Tickled that its first child support amnesty effort went well last June, the Anne Arundel County Domestic Relations Office is expanding the program.

Starting Tuesday, and running through June 18, the agency will offer three weeks of no penalties for parents who are arrears in child support payments and want to make good. Last year's program lasted two weeks.

"We encourage people who are not in compliance to try to come in and work something out. Some of these people may even have warrants out on them currently," said Wendy Weeks, special assistant state's attorney for domestic relations.

Parents who have warrants for failure to appear in court for nonpayment of support, are behind in payments or are in danger of losing their driver's licenses for failure to pay child support can come to the domestic relations office without fear of arrest during the program. They should bring employment information and a lump sum payment in cash or money order to begin rectifying their child support situation, Weeks said.

Last year, 229 people took advantage of the child support amnesty, including 42 with outstanding warrants, bringing $25,000 with them. Some, Weeks said, were parents who fell behind in support and then feared sheriff's department roundups, but who have not skipped a payment since the amnesty weeks.

The domestic relations office is at 2024 West St., the Sandy Springs bank building, at Route 2 and West Street.

The regular business hours of 8: 30 a.m. to 4: 30 p.m. weekdays will be expanded during the amnesty weeks to 7 p.m. on Fridays and 9 a.m. to noon June 5 and 12.

Pub Date: 5/30/99