Indiana Code

Ind. Code § 31-40-1-3 (2026)

Payment by parent or guardian for cost of services provided by or through department of child services; presumption of indigency

✓ current as of May 2026
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     Sec. 3. (a) Subject to subsection (f), a parent or guardian of the estate of a child adjudicated a delinquent child or a child in need of services is financially responsible as provided in this chapter (or IC 31-6-4-18(e) before its repeal) for any services provided by or through the department.

     (b) Each person described in subsection (a) shall, before a hearing under subsection (c) concerning payment or reimbursement of costs, furnish the court and the department with an accurately completed and current child support obligation worksheet on the same form that is prescribed by the Indiana supreme court for child support orders.

     (c) At:

(1) a detention hearing;

(2) a hearing that is held after the payment of costs by the department under section 2 of this chapter (or IC 31-6-4-18(b) before its repeal);

(3) the dispositional hearing; or

(4) any other hearing to consider modification of a dispositional decree;

the juvenile court may not order the child's parents or the guardian of the child's estate to pay for, or reimburse the department for the cost of services provided to the child or the parent or guardian unless the court makes a specific finding that the parent or guardian is able to pay.

     (d) Any parental reimbursement obligation under this section shall be paid directly to the department and not to the local court clerk so long as the child in need of services case or juvenile delinquency case is open. The department shall keep track of all payments made by each parent and shall provide a receipt for each payment received. At the end of the child in need of services or juvenile delinquency action, the department shall provide an accounting of payments received, and the court may consider additional evidence of payment activity and determine the amount of parental reimbursement obligation that remains unpaid. The court shall reduce the unpaid balance to a final judgment that may be enforced in any court having jurisdiction over such matters.

     (e) After a judgment for unpaid parental reimbursement obligation is rendered, payments made toward satisfaction of the judgment shall be made to the clerk of the court in the county where the enforcement action is filed and shall be promptly forwarded to the department in the same manner as any other judgment payment.

     (f) A parent is presumed indigent unless a court makes a specific finding that states otherwise.

[Pre-1997 Recodification Citation: 31-6-4-18(c), (e) part.]

As added by P.L.1-1997, SEC.23. Amended by P.L.273-1999, SEC.120; P.L.146-2008, SEC.667; P.L.182-2009(ss), SEC.388; P.L.101-2022, SEC.30; P.L.151-2023, SEC.1.

 

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 13 cases, 2002–2020 · leading case: J.T. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.), 111 N.E.3d 1019 (Ind. Ct. App. 2018).
J.T. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.), 111 N.E.3d 1019 (Ind. Ct. App. 2018). · cites it 6× “[....] [T]he juvenile court shall order the child's parents or the guardian of the child's estate to pay for, or reimburse the department for the cost of services provided to the child or the parent or guardian unless the court makes a specific finding that the parent or…”
M.L. v. State, 838 N.E.2d 525 (Ind. Ct. App. 2005). · cites it 4× “Compare Ind.Code § 31-40-1-3 ("A parent ... of a child adjudicated a delinquent child .”
M.Q.M. v. State, 840 N.E.2d 441 (Ind. Ct. App. 2006). · cites it 2× “Payment of Fees Indiana Code Section 31-40-2-l(a) provides that a juvenile court may order a delinquent child or the child's parent to pay an initial and a monthly probation user's fee and an administrative fee, subject to Indiana Code Section 31-40-1-3. Indiana Code Section…”
In re K.G., 781 N.E.2d 700 (Ind. Ct. App. 2002). · cites it 2× “…unless the court finds that the parent is unable to pay or that justice could not be served by ordering such payment. Ind.Code § 31-40-1-3.”
F.A. v. State of Indiana, No. 19A-JV-2438 (Ind. Ct. App. May 1, 2020). · cites it 12× “***** Ind. Code § 31-40-1-3 .8 (emphasis added).”
MQM v. State, 840 N.E.2d 441 (Ind. Ct. App. 2006). · cites it 4× “Payment of Fees Indiana Code Section 31-40-2-1(a) provides that a juvenile court may order a delinquent child or the child's parent to pay an initial and a monthly probation user's fee and an administrative fee, subject to Indiana Code Section 31-40-1-3. Indiana Code Section…”
ML v. State, 838 N.E.2d 525 (Ind. Ct. App. 2005). · cites it 4× “In support of this view, the majority cites Ind.Code Ann. § 31-40-1-3 (West, PREMISE through 2005 Public Laws), which provides that the parents of a child adjudicated to be delinquent are liable for any services ordered by the court under that section, and Ind.”
J.T. v. State, 116 N.E.3d 459 (Ind. 2019). · cites it 6× “" Ind. Code § 31-40-1-3 (c). The actual process of this inquiry likely varies from county to county and from court to court, and I have no reason to believe the trial court in this case did anything out of the ordinary.”
E.M. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.), No. 18A-JV-706 (Ind. Ct. App. Apr. 25, 2019). · cites it 4× “[15] The reimbursement statute, Ind. Code § 31-40-1-3 , provides, in pertinent part: (a) A parent or guardian of the estate of: (1) a child adjudicated a delinquent child .”
K.B. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.), No. 19A-JV-2135 (Ind. Ct. App. Apr. 8, 2020). · cites it 4× “3 Our Court recently addressed INDIANA CODE § 31-40-1-3, sometimes referred to as the reimbursement statute, as follows: The reimbursement statute provides that the juvenile court “shall” order parents to pay for or reimburse the costs of services provided to the delinquent…”
D.H. v. State of Indiana, No. 49A04-1110-JV-533 (Ind. Ct. App. Apr. 12, 2012). · cites it 4× “Administrative Fee Pursuant to Indiana Code Section 31-40-2-1(a), a juvenile court may order a delinquent child or the child’s parent to pay probation fees and an administrative fee, subject to Indiana Code Section 31-40-1-3. Indiana Code Section 31-40-1-3(a) provides that a…”
In the Matter of: K.D., a Child in Need of Servs., S.D. (Mother) & Ke.D. (Father) v. Ind. Dept. of Child Servs. (mem. dec.), No. 32A05-1510-JC-1724 (Ind. Ct. App. May 24, 2016). · cites it 2× “” Indiana Code section 31-40-1-3(a) provides, in part, that “[a] parent [of] a child adjudicated a delinquent child or a child in need of services … is financially responsible as provided in this chapter … for any services provided by or through the department.”
Ind. Code § 31-40-1-3(a): 4 cases
MQM v. State, 840 N.E.2d 441 (Ind. Ct. App. 2006). “Payment of Fees Indiana Code Section 31-40-2-1(a) provides that a juvenile court may order a delinquent child or the child's parent to pay an initial and a monthly probation user's fee and an administrative fee, subject to Indiana Code Section 31-40-1-3. Indiana Code Section…”
In the Matter of: K.D., a Child in Need of Servs., S.D. (Mother) & Ke.D. (Father) v. Ind. Dept. of Child Servs. (mem. dec.), No. 32A05-1510-JC-1724 (Ind. Ct. App. May 24, 2016). “” Indiana Code section 31-40-1-3(a) provides, in part, that “[a] parent [of] a child adjudicated a delinquent child or a child in need of services … is financially responsible as provided in this chapter … for any services provided by or through the department.”
J.T. v. State, 116 N.E.3d 459 (Ind. 2019). “" Ind. Code § 31-40-1-3 (c). The actual process of this inquiry likely varies from county to county and from court to court, and I have no reason to believe the trial court in this case did anything out of the ordinary.”
D.H. v. State of Indiana, No. 49A04-1110-JV-533 (Ind. Ct. App. Apr. 12, 2012). “Administrative Fee Pursuant to Indiana Code Section 31-40-2-1(a), a juvenile court may order a delinquent child or the child’s parent to pay probation fees and an administrative fee, subject to Indiana Code Section 31-40-1-3. Indiana Code Section 31-40-1-3(a) provides that a…”
Ind. Code § 31-40-1-3(b): 1 case
F.A. v. State of Indiana, No. 19A-JV-2438 (Ind. Ct. App. May 1, 2020). “***** Ind. Code § 31-40-1-3 .8 (emphasis added).”
Ind. Code § 31-40-1-3(c): 4 cases
F.A. v. State of Indiana, No. 19A-JV-2438 (Ind. Ct. App. May 1, 2020). “***** Ind. Code § 31-40-1-3 .8 (emphasis added).”
E.M. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.), No. 18A-JV-706 (Ind. Ct. App. Apr. 25, 2019). “[15] The reimbursement statute, Ind. Code § 31-40-1-3 , provides, in pertinent part: (a) A parent or guardian of the estate of: (1) a child adjudicated a delinquent child .”
K.B. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.), No. 19A-JV-2135 (Ind. Ct. App. Apr. 8, 2020). “3 Our Court recently addressed INDIANA CODE § 31-40-1-3, sometimes referred to as the reimbursement statute, as follows: The reimbursement statute provides that the juvenile court “shall” order parents to pay for or reimburse the costs of services provided to the delinquent…”
J.T. v. State, 116 N.E.3d 459 (Ind. 2019). “" Ind. Code § 31-40-1-3 (c). The actual process of this inquiry likely varies from county to county and from court to court, and I have no reason to believe the trial court in this case did anything out of the ordinary.”
Ind. Code § 31-40-1-3(d): 1 case
J.T. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.), 111 N.E.3d 1019 (Ind. Ct. App. 2018). “[....] [T]he juvenile court shall order the child's parents or the guardian of the child's estate to pay for, or reimburse the department for the cost of services provided to the child or the parent or guardian unless the court makes a specific finding that the parent or…”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.