Child Support Investigator Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Salary: $22.92 - $24.13 Hourly
Location : Douglas County Superior, WI
Job Type: Full Time
Job Number: CSI062026
Department: Child Support
Opening Date: 06/09/2026
Closing Date: Continuous
Description
The role of a Child Support Investigator is to establish a legal determination of paternity for children; collect financial and health insurance support for children and modify court-ordered support obligations on local and intergovernmental cases.
What is Child Support?
Douglas County offers a competitive benefits package including but not limited to:

• Annual wage increase based on eligibility
• Paid, on-the-job training and advancement opportunities
• 85% County contribution to health and dental premiums
• Health Saving Account (HSA) available to all employees enrolled in the county's medical plan, with annual contributions provided by the employer and the health plan
• Wisconsin Retirement- One of the most well managed retirement systems in the nation- Contributions are paid according to current year rates set by WRS Employee Trust Fund. Refer to www.etf.wi.gov for further detail.
• County paid life insurance coverage - coverage at 1 times your annual salary. Supplemental, Additional, and Spousal/Dependent life insurance available at Employee's expense
• Competitive paid time off including vacation, sick time, personal days and holidays
• Public Student Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Employer

Essential Duties

• Locate absent parents and employment information by performing confidential investigations utilizing automated, internet, and manual resources available to assist in establishing and enforcing child support and medical support orders.
  
• Contacts parents, employers, insurance companies, attorneys, responsible parties, and/or other public and private entities to investigate facts needed to establish, enforce, or modify support obligations.
  
• Initiates verbal or written communication with a parent to affect payment of court-ordered child support obligations, debts assigned to the County or State, and court-related costs.
  
• Collect DNA samples in paternity cases. Collect birth costs owed to the State of Wisconsin.
  
• Examine confidential financial records and public records of involved parties such as legal orders for support, custody and placement; real estate ownership; mortgages; tax returns; Social Security Administration; financial institutions; bankruptcy claims; financial disclosure statements; and other related materials in order to determine ability to pay.
  
• Obtain, review and interpret financial information to determine appropriate child support obligations pursuant to Wisconsin State statutes and child support guidelines.
  
• Determine the availability of medical insurance.
  
• Select the appropriate administrative tools to enforce child support orders without the need for a court hearing.
  
• Prepare legal referrals recommending felony prosecution on cases with extensive record of non-payment of support.
  
• Prepare cases that are settled prior to litigation by negotiating the terms of the agreements with both parents and/or attorneys; composes the legal documents setting forth the terms; obtains written consent of all parties and submits the documents to Corporation Counsel attorneys for approval and filing with the court.
  
• Make initial assessments of venue and jurisdiction for litigation which includes a determination of where the case should be heard and whether the hearing should be held in Wisconsin or another state.
  
• Make recommendations for legal actions and assists in the preparation of the case for court.
  
• Compose and prepare a variety of legal documents including affidavits, summons and petitions, motions, orders to show cause and stipulations and orders.
  
• Appear as a witness in court, testifying to actions taken to establish, modify, or enforce financial support and health insurance obligations.
  
• Enforce orders through the use of administrative actions.
  
• Identify potential fraud documents, financial records, and correspondence related to cases.
  
• Initiate intergovernmental referrals and respond to referrals made by other states for the full range of child support services.
  
• Serve as liaison with social services and legal authorities in matters related to cases.
  
• Provide customer service and may answer inquiries for clients, attorneys, employers, law enforcement, and other state agencies and the judiciary.
  
• Comply with federal time requirements for taking action and determine if a case is eligible for closure in accordance with federal criteria.
  
• Maintain case files in a statewide computer database.
  
• May train, assign, or monitor the work of others.
  
• Perform other duties as required.

Minimum Qualifications
High school graduate, associate or bachelor's degree preferred, with emphasis on paralegal, accounting, criminal justice, public or business administration, communications, or other related human services field.
Experience as a child support worker or collections officer, experience in work related to the child support field, experience as an eligibility worker in a human services agency, experience with the legal system and experience in collection work outside the public sector may be considered in lieu of educational requirements.
Successful adjudication of State Department of Justice (DOJ), Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) fingerprints and criminal background check pursuant to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) 1075 Publication are required due to access to Federal Tax Information (FTI). (at the time of hire and every 4.5 years, thereafter.
Supplemental Information
Working conditions:
This job operates in a professional office environment and routinely uses standard office equipment, such as computers, phones, photocopiers, filing cabinets, and fax machines.
Physical requirements:
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.
Requires the ability to operate a variety of office equipment such as computer systems, telephone, fax machine, calculator, department audio/visual equipment, and photocopier. Requires the ability to coordinate eyes, hands, feet and limbs in performing movements requiring moderate skill, such as keyboarding. Tasks involve the ability to exert light physical effort in sedentary to light work, but which may involve some lifting, carrying, pushing and pulling of objects weighing five to ten pounds. Tasks may involve extended periods of time at a keyboard or workstation.
Testing Requirements:
Testing may be administered to assess skills and abilities necessary to perform the essential duties of this position. Structured interview, references and/or background investigation.
Douglas County is an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action employer.
Health Insurance After 30 days of employment
(Employee pays 15% of premium)
Single, or Employee + 1 or Family options
Contact Human Resources for further info
Dental Insurance After 30 days of employment
(Employee pays 15% of premium)
Single, or Employee + 1 or Family options
Contact Human Resources for further info
Life Insurance After 6 months of employment
Basic: 1 times your annual salary (County Paid)
Supplemental: 2 times your annual salary (Employee Paid)
Additional: 3 to 5 times your annual salary (Employee Paid)
Optional spousal and dependent life insurance (Employee Paid)
$4,000 Life Insurance Policy (County Paid)
Wisconsin Retirement:
Employer and Employee contributions to Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS are regulated by the State of Wisconsin. Contributions are paid according to current year rates set by WRS Employee Trust Fund. Refer to for further detail.
Mission Square/Nationwide Retirement Services Deferred Compensation Accounts for public employees.
Pre-Tax Plan:
Flexible Benefit Plan Dependent Care Reimbursement Account (DCRA) (Helps employees reduce their taxable income by "setting aside" dollars spent on dependent daycare expenses).
Vacation:
Vacation is accumulated on a monthly basis. Newly hired employees will accrue vacation from their date of hire, but are not eligible to take vacation until successful completion of four months of their employment.
Sick Time:
Sick time accumulates at 1 day per month up to 120 days.
Employee Assistance Program:
(EAP) is confidential, professional help with personal matters. (County Paid)
Long Term Disability After 30 days of employment.
Short Term Disability After 30 days of employment (At Employee Expense).
Holidays 10 Paid Holidays per year.*
Personal Days 5 days per year *
*With the exception of those specific services which operate on a 24-hour basis. Contact Douglas County Human Resources for further info.
01
What is the highest education level you achieved?

• Master's Degree
• Bachelor's Degree
• Associate's Degree
• Some College
• High School Diploma or GED
• None

02
Do you possess a minimum of one year work-related experience in an office setting?

• Yes
• No

03
Do you possess experience working with State/Federal laws/regulations?

• Yes
• No

04
Do you possess any work-related experience with legal and/or State Court systems?

• Yes
• No

05
Have you ever worked for a public sector agency before?

• Yes
• No

06
Do you possess experience working with confidential information?

• Yes
• No

07
Do you possess experience working in collection work?

• Yes
• No

08
Please describe any previous work-related experience you possess in Customer Service. If no work-related experience in Customer Service, indicate "none":
09
Please indicate any work-related experience you possess with State-based software systems (such as CARES/KIDS). If no experience with this type of software, indicate "none":
10
In a short paragraph, define/describe previous work experience as it relates to the essential duties described in this job posting. If no related experience, indicate "none":
11
Are you currently a Douglas County employee?

• Yes
• No

Required Question