The half or more of American children who will be eligible for child support at some point during their minority'are at serious risk. Close to 50 percent of families receiving federal welfare benefits become eligible for benefits as a result of marital separation or divorce. 2 More than half of children in mother-only households are poverty-stricken; in black and Hispanic mother-only households, more than two-thirds are poor. 3 Children in single-parent households are also more likely to experience poor health, behavioral problems, delinquency, and low educational attainment than are their peers in intact families. As adults they have higher rates of poverty, early childbearing, and divorce. 4