BC ALS victim Art Brown fights FMEP garnishing his disability pension of "Child Support" for adult "Child" not living with her mother

2007-06-24_Brown-FMEP-NoticeofAttachmentCover.pdf

2007-02-26_Brown-FMEP-NoticeofAttachment.pdf

2007-06-18_Brown-Ombudsman.pdf

2007-06-01 FMEP oversteps its moral bounds

"My name is Arthur Brown and I was diagnosed with ALS which is also known as Lou Gehrig's disease Feb. 2006. This disease is terminal and progressively gets worse, and we usually only live between 3-5 years after diagnosis, if we are lucky.  THERE IS NO KNOWN CAUSE OR CURE FOR ALS!!!!  Here is my story, written by Heather Reid, Reporter for Alberni Valley News." 

2007-05-25  Nothing Left to Give (Art Brown's Disability pension gleaned by FMEP)  "Last year, Arthur Brown was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s Disease) and put on disability. In addition to fighting for his life, he’s now embroiled in an argument with B.C.’s Family Maintenance Enforcement Program (FMEP) over monetary support for his adult daughter... ALS is a neuromuscular disease that progresses rapidly. According to the ALS society of Canada, 90 per cent of people with the disease die within five years of diagnosis.   

“Stress makes it worse,” Berkeley said.

"Brown is the father of two adult children: a son who’s 21 and a daughter who turned 19 last October. He and the children’s mother divorced 10 years ago, but Brown stayed involved in his kids’ lives. Brown .. assumed that when his youngest reached adulthood that the payments were finished, and given his poor health, stopped sending the monthly cheques to his former wife last October. But stopping support payments isn’t that simple. Brown received a form letter from a provincial agent explaining that unless his divorce agreement explicitly states that support payments end, he would have to continue paying. Two examples cited were if the young adult still lives as a dependent in the other parent’s home, or attends school full-time." More:   Nothing Left To Give!!! - Alberni.ca Forums

2007-06-08  Art Brown heads to court;  "Brown faithfully made support payments for his two children in the 10 years after his marriage dissolved. He’s never questioned that responsibility. In October of 2006 his youngest turned 19, and Brown stopped sending cheques to her mother.  He’s since learned that that’s not how it works.  ...   The enforcement program’s website (www.fmep.gov.bc.ca) states that payments may continue beyond the age of majority if the child is living with and dependent on the custodial parent or attending post-secondary school full-time. Brown says that none of these conditions apply to his youngest adult child.  The FMEP maintains that Brown’s former spouse has to agree to stop the payments, which she has so far refused to do."

2007-05-25  Nothing left to give, Art Brown Story

2007-05-25_Nothing Left to Give  By Heather Reid, Alberni Valley News, May 25 2007

Two years ago Art Brown was a healthy mill worker who suffered from some stiffness in his legs. A year later he was diagnosed with ALS, and now must use a wheelchair.

Last year, Arthur Brown was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s Disease) and put on disability. In addition to fighting for his life, he’s now embroiled in an argument with B.C.’s Family Maintenance Enforcement Program (FMEP) over monetary support for his adult daughter.

“I ran out of money,” Brown said from his Beaver Creek home, where he gets around in a wheelchair and has a friend, Helen Berkeley, assisting with his daily living. ALS is a neuromuscular disease that progresses rapidly. According to the ALS society of Canada, 90 per cent of people with the disease die within five years of diagnosis.

“Stress makes it worse,” Berkeley said.

For years, Brown lived with pains and stiffness in his legs and feet that he attributed to arthritis. Last January Brown collapsed on the job at a local mill. That incident lead to the ALS diagnosis. The disease has progressed so that Brown can no longer walk, although he still has the use of both of his arms. He has a special pocket sewn into the shin of his pantleg for a cellphone. It’s there so he can call for help if he falls out of his wheelchair while his caregiver is away.

Brown is the father of two adult children: a son who’s 21 and a daughter who turned 19 last October. He and the children’s mother divorced 10 years ago, but Brown stayed involved in his kids’ lives. Brown says he never questioned providing support payments to his kids, and never missed a payment. He assumed that when his youngest reached adulthood that the payments were finished, and given his poor health, stopped sending the monthly cheques to his former wife last October.

But stopping support payments isn’t that simple. Brown received a form letter from a provincial agent explaining that unless his divorce agreement explicitly states that support payments end, he would have to continue paying. Two examples cited were if the young adult still lives as a dependent in the other parent’s home, or attends school full-time.

Brown says that his daughter left home after graduating from high school in the summer of 2005, and to the best of his knowledge she hasn’t received support from her mother since then. The daughter attended university in Victoria during that school year, then moved to Nanaimo to live with her grandparents, planning to continue her studies there.

“We gave her an education fund when she started school,” said her maternal grandmother Julie Domino.

According to Brown, his daughter remained at her grandparents, but stopped going to school full time last fall. Brown said that she worked four days a week and attended two night classes each week. He also said his daughter has told him she hasn’t received financial help from her mother since she left home two years ago.

But that’s not the same information that Brown’s ex-wife provided to the family maintenance program. In a form Lori Brown filled out in October 2006, she says that her daughter will be enrolled in school full time, that she doesn’t live in her home but that she pays rent to her grandparents.

“She’s never paid a cent in rent,” Brown said of his daughter. He’s written to the FMEP many times detailing his circumstances and pointing out what he says is incorrect information from his former spouse. All Brown has received in return have been form letters from the FMEP with the last saying that they would withhold government payments.

Brown is worried that that could mean garnisheeing his disability pensions. “My life, my health, is the only thing now. My kids are doing all right,” Brown said.

As it is, Brown can’t afford to have chelation treatments to remove heavy metals from his body, which some ALS sufferers feel alleviate symptoms of the disease. The naturopathic treatments aren’t covered under medical services.

When all his monthly expenses are paid, he has $7.84 left over each month.

Brown is mystified by the FMEP’s decision. “Everywhere I’ve gone, I’ve been treated like dirt,” Brown says of his attempts to communicate with the FMEP. “That whole system needs to be torn to pieces and rebuilt,” he added.

Chris Beresford, director of Family Maintenance Enforcement Program for all of B.C. admits that the system isn’t easy for people to understand. While he wouldn’t comment on an individual case, he did say that, “if both parents agree that support payments should stop, then the payments stop.”

The parent with that power, Lori Brown, refused to comment on the situation. Arthur Brown said that even his daughter told him she didn’t want the payments to continue. His daughter declined an interview.

Brown said his relationship with his daughter is good. She sent an e-mail in April asking him to keep his eyes out for a job for her in Port Alberni. The note closes with x’s and o’s.

Brown’s only recourse to have the family maintenance payments halted is to take his ex-wife to court. But he’s overwhelmed with the idea of having to deal with a court case as well as his failing health.

“I’ll help my daughter any way I can,” Brown said, but added that at this point in his life financial support isn’t possible.

reporter@albernivalleynews.com

Brown, Art:  FMEP thieves Pension

2007-06-08_Art Brown heads to court

By Heather Reid, Alberni Valley News, Jun 08 2007

Art Brown is getting help with his fight with the Family Maintenance Enforcement Program (FMEP).

In recent weeks, Brown and his full-time caregiver Helen Berkeley have been trying to get someone to hear Brown’s case for ceasing child support payments to his adult daughter.

“We had the (B.C.) Ombudsman call this morning,” Brown said. Now, a friend who works in government administration has come onboard to help file documents for a court case to determine the matter.

Brown faithfully made support payments for his two children in the 10 years after his marriage dissolved. He’s never questioned that responsibility. In October of 2006 his youngest turned 19, and Brown stopped sending cheques to her mother.

He’s since learned that that’s not how it works.

The enforcement program’s website ( www.fmep.gov.bc.ca ) states that payments may continue beyond the age of majority if the child is living with and dependent on the custodial parent or attending post-secondary school full-time. <SCAM!!!>  Brown says that none of these conditions apply to his youngest adult child.

The FMEP maintains that Brown’s former spouse has to agree to stop the payments, which she has so far refused to do.

It’s not that Brown wouldn’t like to continue to help his adult daughter financially – it’s that he can’t.

Brown hasn’t been able to work since he was diagnosed with ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, a year and a half ago. He has been getting by on a disability pension, but the powers that be have demanded that he continue making payments decided years ago under very different circumstances. His condition is terminal and sufferers are typically given three to five years to live once diagnosed.

“The FMEP was put in place to collect monies from deadbeat parents, not dying men,” Brown says.

Brown says the FMEP made good on its threat to garnishee his disability income on June 1. He’s learned that there’s a lein on his Beaver Creek home.

“There has to be some accountability,” Berkeley said.

reporter@albernivalleynews.com