Stephen Moore, Donald Trump’s embattled pick for the Federal Reserve board of governors, has underpaid his ex-wife’s alimony bills for years, leaving her out of pocket by tens of thousands of dollars.

Moore has continued paying Allison Moore significantly less than required under their 2011 divorce settlement, according to a source familiar with the arrangements.

The underpayment persisted even after Moore was found in contempt of court in Virginia in 2012, and came close to having his home seized, after he failed to pay Allison Moore more than $300,000 he owed her at the time.

A spokeswoman for Moore said he declined to comment.

The new finding may present an additional obstacle for Moore’s selection by Trump for a position on the world’s most powerful central bank. The 59-year-old economics commentator must be confirmed to the role by the US Senate.

Staff from the Senate banking committee, which would consider his nomination, are reviewing the discovery of Moore’s underpayments, according to a source with knowledge of their work.

Democrats have already asked Moore for detailed information on his finances following the Guardian’s publication of reports on the contempt of court finding against him and on the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) pursuing him for more than $75,000 in federal taxes. Moore has since paid the tax bill.

The White House has said it is examining a series of controversial remarks made by Moore in interviews and published articles, which have generated criticism from several Republican senators.

Moore has dismissed all the findings as irrelevant to his suitability for the Federal Reserve job, which typically carries a 14-year term. With support from Fox News and other pro-Trump media, Moore has described the reporting on his financial and legal problems as “vile and vicious and underhanded” and vowed to press on with his nomination.

Through her attorney, Allison Moore declined to comment. In a statement issued through Stephen Moore’s spokeswoman, she previously said of their relationship: “We remain on cordial terms.”

Court records reopened to the public, following legal action from the Guardian and other news organizations, state that Moore agreed in 2011 to pay Allison Moore $18,698 per month in spousal support and $1,572 per month in support for their youngest child, who is finishing high school.

But Moore soon began failing to pay, according to court records, and was found in contempt of court in November 2012 with an outstanding bill of more than $300,000. Moore continued failing to pay his ex-wife, and the sum he owed grew to $330,000.

Early in 2013, a judge ordered that Stephen Moore’s house in Falls Church, Virginia, be sold to pay the debt. A court official accompanied by four police officers broke into the property to prepare it for sale. But this process was halted by Allison Moore when Stephen Moore finally paid her part of his debt.

A source familiar with the Moores’ arrangements, who declined to be identified discussing personal matters, said Stephen Moore had since then frequently paid Allison Moore about $12,000 monthly – a shortfall of about $8,000 per month.

In response to questions about the underpayments, a spokeswoman for Stephen Moore cited an earlier statement in which Moore said: “Our divorce was settled amicably many years ago and we remain on friendly terms to this day.”

Allison Moore never explicitly consented to being underpaid, the source said, but has so far taken no legal action against her ex-husband to claim the outstanding funds. She is understood to have declined requests made by Stephen Moore in 2015 to formally agree to the reduced payments. Stephen Moore bought a $1.3m house in Maryland that year shortly before marrying his second wife, Anne Carey.

Senators are likely to ask Moore for guarantees that he has always reported his actual spousal support payments to the IRS rather than the higher total that he was obliged to pay, and that accurate figures relating to the alimony were given to Moore’s mortgage lender in 2015. Moore borrowed more than $960,000 for the home purchase, according to county records. Moore has denied any wrongdoing.

Moore said the IRS demand for $75,000 was made because he mistakenly deducted child support payments from his income tax bill for 2014. While spousal support payments are deductible, child support payments are not. Moore recently said he had settled the dispute and court records show the case has been closed. He and his current wife claim to have separately overpaid tax and say they are owed money by the IRS.

The Moores’ 2011 divorce agreement said the total spousal and child support required from Stephen Moore could be reduced if his income fell below $350,000 per year.

Moore’s spokeswoman declined to say whether his income had dropped to that level since the divorce. In an interview last month, Moore said taking the Federal Reserve job would cause him a 68% pay cut, indicating that his current annual income is more than $570,000.

Allison Moore’s divorce complaint accused Stephen Moore of adultery and inflicting emotional and psychological abuse. Stephen Moore later said in an October 2014 article that “intact families” were important for the US economy and criticized “those who cheer divorce as a form of women’s liberation”.

Concluding his article, Moore called for a “personal and national commitment to sturdy families” and strong parenting as part of a “culture of virtue” aimed at saving the American economy from what he called a path of decline.