – Duties of Secretary
Automatic Liens
Under Colorado law, unpaid child support creates an automatic lien on the owing parent’s real and personal property as soon as a payment goes past due. That lien blocks the sale of a home, vehicle, or other assets until the debt is cleared.10Justia. Colorado Code 14-10-122 – Modification and Termination of Provisions for Support – Automatic Lien
Credit Reporting
The state child support agency reports arrears to consumer reporting agencies under C.R.S. 26-13-116, and a delinquency can follow you for years across rentals, auto financing, and mortgages.
Contempt of Court
When other tools fail, the county or the custodial parent can ask the court to hold the non-paying parent in contempt, which can carry jail time.11Colorado Judicial Branch. Instructions to Enforce Orders
Interest on Arrears
Arrears do not sit interest-free. For balances accrued on or after July 1, 2021, Colorado charges 2% above the statutory rate, compounded annually, which works out to roughly 10% per year. Older arrears from before that date carry 4% above the statutory rate, compounded monthly. The receiving parent can waive interest but is not required to.12Justia. Colorado Code 14-14-106 – Interest
Changing an Existing Order
Either parent can ask the court to modify the order when circumstances have changed. Colorado’s standard is “substantial and continuing,” which the statute defines as a change that would shift the monthly amount by at least 10% under the current guidelines. A short-term change doesn’t qualify.13Colorado Judicial Branch. Change Child Support
The usual triggers are a significant income change, a shift in the child’s living arrangement, or a change in health insurance costs. The Colorado Judicial Branch offers a support calculator you can run before filing to see whether the change clears the 10% bar.
A modification takes effect on the date the motion was filed, not the date the circumstances actually changed. Courts won’t backdate further unless the parents agreed to a change in physical custody.
When Child Support Ends
Support in Colorado usually terminates automatically when the child turns 19, with no motion needed. Some situations shift that date:
- If the child is still in high school or an equivalent program at 19, support continues to the end of the month after graduation but cannot go past age 21. A child who dropped out and re-enrolled can have support resumed on the same terms.
- If the child has a physical or mental disability that leaves them unable to support themselves at the age of majority, the court can extend support (including medical expenses and insurance) indefinitely. The disability must exist before the child turns 19.
- Marriage emancipates the child as of the wedding date. If the marriage is later annulled or dissolved, support can be reinstated.
- Entering active military duty emancipates the child.
Parents can also stipulate in writing to a different end date.14Justia. Colorado Code 14-10-115 – Child Support Guidelines
Public Assistance and Child Support
If you’re receiving TANF, this matters: Colorado uses a full pass-through. One hundred percent of the child support collected on behalf of a family receiving TANF goes to the family rather than being kept by the state, and the passed-through amount is disregarded when determining TANF eligibility, so receiving support does not cut your benefits.15National Conference of State Legislatures. Child Support Pass-Through and Disregard Policies for Public Assistance Recipients