Q. I am not being allowed parenting time with my child like I think I should be. What can I do?
A. The Child Support Enforcement program does not provide services relating to the establishment or enforcement of parenting time. There are a number of things, however, that may be helpful for you to know.
• The enforcement of child support and the enforcement of parenting time are separate issues. Child support and parenting time are both considered to be rights of the child. Because a child is denied one right does not mean that the child should be denied another right. This means that it is not okay for a parent with primary residential responsibility (custodial parent) to deny parenting time to the other parent because the other parent does not pay child support. It also means that it is not okay for a parent to not pay child support because the parent with primary residential responsibility denies parenting time.
• A parenting plan is to be developed. State law at N.D.C.C. § 14-09-30 provides that, in any proceeding to establish or modify an order providing for parenting time with a child, the parents are to develop a parenting plan and file it with the court. If the parents are unable to agree on a parenting plan, the court will issue a parenting plan considering the best interests of the child. The parenting plan is included in the court order.
The parenting plan must include several provisions, including residential responsibility (a parent's responsibility to provide a home for the child), parenting time, and a parenting schedule. Other provisions include decision-making responsibility, information sharing and access, legal residence for school attendance, and transportation and exchange of the child, along with a procedure for review and adjustment of the plan and methods for resolving disputes.
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