Ohio has now implemented an intercept program so that winners at the four casinos in Ohio may trigger data base checks. If the winner wins $1,200 or more from slot machines, $5,000 or more from table games or $600 or more from high-stakes games, then their name is checked against a data base for child support owed. If anything is owed, it is taken out of the winnings. Ohio’s seven racinos, run by the Ohio Lottery, also participates in the program and checks winnings of $600 or more for child support.
http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2014/09/22/winners-to-pay-child-support.html
Apparently, Ohio is not alone in this initiative. Louisiana has a similar program to collect child support from gambling winnings.
http://www.klfy.com/story/26376451/state-collects-2-million-in-child-support-payments-from-gamblers
Generally, states take child support seriously and if it is owed, it does not go away. It is non-dischargeable in bankruptcy and will go against the owing parent’s estate. This is true even if the child is an adult. Child support services has a long reach in collecting the money. They can do anything from garnish wages to intercept tax refunds to suspend licenses issued by the state.
