Article 2. Collections And Enforcement of California Family Law Code >> Division 17. >> Chapter 2. >> Article 2.
(a) In carrying out its obligations under Title IV-D of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 651 et seq.), the department and
the local child support agency shall have the responsibility for
promptly and effectively collecting and enforcing child support
obligations.
(b) The department and the local child support agency are the
public agencies responsible for administering wage withholding for
the purposes of Title IV-D of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec.
651 et seq.).
(c) Except as provided in Section 17450, the local child support
agency shall submit child support delinquencies to the department for
purposes of supplementing the collection efforts of the local child
support agencies. Submissions shall be in the form and manner and at
the time prescribed by the department. Collection shall be made by
the department in accordance with Section 17450. For purposes of this
subdivision, "child support delinquency" means an arrearage or
otherwise past due amount that accrues when an obligor fails to make
any court-ordered support payment when due, which is more than 60
days past due, and the aggregate amount of which exceeds one hundred
dollars ($100).
(d) If a child support delinquency exists at the time a case is
opened by the local child support agency, the responsibility for the
collection of the child support delinquency shall be submitted to the
department no later than 30 days after receipt of the case by the
local child support agency.
A local child support agency that is collecting child
support payments on behalf of a child and who is unable to deliver
the payments to the obligee because the local child support agency is
unable to locate the obligee shall make all reasonable efforts to
locate the obligee for a period of six months. If the local child
support agency is unable to locate the obligee within the six-month
period, it shall return the undeliverable payments to the obligor,
with written notice advising the obligor that (a) the return of the
funds does not relieve the obligor of the support order, and (b) the
obligor should consider placing the funds aside for purposes of child
support in case the obligee appears and seeks collection of the
undistributed amounts. No interest shall accrue on any past-due child
support amount for which the obligor made payment to the local child
support agency for six consecutive months, or on any amounts due
thereafter until the obligee is located, provided that the local
child support agency returned the funds to the obligor because the
local child support agency was unable to locate the obligee and, when
the obligee was located, the obligor made full payment for all
past-due child support amounts.
The first fifty dollars ($50) of any amount of child support
collected in a month in payment of the required support obligation
for that month shall be paid to a recipient of aid under Article 2
(commencing with Section 11250) of Chapter 2 of Part 3 of Division 9
of the Welfare and Institutions Code, except recipients of foster
care payments under Article 5 (commencing with Section 11400) of
Chapter 2 of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions
Code shall not be considered income or resources of the recipient
family, and shall not be deducted from the amount of aid to which the
family would otherwise be eligible. The local child support agency
in each county shall ensure that payments are made to recipients as
required by this section.
(a) All state, county, and local agencies shall cooperate
with the local child support agency (1) in the enforcement of any
child support obligation or to the extent required under the state
plan under Part 6 (commencing with Section 5700.101) of Division 9,
Section 270 of the Penal Code, and Section 17604, and (2) the
enforcement of spousal support orders and in the location of parents
or putative parents. The local child support agency may enter into an
agreement with and shall secure from a municipal, county, or state
law enforcement agency, pursuant to that agreement, state summary
criminal record information through the California Law Enforcement
Telecommunications System. This subdivision applies irrespective of
whether the children are or are not receiving aid to families with
dependent children. All state, county, and local agencies shall
cooperate with the district attorney in implementing Chapter 8
(commencing with Section 3130) of Part 2 of Division 8 concerning the
location, seizure, and recovery of abducted, concealed, or detained
minor children.
(b) On request, all state, county, and local agencies shall supply
the local child support agency of any county in this state or the
California Parent Locator Service with all information on hand
relative to the location, income, or property of any parents,
putative parents, spouses, or former spouses, notwithstanding any
other provision of law making the information confidential, and with
all information on hand relative to the location and prosecution of
any person who has, by means of false statement or representation or
by impersonation or other fraudulent device, obtained aid for a child
under this chapter.
(c) The California Child Support Automation System, or its
replacement, shall be entitled to the same cooperation and
information provided to the California Parent Locator Service, to the
extent allowed by law. The California Child Support Automation
System, or its replacement, shall be allowed access to criminal
offender record information only to the extent that access is allowed
by law.
(d) Information exchanged between the California Parent Locator
Service or the California Child Support Automation System, or its
replacement, and state, county, or local agencies as specified in
Sections 653(c)(4) and 666(c)(1)(D) of Title 42 of the United State
Code shall be through automated processes to the maximum extent
feasible.
(a) There is in the department a California Parent Locator
Service and Central Registry that shall collect and disseminate all
of the following, with respect to any parent, putative parent,
spouse, or former spouse:
(1) The full and true name of the parent together with any known
aliases.
(2) Date and place of birth.
(3) Physical description.
(4) Social security number.
(5) Employment history and earnings.
(6) Military status and Veterans Administration or military
service serial number.
(7) Last known address, telephone number, and date thereof.
(8) Driver's license number, driving record, and vehicle
registration information.
(9) Criminal, licensing, and applicant records and information.
(10) (A) Any additional location, asset, and income information,
including income tax return information obtained pursuant to Section
19548 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, and to the extent permitted
by federal law, the address, telephone number, and social security
number obtained from a public utility, cable television corporation,
a provider of electronic digital pager communication, or a provider
of mobile telephony services that may be of assistance in locating
the parent, putative parent, abducting, concealing, or detaining
parent, spouse, or former spouse, in establishing a parent and child
relationship, in enforcing the child support liability of the absent
parent, or enforcing the spousal support liability of the spouse or
former spouse to the extent required by the state plan pursuant to
Section 17604.
(B) For purposes of this subdivision, "income tax return
information" means all of the following regarding the taxpayer:
(i) Assets.
(ii) Credits.
(iii) Deductions.
(iv) Exemptions.
(v) Identity.
(vi) Liabilities.
(vii) Nature, source, and amount of income.
(viii) Net worth.
(ix) Payments.
(x) Receipts.
(xi) Address.
(xii) Social security number.
(b) Pursuant to a letter of agreement entered into between the
Department of Child Support Services and the Department of Justice,
the Department of Child Support Services shall assume responsibility
for the California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry. The
letter of agreement shall, at a minimum, set forth all of the
following:
(1) Contingent upon funding in the Budget Act, the Department of
Child Support Services shall assume responsibility for leadership and
staff of the California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry
commencing July 1, 2003.
(2) All employees and other personnel who staff or provide support
for the California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry
shall, at the time of the transition, at their option, become the
employees of the Department of Child Support Services at their
existing or equivalent classification, salaries, and benefits.
(3) Until the department's automation system for the California
Parent Locator Service and Central Registry functions is fully
operational, the department shall use the automation system operated
by the Department of Justice.
(4) Any other provisions necessary to ensure continuity of
function and meet or exceed existing levels of service.
(c) To effectuate the purposes of this section, the California
Child Support Automation System, the California Parent Locator
Service and Central Registry, and the Franchise Tax Board shall
utilize the federal Parent Locator Service to the extent necessary,
and may request and shall receive from all departments, boards,
bureaus, or other agencies of the state, or any of its political
subdivisions, and those entities shall provide, that assistance and
data that will enable the Department of Child Support Services and
other public agencies to carry out their powers and duties to locate
parents, spouses, and former spouses, and to identify their assets,
to establish parent-child relationships, and to enforce liability for
child or spousal support, and for any other obligations incurred on
behalf of children, and shall also provide that information to any
local child support agency in fulfilling the duties prescribed in
Section 270 of the Penal Code, and in Chapter 8 (commencing with
Section 3130) of Part 2 of Division 8 of this code, relating to
abducted, concealed, or detained children and to any county child
welfare agency or county probation department in fulfilling the
duties prescribed in Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 290.1) of
Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Division 2 of the Welfare and Institutions
Code, and prescribed in Article 6 (commencing with Section 300) of
Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Division 2 of the Welfare and Institutions
Code to identify, locate, and notify parents or relatives of children
who are the subject of juvenile court proceedings, to establish
parent and child relationships pursuant to Section 316.2 of the
Welfare and Institutions Code, and to assess the appropriateness of
placement of a child with a noncustodial parent pursuant to Section
361.2 of the Welfare and Institutions Code. Consistent with paragraph
(1) of subdivision (e) of Section 309 of, and paragraph (2) of
subdivision (d) of Section 628 of, the Welfare and Institutions Code,
in order for county child welfare and probation departments to carry
out their duties to identify and locate all grandparents, adult
siblings, and other adult relatives of the child as defined in
paragraph (2) of subdivision (f) of Section 319 of the Welfare and
Institutions Code, including any other adult relatives suggested by
the parents, county personnel are permitted to request and receive
information from the California Parent Locator Service and Federal
Parent Locator Service. County child welfare agencies and probation
departments shall be entitled to the information described in this
subdivision regardless of whether an all-county letter or similar
instruction is issued pursuant to subparagraph (C) of paragraph (8)
of subdivision (c) of Section 11478.1 of the Welfare and Institutions
Code. The California Child Support Automation System shall be
entitled to the same cooperation and information as the California
Parent Locator Service and Central Registry to the extent allowed by
law. The California Child Support Automation System shall be allowed
access to criminal record information only to the extent that access
is allowed by state and federal law.
(d) (1) To effectuate the purposes of this section, and
notwithstanding any other law, regulation, or tariff, and to the
extent permitted by federal law, the California Parent Locator
Service and Central Registry and the California Child Support
Automation System may request and shall receive from public
utilities, as defined in Section 216 of the Public Utilities Code,
customer service information, including the full name, address,
telephone number, date of birth, employer name and address, and
social security number of customers of the public utility, to the
extent that this information is stored within the computer database
of the public utility.
(2) To effectuate the purposes of this section, and
notwithstanding any other law, regulation, or tariff, and to the
extent permitted by federal law, the California Parent Locator
Service and Central Registry and the California Child Support
Automation System may request and shall receive from cable television
corporations, as defined in Section 216.4 of the Public Utilities
Code, the providers of electronic digital pager communication, as
defined in Section 629.51 of the Penal Code, and the providers of
mobile telephony services, as defined in Section 224.4 of the Public
Utilities Code, customer service information, including the full
name, address, telephone number, date of birth, employer name and
address, and social security number of customers of the cable
television corporation, customers of the providers of electronic
digital pager communication, and customers of the providers of mobile
telephony services.
(3) In order to protect the privacy of utility, cable television,
electronic digital pager communication, and mobile telephony service
customers, a request to a public utility, cable television
corporation, provider of electronic digital pager communication, or
provider of mobile telephony services for customer service
information pursuant to this section shall meet the following
requirements:
(A) Be submitted to the public utility, cable television
corporation, provider of electronic digital pager communication, or
provider of mobile telephony services in writing, on a transmittal
document prepared by the California Parent Locator Service and
Central Registry or the California Child Support Automation System
and approved by all of the public utilities, cable television
corporations, providers of electronic digital pager communication,
and providers of mobile telephony services. The transmittal shall be
deemed to be an administrative subpoena for customer service
information.
(B) Have the signature of a representative authorized by the
California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry or the
California Child Support Automation System.
(C) Contain at least three of the following data elements
regarding the person sought:
(i) First and last name, and middle initial, if known.
(ii) Social security number.
(iii) Driver's license number.
(iv) Birth date.
(v) Last known address.
(vi) Spouse's name.
(D) The California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry and
the California Child Support Automation System shall ensure that
each public utility, cable television corporation, provider of
electronic digital pager communication services, and provider of
mobile telephony services has at all times a current list of the
names of persons authorized to request customer service information.
(E) The California Child Support Automation System and the
California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry shall ensure
that customer service information supplied by a public utility, cable
television corporation, provider of electronic digital pager
communication, or provider of mobile telephony services is applicable
to the person who is being sought before releasing the information
pursuant to subdivision (d).
(4) During the development of the California Child Support
Automation System, the department shall determine the necessity of
additional locate sources, including those specified in this section,
based upon the cost-effectiveness of those sources.
(5) The public utility, cable television corporation, electronic
digital pager communication provider, or mobile telephony service
provider may charge a fee to the California Parent Locator Service
and Central Registry or the California Child Support Automation
System for each search performed pursuant to this subdivision to
cover the actual costs to the public utility, cable television
corporation, electronic digital pager communication provider, or
mobile telephony service provider for providing this information.
(6) No public utility, cable television corporation, electronic
digital pager communication provider, or mobile telephony service
provider or official or employee thereof, shall be subject to
criminal or civil liability for the release of customer service
information as authorized by this subdivision.
(e) Notwithstanding Section 14203 of the Penal Code, any records
established pursuant to this section shall be disseminated only to
the Department of Child Support Services, the California Child
Support Automation System, the California Parent Locator Service and
Central Registry, the parent locator services and central registries
of other states as defined by federal statutes and regulations, a
local child support agency of any county in this state, and the
federal Parent Locator Service. The California Child Support
Automation System shall be allowed access to criminal offender record
information only to the extent that access is allowed by law.
(f) (1) At no time shall any information received by the
California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry or by the
California Child Support Automation System be disclosed to any
person, agency, or other entity, other than those persons, agencies,
and entities specified pursuant to Section 17505, this section, or
any other provision.
(2) This subdivision shall not otherwise affect discovery between
parties in any action to establish, modify, or enforce child, family,
or spousal support, that relates to custody or visitation.
(g) (1) The Department of Justice, in consultation with the
Department of Child Support Services, shall promulgate rules and
regulations to facilitate maximum and efficient use of the California
Parent Locator Service and Central Registry. Upon implementation of
the California Child Support Automation System, the Department of
Child Support Services shall assume all responsibility for
promulgating rules and regulations for use of the California Parent
Locator Service and Central Registry.
(2) The Department of Child Support Services, the Public Utilities
Commission, the cable television corporations, providers of
electronic digital pager communication, and the providers of mobile
telephony services shall develop procedures for obtaining the
information described in subdivision (c) from public utilities, cable
television corporations, providers of electronic digital pager
communication, and providers of mobile telephony services and for
compensating the public utilities, cable television corporations,
providers of electronic digital pager communication, and providers of
mobile telephony services for providing that information.
(h) The California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry may
charge a fee not to exceed eighteen dollars ($18) for any service it
provides pursuant to this section that is not performed or funded
pursuant to Section 651 and following of Title 42 of the United
States Code.
(i) This section shall be construed in a manner consistent with
the other provisions of this article.
(a) The Employment Development Department shall, when
requested by the Department of Child Support Services local child
support agency, or, the Franchise Tax Board for purposes of
administering Article 5 (commencing with Section 19271) of Chapter 5
of Part 10.2 of Division 2 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, the
federal Parent Locator Service, or the California Parent Locator
Service, provide access to information collected pursuant to Division
1 (commencing with Section 100) of the Unemployment Insurance Code
to the requesting department or agency for purposes of administering
the child support enforcement program, and for purposes of verifying
employment of applicants and recipients of aid under this chapter or
CalFresh under Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 18900) of Part 6
of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(b) (1) To the extent possible, the Employment Development
Department shall share information collected under Sections 1088.5
and 1088.8 of the Unemployment Insurance Code immediately upon
receipt. This sharing of information may include electronic means.
(2) This subdivision shall not authorize the Employment
Development Department to share confidential information with any
individuals not otherwise permitted by law to receive the information
or preclude batch runs or comparisons of data.
Once the statewide automated system is fully implemented,
the Department of Child Support Services shall periodically compare
Employment Development Department information collected under
Division 1 (commencing with Section 100) of the Unemployment
Insurance Code to child support obligor records and identify cases
where the obligor is employed but there is no earning withholding
order in effect. The department shall immediately notify local child
support agencies in those cases.
To assist local agencies in child support enforcement
activities, the department shall operate a workers' compensation
notification project based on information received pursuant to
Section 138.5 of the Labor Code or any other source of information.
(a) Upon receipt of a written request from a local child
support agency enforcing the obligation of parents to support their
children pursuant to Section 17400, or from an agency of another
state enforcing support obligations pursuant to Section 654 of Title
42 of the United States Code, every employer, as specified in Section
5210, and every labor organization shall cooperate with and provide
relevant employment and income information that they have in their
possession to the local child support agency or other requesting
agency for the purpose of establishing, modifying, or enforcing the
support obligation. No employer or labor organization shall incur any
liability for providing this information to the local child support
agency or other requesting agency.
(b) Relevant employment and income information shall include, but
not be limited to, all of the following:
(1) Whether a named person has or has not been employed by an
employer or whether a named person has or has not been employed to
the knowledge of the labor organization.
(2) The full name of the employee or member or the first and
middle initial and last name of the employee or member.
(3) The employee's or member's last known residence address.
(4) The employee's or member's date of birth.
(5) The employee's or member's social security number.
(6) The dates of employment.
(7) All earnings paid to the employee or member and reported as
W-2 compensation in the prior tax year and the employee's or member's
current basic rate of pay.
(8) Other earnings, as specified in Section 5206, paid to the
employee or member.
(9) Whether dependent health insurance coverage is available to
the employee through employment or membership in the labor
organization.
(c) The local child support agency or other agency shall notify
the employer and labor organization of the local child support agency
case file number in making a request pursuant to this section. The
written request shall include at least three of the following
elements regarding the person who is the subject of the inquiry: (A)
first and last name and middle initial, if known; (B) social security
number; (C) driver's license number; (D) birth date; (E) last known
address; or (F) spouse's name.
(d) The local child support agency or other requesting agency
shall send a notice that a request for this information has been made
to the last known address of the person who is the subject of the
inquiry.
(e) An employer or labor organization that fails to provide
relevant employment information to the local child support agency or
other requesting agency within 30 days of receiving a request
pursuant to subdivision (a) may be assessed a civil penalty of a
maximum of one thousand dollars ($1,000), plus attorneys' fees and
costs. Proceedings to impose the civil penalty shall be commenced by
the filing and service of an order to show cause.
(f) "Labor organization," for the purposes of this section means a
labor organization as defined in Section 1117 of the Labor Code or
any related benefit trust fund covered under the federal Employee
Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (Chapter 18 (commencing with
Section 1001) of Title 29 of the United States Code).
(g) Any reference to the local child support agency in this
section shall apply only when the local child support agency is
otherwise ordered or required to act pursuant to existing law.
Nothing in this section shall be deemed to mandate additional
enforcement or collection duties upon the local child support agency
beyond those imposed under existing law on the effective date of this
section.
(a) It is the intent of the Legislature to protect
individual rights of privacy, and to facilitate and enhance the
effectiveness of the child abduction and recovery programs, by
ensuring the confidentiality of child abduction records, and to
thereby encourage the full and frank disclosure of information
relevant to all of the following:
(1) The establishment or maintenance of parent and child
relationships and support obligations.
(2) The enforcement of the child support liability of absent
parents.
(3) The enforcement of spousal support liability of the spouse or
former spouse to the extent required by the state plan under Section
17400, and Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 4800) of Part 5 of
Division 9.
(4) The location of absent parents.
(5) The location of parents and children abducted, concealed, or
detained by them.
(b) (1) Except as provided in this subdivision, all files,
applications, papers, documents, and records, established or
maintained by any public entity for the purpose of locating an
abducted child, locating a person who has abducted a child, or
prosecution of a person who has abducted a child shall be
confidential, and shall not be open to examination or released for
disclosure for any purpose not directly connected with locating or
recovering the abducted child or abducting person or prosecution of
the abducting person.
(2) Except as provided in subdivision (c), no public entity shall
disclose any file, application, paper document, or record described
in this section, or the information contained therein.
(c) (1) All files, applications, papers, documents, and records as
described in subdivision (b) shall be available and may be used by a
public entity for all administrative, civil, or criminal
investigations, actions, proceedings, or prosecution conducted in
connection with the child abduction or prosecution of the abducting
person.
(2) A document requested by a person who wrote, prepared, or
furnished the document may be examined by or disclosed to that person
or his or her designee.
(3) Public records subject to disclosure under Chapter 3.5
(commencing with Section 6250) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the
Government Code may be released.
(4) After a noticed motion and a finding by the court, in a case
in which child recovery or abduction prosecution actions are being
taken, that release or disclosure is required by due process of law,
the court may order a public entity that possesses an application,
paper, document, or record described in this subdivision to make that
item available to the defendant or other party for examination or
copying, or to disclose to an appropriate person the contents of that
item. Article 9 (commencing with Section 1040) of Chapter 4 of
Division 8 of the Evidence Code shall not be applicable to
proceedings under this part.
(5) To the extent not prohibited by federal law or regulation,
information indicating the existence or imminent threat of a crime
against a minor child, or location of a concealed or abducted child
or the location of the concealing or abducting person, may be
disclosed to any appropriate law enforcement agency, or to any state
or county child protective agency, or may be used in any judicial
proceedings to prosecute that crime or to protect the child.
(6) Information may be released to any state or local agency for
the purposes connected with establishing, modifying, and enforcing
child support obligations, enforcing spousal support orders, and
determining paternity as required by Part D (commencing with Section
651) of Subchapter IV of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States
Code and this article.
In no event shall public social service benefits, as defined
in Section 10051 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, or benefits
paid pursuant to Title XVI of the Social Security Act be employed to
satisfy a support obligation.
(a) As authorized by subdivision (d) of Section 704.120 of
the Code of Civil Procedure, the following actions shall be taken in
order to enforce support obligations that are not being met. Whenever
a support judgment or order has been rendered by a court of this
state against an individual who is entitled to any unemployment
compensation benefits or unemployment compensation disability
benefits, the local child support agency may file a certification of
support judgment or support order with the Department of Child
Support Services, verifying under penalty of perjury that there is or
has been a judgment or an order for support with sums overdue
thereunder. The department shall periodically present and keep
current, by deletions and additions, a list of the certified support
judgments and orders and shall periodically notify the Employment
Development Department of individuals certified as owing support
obligations.
(b) If the Employment Development Department determines that an
individual who owes support may have a claim for unemployment
compensation disability insurance benefits under a voluntary plan
approved by the Employment Development Department in accordance with
Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 3251) of Part 2 of Division 1 of
the Unemployment Insurance Code, the Employment Development
Department shall immediately notify the voluntary plan payer. When
the department notifies the Employment Development Department of
changes in an individual's support obligations, the Employment
Development Department shall promptly notify the voluntary plan payer
of these changes. The Employment Development Department shall
maintain and keep current a record of individuals who owe support
obligations who may have claims for unemployment compensation or
unemployment compensation disability benefits.
(c) Notwithstanding any other law, the Employment Development
Department shall withhold the amounts specified below from the
unemployment compensation benefits or unemployment compensation
disability benefits of individuals with unmet support obligations.
The Employment Development Department shall forward the amounts to
the Department of Child Support Services for distribution to the
appropriate certifying county.
(d) Notwithstanding any other law, during the payment of
unemployment compensation disability benefits to an individual, with
respect to whom the Employment Development Department has notified a
voluntary plan payer that the individual has a support obligation,
the voluntary plan payer shall withhold the amounts specified below
from the individual's unemployment compensation disability benefits
and shall forward the amounts to the appropriate certifying county.
(e) The amounts withheld in subdivisions (c) and (d) shall be
equal to 25 percent of each weekly unemployment compensation benefit
payment or periodic unemployment compensation disability benefit
payment, rounded down to the nearest whole dollar, which is due the
individual identified on the certified list. However, the amount
withheld may be reduced to a lower whole dollar amount through a
written agreement between the individual and the local child support
agency or through an order of the court.
(f) The department shall ensure that the appropriate certifying
county shall resolve any claims for refunds in the amounts
overwithheld by the Employment Development Department or voluntary
plan payer.
(g) No later than the time of the first withholding, the
individuals who are subject to the withholding shall be notified by
the payer of benefits of all of the following:
(1) That his or her unemployment compensation benefits or
unemployment compensation disability benefits have been reduced by a
court-ordered support judgment or order pursuant to this section.
(2) The address and telephone number of the local child support
agency that submitted the certificate of support judgment or order.
(3) That the support order remains in effect even though he or she
is unemployed or disabled unless it is modified by court order, and
that if the amount withheld is less than the monthly support
obligation, an arrearage will accrue.
(h) The individual may ask the appropriate court for an equitable
division of the individual's unemployment compensation or
unemployment compensation disability amounts withheld to take into
account the needs of all the persons the individual is required to
support.
(i) The Department of Child Support Services and the Employment
Development Department shall enter into any agreements necessary to
carry out this section.
(j) For purposes of this section, "support obligations" means the
child and related spousal support obligations that are being enforced
pursuant to a plan described in Section 454 of the Social Security
Act and as that section may hereafter be amended. However, to the
extent "related spousal support obligation" may not be collected from
unemployment compensation under federal law, those obligations shall
not be included in the definition of support obligations under this
section.
(a) As used in this section:
(1) "Applicant" means a person applying for issuance or renewal of
a license.
(2) "Board" means an entity specified in Section 101 of the
Business and Professions Code, the entities referred to in Sections
1000 and 3600 of the Business and Professions Code, the State Bar,
the Bureau of Real Estate, the Department of Motor Vehicles, the
Secretary of State, the Department of Fish and Wildlife, and any
other state commission, department, committee, examiner, or agency
that issues a license, certificate, credential, permit, registration,
or any other authorization to engage in a business, occupation, or
profession, or to the extent required by federal law or regulations,
for recreational purposes. This term includes all boards,
commissions, departments, committees, examiners, entities, and
agencies that issue a license, certificate, credential, permit,
registration, or any other authorization to engage in a business,
occupation, or profession. The failure to specifically name a
particular board, commission, department, committee, examiner,
entity, or agency that issues a license, certificate, credential,
permit, registration, or any other authorization to engage in a
business, occupation, or profession does not exclude that board,
commission, department, committee, examiner, entity, or agency from
this term.
(3) "Certified list" means a list provided by the local child
support agency to the Department of Child Support Services in which
the local child support agency verifies, under penalty of perjury,
that the names contained therein are support obligors found to be out
of compliance with a judgment or order for support in a case being
enforced under Title IV-D of the federal Social Security Act.
(4) "Compliance with a judgment or order for support" means that,
as set forth in a judgment or order for child or family support, the
obligor is no more than 30 calendar days in arrears in making
payments in full for current support, in making periodic payments in
full, whether court ordered or by agreement with the local child
support agency, on a support arrearage, or in making periodic
payments in full, whether court ordered or by agreement with the
local child support agency, on a judgment for reimbursement for
public assistance, or has obtained a judicial finding that equitable
estoppel as provided in statute or case law precludes enforcement of
the order. The local child support agency is authorized to use this
section to enforce orders for spousal support only when the local
child support agency is also enforcing a related child support
obligation owed to the obligee parent by the same obligor, pursuant
to Sections 17400 and 17604.
(5) "License" includes membership in the State Bar, and a
certificate, credential, permit, registration, or any other
authorization issued by a board that allows a person to engage in a
business, occupation, or profession, or to operate a commercial motor
vehicle, including appointment and commission by the Secretary of
State as a notary public. "License" also includes any driver's
license issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles, any commercial
fishing license issued by the Department of Fish and Wildlife, and to
the extent required by federal law or regulations, any license used
for recreational purposes. This term includes all licenses,
certificates, credentials, permits, registrations, or any other
authorization issued by a board that allows a person to engage in a
business, occupation, or profession. The failure to specifically name
a particular type of license, certificate, credential, permit,
registration, or other authorization issued by a board that allows a
person to engage in a business, occupation, or profession, does not
exclude that license, certificate, credential, permit, registration,
or other authorization from this term.
(6) "Licensee" means a person holding a license, certificate,
credential, permit, registration, or other authorization issued by a
board, to engage in a business, occupation, or profession, or a
commercial driver's license as defined in Section 15210 of the
Vehicle Code, including an appointment and commission by the
Secretary of State as a notary public. "Licensee" also means a person
holding a driver's license issued by the Department of Motor
Vehicles, a person holding a commercial fishing license issued by the
Department of Fish and Game, and to the extent required by federal
law or regulations, a person holding a license used for recreational
purposes. This term includes all persons holding a license,
certificate, credential, permit, registration, or any other
authorization to engage in a business, occupation, or profession, and
the failure to specifically name a particular type of license,
certificate, credential, permit, registration, or other authorization
issued by a board does not exclude that person from this term. For
licenses issued to an entity that is not an individual person,
"licensee" includes an individual who is either listed on the license
or who qualifies for the license.
(b) The local child support agency shall maintain a list of those
persons included in a case being enforced under Title IV-D of the
federal Social Security Act against whom a support order or judgment
has been rendered by, or registered in, a court of this state, and
who are not in compliance with that order or judgment. The local
child support agency shall submit a certified list with the names,
social security numbers, and last known addresses of these persons
and the name, address, and telephone number of the local child
support agency who certified the list to the department. The local
child support agency shall verify, under penalty of perjury, that the
persons listed are subject to an order or judgment for the payment
of support and that these persons are not in compliance with the
order or judgment. The local child support agency shall submit to the
department an updated certified list on a monthly basis.
(c) The department shall consolidate the certified lists received
from the local child support agencies and, within 30 calendar days of
receipt, shall provide a copy of the consolidated list to each board
that is responsible for the regulation of licenses, as specified in
this section.
(d) On or before November 1, 1992, or as soon thereafter as
economically feasible, as determined by the department, all boards
subject to this section shall implement procedures to accept and
process the list provided by the department, in accordance with this
section. Notwithstanding any other law, all boards shall collect
social security numbers or individual taxpayer identification numbers
from all applicants for the purposes of matching the names of the
certified list provided by the department to applicants and licensees
and of responding to requests for this information made by child
support agencies.
(e) (1) Promptly after receiving the certified consolidated list
from the department, and prior to the issuance or renewal of a
license, each board shall determine whether the applicant is on the
most recent certified consolidated list provided by the department.
The board shall have the authority to withhold issuance or renewal of
the license of an applicant on the list.
(2) If an applicant is on the list, the board shall immediately
serve notice as specified in subdivision (f) on the applicant of the
board's intent to withhold issuance or renewal of the license. The
notice shall be made personally or by mail to the applicant's last
known mailing address on file with the board. Service by mail shall
be complete in accordance with Section 1013 of the Code of Civil
Procedure.
(A) The board shall issue a temporary license valid for a period
of 150 days to any applicant whose name is on the certified list if
the applicant is otherwise eligible for a license.
(B) Except as provided in subparagraph (D), the 150-day time
period for a temporary license shall not be extended. Except as
provided in subparagraph (D), only one temporary license shall be
issued during a regular license term and it shall coincide with the
first 150 days of that license term. As this paragraph applies to
commercial driver's licenses, "license term" shall be deemed to be 12
months from the date the application fee is received by the
Department of Motor Vehicles. A license for the full or remainder of
the license term shall be issued or renewed only upon compliance with
this section.
(C) In the event that a license or application for a license or
the renewal of a license is denied pursuant to this section, any
funds paid by the applicant or licensee shall not be refunded by the
board.
(D) This paragraph shall apply only in the case of a driver's
license, other than a commercial driver's license. Upon the request
of the local child support agency or by order of the court upon a
showing of good cause, the board shall extend a 150-day temporary
license for a period not to exceed 150 extra days.
(3) (A) The department may, when it is economically feasible for
the department and the boards to do so as determined by the
department, in cases where the department is aware that certain child
support obligors listed on the certified lists have been out of
compliance with a judgment or order for support for more than four
months, provide a supplemental list of these obligors to each board
with which the department has an interagency agreement to implement
this paragraph. Upon request by the department, the licenses of these
obligors shall be subject to suspension, provided that the licenses
would not otherwise be eligible for renewal within six months from
the date of the request by the department. The board shall have the
authority to suspend the license of any licensee on this supplemental
list.
(B) If a licensee is on a supplemental list, the board shall
immediately serve notice as specified in subdivision (f) on the
licensee that his or her license will be automatically suspended 150
days after notice is served, unless compliance with this section is
achieved. The notice shall be made personally or by mail to the
licensee's last known mailing address on file with the board. Service
by mail shall be complete in accordance with Section 1013 of the
Code of Civil Procedure.
(C) The 150-day notice period shall not be extended.
(D) In the event that any license is suspended pursuant to this
section, any funds paid by the licensee shall not be refunded by the
board.
(E) This paragraph shall not apply to licenses subject to annual
renewal or annual fee.
(f) Notices shall be developed by each board in accordance with
guidelines provided by the department and subject to approval by the
department. The notice shall include the address and telephone number
of the local child support agency that submitted the name on the
certified list, and shall emphasize the necessity of obtaining a
release from that local child support agency as a condition for the
issuance, renewal, or continued valid status of a license or
licenses.
(1) In the case of applicants not subject to paragraph (3) of
subdivision (e), the notice shall inform the applicant that the board
shall issue a temporary license, as provided in subparagraph (A) of
paragraph (2) of subdivision (e), for 150 calendar days if the
applicant is otherwise eligible and that upon expiration of that time
period the license will be denied unless the board has received a
release from the local child support agency that submitted the name
on the certified list.
(2) In the case of licensees named on a supplemental list, the
notice shall inform the licensee that his or her license will
continue in its existing status for no more than 150 calendar days
from the date of mailing or service of the notice and thereafter will
be suspended indefinitely unless, during the 150-day notice period,
the board has received a release from the local child support agency
that submitted the name on the certified list. Additionally, the
notice shall inform the licensee that any license suspended under
this section will remain so until the expiration of the remaining
license term, unless the board receives a release along with
applications and fees, if applicable, to reinstate the license during
the license term.
(3) The notice shall also inform the applicant or licensee that if
an application is denied or a license is suspended pursuant to this
section, any funds paid by the applicant or licensee shall not be
refunded by the board. The Department of Child Support Services shall
also develop a form that the applicant shall use to request a review
by the local child support agency. A copy of this form shall be
included with every notice sent pursuant to this subdivision.
(g) (1) Each local child support agency shall maintain review
procedures consistent with this section to allow an applicant to have
the underlying arrearage and any relevant defenses investigated, to
provide an applicant information on the process of obtaining a
modification of a support order, or to provide an applicant
assistance in the establishment of a payment schedule on arrearages
if the circumstances so warrant.
(2) It is the intent of the Legislature that a court or local
child support agency, when determining an appropriate payment
schedule for arrearages, base its decision on the facts of the
particular case and the priority of payment of child support over
other debts. The payment schedule shall also recognize that certain
expenses may be essential to enable an obligor to be employed.
Therefore, in reaching its decision, the court or the local child
support agency shall consider both of these goals in setting a
payment schedule for arrearages.
(h) If the applicant wishes to challenge the submission of his or
her name on the certified list, the applicant shall make a timely
written request for review to the local child support agency who
certified the applicant's name. A request for review pursuant to this
section shall be resolved in the same manner and timeframe provided
for resolution of a complaint pursuant to Section 17800. The local
child support agency shall immediately send a release to the
appropriate board and the applicant, if any of the following
conditions are met:
(1) The applicant is found to be in compliance or negotiates an
agreement with the local child support agency for a payment schedule
on arrearages or reimbursement.
(2) The applicant has submitted a request for review, but the
local child support agency will be unable to complete the review and
send notice of its findings to the applicant within the time
specified in Section 17800.
(3) The applicant has filed and served a request for judicial
review pursuant to this section, but a resolution of that review will
not be made within 150 days of the date of service of notice
pursuant to subdivision (f). This paragraph applies only if the delay
in completing the judicial review process is not the result of the
applicant's failure to act in a reasonable, timely, and diligent
manner upon receiving the local child support agency's notice of
findings.
(4) The applicant has obtained a judicial finding of compliance as
defined in this section.
(i) An applicant is required to act with diligence in responding
to notices from the board and the local child support agency with the
recognition that the temporary license will lapse or the license
suspension will go into effect after 150 days and that the local
child support agency and, where appropriate, the court must have time
to act within that period. An applicant's delay in acting, without
good cause, which directly results in the inability of the local
child support agency to complete a review of the applicant's request
or the court to hear the request for judicial review within the
150-day period shall not constitute the diligence required under this
section which would justify the issuance of a release.
(j) Except as otherwise provided in this section, the local child
support agency shall not issue a release if the applicant is not in
compliance with the judgment or order for support. The local child
support agency shall notify the applicant in writing that the
applicant may, by filing an order to show cause or notice of motion,
request any or all of the following:
(1) Judicial review of the local child support agency's decision
not to issue a release.
(2) A judicial determination of compliance.
(3) A modification of the support judgment or order.
The notice shall also contain the name and address of the court in
which the applicant shall file the order to show cause or notice of
motion and inform the applicant that his or her name shall remain on
the certified list if the applicant does not timely request judicial
review. The applicant shall comply with all statutes and rules of
court regarding orders to show cause and notices of motion.
This section shall not be deemed to limit an applicant from filing
an order to show cause or notice of motion to modify a support
judgment or order or to fix a payment schedule on arrearages accruing
under a support judgment or order or to obtain a court finding of
compliance with a judgment or order for support.
(k) The request for judicial review of the local child support
agency's decision shall state the grounds for which review is
requested and judicial review shall be limited to those stated
grounds. The court shall hold an evidentiary hearing within 20
calendar days of the filing of the request for review. Judicial
review of the local child support agency's decision shall be limited
to a determination of each of the following issues:
(1) Whether there is a support judgment, order, or payment
schedule on arrearages or reimbursement.
(2) Whether the petitioner is the obligor covered by the support
judgment or order.
(3) Whether the support obligor is or is not in compliance with
the judgment or order of support.
(4) (A) The extent to which the needs of the obligor, taking into
account the obligor's payment history and the current circumstances
of both the obligor and the obligee, warrant a conditional release as
described in this subdivision.
(B) The request for judicial review shall be served by the
applicant upon the local child support agency that submitted the
applicant's name on the certified list within seven calendar days of
the filing of the petition. The court has the authority to uphold the
action, unconditionally release the license, or conditionally
release the license.
(C) If the judicial review results in a finding by the court that
the obligor is in compliance with the judgment or order for support,
the local child support agency shall immediately send a release in
accordance with subdivision (l) to the appropriate board and the
applicant. If the judicial review results in a finding by the court
that the needs of the obligor warrant a conditional release, the
court shall make findings of fact stating the basis for the release
and the payment necessary to satisfy the unrestricted issuance or
renewal of the license without prejudice to a later judicial
determination of the amount of support arrearages, including
interest, and shall specify payment terms, compliance with which are
necessary to allow the release to remain in effect.
(l) The department shall prescribe release forms for use by local
child support agencies. When the obligor is in compliance, the local
child support agency shall mail to the applicant and the appropriate
board a release stating that the applicant is in compliance. The
receipt of a release shall serve to notify the applicant and the
board that, for the purposes of this section, the applicant is in
compliance with the judgment or order for support. Any board that has
received a release from the local child support agency pursuant to
this subdivision shall process the release within five business days
of its receipt.
If the local child support agency determines subsequent to the
issuance of a release that the applicant is once again not in
compliance with a judgment or order for support, or with the terms of
repayment as described in this subdivision, the local child support
agency may notify the board, the obligor, and the department in a
format prescribed by the department that the obligor is not in
compliance.
The department may, when it is economically feasible for the
department and the boards to develop an automated process for
complying with this subdivision, notify the boards in a manner
prescribed by the department, that the obligor is once again not in
compliance. Upon receipt of this notice, the board shall immediately
notify the obligor on a form prescribed by the department that the
obligor's license will be suspended on a specific date, and this date
shall be no longer than 30 days from the date the form is mailed.
The obligor shall be further notified that the license will remain
suspended until a new release is issued in accordance with
subdivision (h). Nothing in this section shall be deemed to limit the
obligor from seeking judicial review of suspension pursuant to the
procedures described in subdivision (k).
(m) The department may enter into interagency agreements with the
state agencies that have responsibility for the administration of
boards necessary to implement this section, to the extent that it is
cost effective to implement this section. These agreements shall
provide for the receipt by the other state agencies and boards of
federal funds to cover that portion of costs allowable in federal law
and regulation and incurred by the state agencies and boards in
implementing this section. Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, revenue generated by a board or state agency shall be used to
fund the nonfederal share of costs incurred pursuant to this section.
These agreements shall provide that boards shall reimburse the
department for the nonfederal share of costs incurred by the
department in implementing this section. The boards shall reimburse
the department for the nonfederal share of costs incurred pursuant to
this section from moneys collected from applicants and licensees.
(n) Notwithstanding any other law, in order for the boards subject
to this section to be reimbursed for the costs incurred in
administering its provisions, the boards may, with the approval of
the appropriate department director, levy on all licensees and
applicants a surcharge on any fee or fees collected pursuant to law,
or, alternatively, with the approval of the appropriate department
director, levy on the applicants or licensees named on a certified
list or supplemental list, a special fee.
(o) The process described in subdivision (h) shall constitute the
sole administrative remedy for contesting the issuance of a temporary
license or the denial or suspension of a license under this section.
The procedures specified in the administrative adjudication
provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 4.5
(commencing with Section 11400) and Chapter 5 (commencing with
Section 11500) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government
Code) shall not apply to the denial, suspension, or failure to issue
or renew a license or the issuance of a temporary license pursuant to
this section.
(p) In furtherance of the public policy of increasing child
support enforcement and collections, on or before November 1, 1995,
the State Department of Social Services shall make a report to the
Legislature and the Governor based on data collected by the boards
and the district attorneys in a format prescribed by the State
Department of Social Services. The report shall contain all of the
following:
(1) The number of delinquent obligors certified by district
attorneys under this section.
(2) The number of support obligors who also were applicants or
licensees subject to this section.
(3) The number of new licenses and renewals that were delayed,
temporary licenses issued, and licenses suspended subject to this
section and the number of new licenses and renewals granted and
licenses reinstated following board receipt of releases as provided
by subdivision (h) by May 1, 1995.
(4) The costs incurred in the implementation and enforcement of
this section.
(q) Any board receiving an inquiry as to the licensed status of an
applicant or licensee who has had a license denied or suspended
under this section or has been granted a temporary license under this
section shall respond only that the license was denied or suspended
or the temporary license was issued pursuant to this section.
Information collected pursuant to this section by any state agency,
board, or department shall be subject to the Information Practices
Act of 1977 (Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 1798) of Title 1.8 of
Part 4 of Division 3 of the Civil Code).
(r) Any rules and regulations issued pursuant to this section by
any state agency, board, or department may be adopted as emergency
regulations in accordance with the rulemaking provisions of the
Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section
11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code).
The adoption of these regulations shall be deemed an emergency and
necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health,
and safety, or general welfare. The regulations shall become
effective immediately upon filing with the Secretary of State.
(s) The department and boards, as appropriate, shall adopt
regulations necessary to implement this section.
(t) The Judicial Council shall develop the forms necessary to
implement this section, except as provided in subdivisions (f) and
(l).
(u) The release or other use of information received by a board
pursuant to this section, except as authorized by this section, is
punishable as a misdemeanor.
(v) The State Board of Equalization shall enter into interagency
agreements with the department and the Franchise Tax Board that will
require the department and the Franchise Tax Board to maximize the
use of information collected by the State Board of Equalization, for
child support enforcement purposes, to the extent it is cost
effective and permitted by the Revenue and Taxation Code.
(w) (1) The suspension or revocation of any driver's license,
including a commercial driver's license, under this section shall not
subject the licensee to vehicle impoundment pursuant to Section
14602.6 of the Vehicle Code.
(2) Notwithstanding any other law, the suspension or revocation of
any driver's license, including a commercial driver's license, under
this section shall not subject the licensee to increased costs for
vehicle liability insurance.
(x) If any provision of this section or the application thereof to
any person or circumstance is held invalid, that invalidity shall
not affect other provisions or applications of this section which can
be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to
this end the provisions of this section are severable.
(y) All rights to administrative and judicial review afforded by
this section to an applicant shall also be afforded to a licensee.
The order to show cause or notice of motion described in
subdivision (j) of Section 17520 shall be filed and heard in the
superior court.
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, if any support obligor is
delinquent in the payment of support for at least 30 days and the
local child support agency is enforcing the support obligation
pursuant to Section 17400, the local child support agency may collect
the delinquency or enforce any lien by levy served on all persons
having in their possession, or who will have in their possession or
under their control, any credits or personal property belonging to
the delinquent support obligor, or who owe any debt to the obligor at
the time they receive the notice of levy.
(b) A levy may be issued by a local child support agency for a
support obligation that accrued under a court order or judgment if
the obligor had notice of the accrued support arrearage as provided
in this section, and did not make a timely request for review.
(c) The notice requirement shall be satisfied by the local child
support agency sending a statement of support arrearages to the
obligor at the obligor's last known address by first-class mail,
postage prepaid. The notice shall advise the obligor of the amount of
the support arrearage. The notice shall advise the obligor that the
obligor may have the arrearage determination reviewed by
administrative procedures and state how the review may be obtained.
The local child support agency shall conduct the review pursuant to
this section in the same manner and timeframe provided for resolution
of a complaint pursuant to Section 17800. The notice shall also
advise the obligor of his or her right to seek a judicial
determination of arrearages pursuant to Section 17526 and shall
include a form to be filed with the court to request a judicial
determination of arrearages. If the obligor requests an
administrative review of the arrearage determination within 20 days
from the date the notice was mailed to the obligor, the local child
support agency may not issue the levy for a disputed amount of
support until the administrative review procedure is completed.
(d) If the obligor requests a judicial determination of the
arrearages within 20 days from the date the notice was mailed to the
obligor, the local child support agency shall not issue the levy for
a disputed amount of support until the judicial determination is
complete.
(e) Any person upon whom a levy has been served having in his or
her possession or under his or her control any credits or personal
property belonging to the delinquent support obligor or owing any
debts to the delinquent support obligor at the time of receipt of the
levy or coming into his or her possession or under his or her
control within one year of receipt of the notice of levy, shall
surrender the credits or personal property to the local child support
agency or pay to the local child support agency the amount of any
debt owing the delinquent support obligor within 10 days of service
of the levy, and shall surrender the credits or personal property, or
the amount of any debt owing to the delinquent support obligor
coming into his or her own possession or control within one year of
receipt of the notice of levy within 10 days of the date of coming
into possession or control of the credits or personal property or the
amount of any debt owing to the delinquent support obligor.
(f) Any person who surrenders any credits or personal property or
pays the debts owing the delinquent support obligor to the local
child support agency pursuant to this section shall be discharged
from any obligation or liability to the delinquent support obligor to
the extent of the amount paid to the local child support agency as a
result of the levy.
(g) If the levy is made on a deposit or credits or personal
property in the possession or under the control of a bank, savings
and loan association, or other financial institution as defined by
Section 669A(d)(1) of Title 42 of the United States Code, the notice
of levy may be delivered or mailed to a centralized location
designated by the bank, savings and loan association, or other
financial institution pursuant to Section 689.040 of the Code of
Civil Procedure.
(h) Any person who is served with a levy pursuant to this section
and who fails or refuses to surrender any credits or other personal
property or pay any debts owing to the delinquent support obligor
shall be liable in his or her own person or estate to the local child
support agency in an amount equal to the value of the credits or
other personal property or in the amount of the levy, up to the
amount specified in the levy.
(i) If any amount required to be paid pursuant to a levy under
this section is not paid when due, the local child support agency may
issue a warrant for enforcement of any lien and for the collection
of any amount required to be paid to the local child support agency
under this section. The warrant shall be directed to any sheriff,
marshal, or the Department of the California Highway Patrol and shall
have the same force and effect as a writ of execution. The warrant
shall be levied and sale made pursuant to it in the manner and with
the same force and effect as a levy and sale pursuant to a writ of
execution. The local child support agency may pay or advance to the
levying officer the same fees, commissions, and expenses for his or
her services under this section as are provided by law for similar
services pursuant to a writ of execution, except for those fees and
expenses for which a district attorney is exempt by law from paying.
The local child support agency, and not the court, shall approve the
fees for publication in a newspaper.
(j) The fees, commissions, expenses, and the reasonable costs
associated with the sale of property levied upon by warrant or levy
pursuant to this section, including, but not limited to, appraisers'
fees, auctioneers' fees, and advertising fees are an obligation of
the support obligor and may be collected from the obligor by virtue
of the warrant or levy or in any other manner as though these items
were support payments delinquent for at least 30 days.
(a) Notwithstanding Section 8112 of the Commercial Code
and Section 700.130 of the Code of Civil Procedure, when a local
child support agency pursuant to Section 17522, or the Franchise Tax
Board pursuant to Section 18670 or 18670.5 of the Revenue and
Taxation Code, or the department pursuant to Section 17454 or 17500,
issues a levy upon, or requires by notice any employer, person,
political officer or entity, or depository institution to withhold
the amount of, as applicable, a financial asset for the purpose of
collecting a delinquent child support obligation, the person,
financial institution, or securities intermediary (as defined in
Section 8102 of the Commercial Code) in possession or control of the
financial asset shall liquidate the financial asset in a commercially
reasonable manner within 20 days of the issuance of the levy or the
notice to withhold. Within five days of liquidation, the person,
financial institution, or securities intermediary shall transfer to
the local child support agency, the Franchise Tax Board, or the
department, as applicable, the proceeds of the liquidation, less any
reasonable commissions or fees, or both, which are charged in the
normal course of business.
(b) If the value of the financial assets exceed the total amount
of support due, the obligor may, within 10 days after the service of
the levy or notice to withhold upon the person, financial
institution, or securities intermediary, instruct the person,
financial institution, or securities intermediary who possesses or
controls the financial assets as to which financial assets are to be
sold to satisfy the obligation for delinquent support. If the obligor
does not provide instructions for liquidation, the person, financial
institution, or securities intermediary who possesses or controls
the financial assets shall liquidate the financial assets in a
commercially reasonable manner and in an amount sufficient to cover
the obligation for delinquent child support, and any reasonable
commissions or fees, or both, which are charged in the normal course
of business, beginning with the financial assets purchased most
recently.
(c) For the purposes of this section, a financial asset shall
include, but not be limited to, an uncertificated security,
certificated security, or security entitlement (as defined in Section
8102 of the Commercial Code), security (as defined in Section 8103
of the Commercial Code), or a securities account (as defined in
Section 8501 of the Commercial Code).
(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if a support
obligor is delinquent in the payment of support and the local child
support agency is enforcing the support obligation pursuant to
Section 17400 or 17402, a lien for child support shall arise against
the personal property of the support obligor in either of the
following circumstances:
(1) By operation of law for all amounts of overdue support,
regardless of whether the amounts have been adjudicated or otherwise
determined.
(2) When either a court having continuing jurisdiction or the
local child support agency determines a specific amount of arrearages
is owed by the support obligor.
(b) The lien for child support shall be perfected by filing a
notice of child support lien with the Secretary of State pursuant to
Section 697.510 of the Code of Civil Procedure. Once filed, the child
support lien shall have the same priority, force, and effect as a
judgment lien on personal property pursuant to Article 3 (commencing
with Section 697.510) of Chapter 2 of Division 2 of Article 9 of the
Code of Civil Procedure.
(c) For purposes of this section, the following definitions shall
apply:
(1) "Notice of child support lien" means a document filed with the
Secretary of State that substantially complies with the requirements
of Section 697.530 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
(2) "Support obligor is delinquent in payment of support" means
that the support obligor has failed to make payment equal to one
month's support obligation.
(3) "Personal property" means that property that is subject to
attachment by a judgment lien pursuant to Section 697.530 of the Code
of Civil Procedure.
(d) Nothing in this section shall affect the priority of any of
the following interests:
(1) State tax liens as set forth in Article 2 (commencing with
Section 7170) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code.
(2) Liens or security interests as set forth in Article 3
(commencing with Section 697.510) of Chapter 2 of Division 2 of
Article 9 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
(e) As between competing child support liens and state tax liens,
a child support lien arising under this section shall have priority
over a state tax lien if (1) the child support lien is filed with the
Secretary of State, (2) the notice of child support lien is filed in
an action or proceeding in which the obligor may become entitled to
property or money judgment, or (3) the levy for child support on
personal property is made, before a notice of state tax lien is filed
with the Secretary of State pursuant to Section 7171 of the
Government Code or filed in an action or proceeding in accordance
with Section 7173 of the Government Code.
(f) A personal property lien for child support arising in another
state may be enforced in the same manner and to the same extent as a
personal property lien arising in this state.
(a) (1) Notwithstanding any other law, in connection with
the duty of the department and the local child support agency to
promptly and effectively collect and enforce child support
obligations under Title IV-D, the transmission, filing, and recording
of a lien record by departmental and local child support agency
staff that arises pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 4506 of this
code or Section 697.320 of the Code of Civil Procedure against the
real property of a support obligor in the form of a digital or a
digitized electronic record shall be permitted and governed only by
this section.
(2) A facsimile signature that complies with the requirements of
paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 27201 of the Government
Code shall be accepted on any document relating to a lien that is
filed or recorded pursuant to this section.
(3) Pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 10080) of Part
1 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, the department
and the local child support agency may use the California Child
Support Automation System to transmit, file, and record a lien record
under this section.
(b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require a county
recorder to establish an electronic recording delivery system or to
enter into a contract with an entity to implement this section.
(c) For purposes of this section, the following terms have the
following meanings:
(1) "Digital electronic record" means a record containing
information that is created, generated, sent, communicated, received,
or stored by electronic means, but not created in original paper
form.
(2) "Digitized electronic record" means a scanned image of the
original paper document.
(a) Upon making application to the local child support
agency for child support enforcement services pursuant to Section
17400, every applicant shall be requested to give the local child
support agency a statement of arrearages stating whether any support
arrearages are owed. If the applicant alleges arrearages are owed,
the statement shall be signed under penalty of perjury.
(b) For all cases opened by the district attorney or local child
support agency after December 31, 1995, the local child support
agency shall enforce only arrearages declared under penalty of
perjury pursuant to subdivision (a), arrearages accrued after the
case was opened, or arrearages determined by the court in the child
support action. Arrearages may be determined by judgment, noticed
motion, renewal of judgment, or registration of the support order.
(c) For all cases opened by the district attorney on or before
December 31, 1995, the local child support agency shall enforce only
arrearages that have been based upon a statement of arrearages signed
under penalty of perjury or where the local child support agency has
some other reasonable basis for believing the amount of claimed
arrearages to be correct.
(a) Whenever a state or local governmental agency issues a
notice of support delinquency, the notice shall state the date upon
which the amount of the delinquency was calculated, and shall notify
the obligor that the amount calculated may, or may not, include
accrued interest. This requirement shall not be imposed until the
local child support agency has instituted the California Child
Support Automation System defined in Section 10081 of the Welfare and
Institutions Code. The notice shall further notify the obligor of
his or her right to an administrative determination of arrears by
requesting that the local child support agency review the arrears,
but that payments on arrears continue to be due and payable unless
and until the local child support agency notifies the obligor
otherwise. A state agency shall not be required to suspend
enforcement of any arrearages as a result of the obligor's request
for an administrative determination of arrears, unless the agency
receives notification of a suspension pursuant to subdivision (b) of
Section 17526.
(b) For purposes of this section, "notice of support delinquency"
means a notice issued to a support obligor that includes a specific
statement of the amount of delinquent support due and payable.
(c) This section shall not require a state or local entity to
calculate the amount of a support delinquency, except as otherwise
required by law.
(a) Upon request of an obligor or obligee, the local child
support agency shall review the amount of arrearages alleged in a
statement of arrearages that may be submitted to the local child
support agency by an applicant for child support enforcement
services. The local child support agency shall complete the review in
the same manner and pursuant to the same timeframes as a complaint
submitted pursuant to Section 17800. In the review, the local child
support agency shall consider all evidence and defenses submitted by
either parent on the issues of the amount of support paid or owed.
(b) The local child support agency may, in its discretion, suspend
enforcement or distribution of arrearages if it believes there is a
substantial probability that the result of the administrative review
will result in a finding that there are no arrearages.
(c) Any party to an action involving child support enforcement
services of the local child support agency may request a judicial
determination of arrearages. The party may request an administrative
review of the alleged arrearages prior to requesting a judicial
determination of arrearages. The local child support agency shall
complete the review in the same manner and pursuant to the same
timeframes specified in subdivision (a). Any motion to determine
arrearages filed with the court shall include a monthly breakdown
showing amounts ordered and amounts paid, in addition to any other
relevant information.
(d) A county that submits a claim for reimbursement as a
state-mandated local program of costs incurred with respect to the
administrative review of alleged child support arrearages under this
section shall be ineligible for state subventions or, to the extent
permitted by federal law, state-administered federal subventions, for
child support in the amount of any local costs under this section.
(a) As authorized by subdivision (c) of Section 704.110 of
the Code of Civil Procedure, the following actions shall be taken in
order to enforce support obligations that are not being met:
(1) Within 18 months of implementation of the Statewide Automated
Child Support System (SACSS), or its replacement as prescribed by
former Section 10815 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, and
certification of SACSS or its replacement by the United States
Department of Health and Human Services, the department shall compile
a file of all support judgments and orders that are being enforced
by local child support agencies pursuant to Section 17400 that have
sums overdue by at least 60 days or by an amount equal to 60 days of
support.
(2) The file shall contain the name and social security number of
the person who owes overdue support, the amount of overdue support as
of the date the file is created, the name of the county in which the
support obligation is being enforced by the local child support
agency, and any other information that is deemed necessary by the
department and the Public Employees' Retirement System.
(3) The department shall provide the certified file to the Public
Employees' Retirement System for the purpose of matching the names in
the file with members and beneficiaries of the Public Employees'
Retirement System that are entitled to receive Public Employees'
Retirement System benefits. The department and the Public Employees'
Retirement System shall work cooperatively to develop an interface in
order to match the names in their respective electronic data
processing systems. The interface required to intercept benefits that
are payable periodically shall be done as soon as it is technically
feasible.
(4) The department shall update the certified file no less than on
a monthly basis to add new cases within the local child support
agencies or existing cases that become delinquent and to delete
persons who are no longer delinquent. The department shall provide
the updated file no less than on a monthly basis to the Public
Employees' Retirement System.
(5) Information contained in the certified file provided to the
Public Employees' Retirement System by the department and the local
child support agencies and information provided by the Public
Employees' Retirement System to the department shall be used
exclusively for child support enforcement purposes and may not be
used for any other purpose.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Public
Employees' Retirement System shall withhold the amount certified from
the benefits and refunds to be distributed to members with overdue
support obligations or from benefits to be distributed to
beneficiaries with overdue support obligations. If the benefits are
payable periodically, the amount withheld pursuant to this section
shall not exceed the amount permitted to be withheld for an earnings
withholding order for support under Section 706.052 of the Code of
Civil Procedure.
(c) The Public Employees' Retirement System shall forward the
amounts withheld pursuant to subdivision (b) within 10 days of
withholding to the department for distribution to the appropriate
county.
(d) On an annual basis, the department shall notify individuals
with overdue support obligations that PERS benefits or PERS
contribution refunds may be intercepted for the purpose of enforcing
family support obligations.
(e) No later than the time of the first withholding, the Public
Employees' Retirement System shall send those persons subject to
withholding the following:
(1) Notice that his or her benefits or retirement contribution
refund have been reduced by payment on a support judgment pursuant to
this section.
(2) A form developed by the department that the applicant shall
use to request either a review by the local child support agency or a
court hearing, as appropriate.
(f) The notice shall include the address and telephone number of
the local child support agency that is enforcing the support
obligation pursuant to Section 17400, and shall specify that the form
requesting either a review by the local child support agency or a
court hearing must be received by the local child support agency
within 20 days of the date of the notice.
(g) The form shall include instructions that are designed to
enable the member or beneficiary to obtain a review or a court
hearing as appropriate on his or her own behalf. The form shall
specify that if the member or beneficiary disputes the amount of
support arrearages certified by the local child support agency
pursuant to this section, he or she may request a review by the local
child support agency.
(h) The department shall develop procedures that are consistent
with this section to be used by each local child support agency in
conducting the requested review. The local child support agency shall
complete the review in accordance with the procedures developed by
the department and shall notify the member or beneficiary of the
result of the review within 20 days of receiving the request for
review. The notification of review results shall include a request
for hearing form and shall inform the member or beneficiary that if
he or she returns the completed request for hearing form within 20
days of the date of the notice of review results, the local child
support agency shall calendar the matter for court review. If the
local child support agency cannot complete the review within 20 days,
the local child support agency shall calendar the matter for hearing
as specified in subdivision (k).
(i) The form specified in subdivision (g) shall also notify the
member or beneficiary that he or she may request a court hearing to
claim an exemption of any benefit not payable periodically by
returning the completed form to the local child support agency within
20 days. If the local child support agency receives a timely request
for a hearing for a claim of exemption, the local child support
agency shall calendar a court hearing. The amount of the exemption,
if any, shall be determined by the court in accordance with the
procedures set forth in Section 703.070 of the Code of Civil
Procedure.
(j) If the local child support agency receives the form requesting
either a review by the local child support agency or a court hearing
within the 20 days specified in subdivision (f), the local child
support agency shall not distribute the amount intercepted until the
review by the local child support agency or the court hearing is
completed. If the local child support agency determines that all or a
portion of the member's or beneficiary's benefits were intercepted
in error, or if the court determines that any amount of the benefits
are exempt, the local child support agency shall refund any amount
determined to be exempt or intercepted in excess of the correct
amount to the member or beneficiary within 10 days of determination
that a refund is due.
(k) Any hearing properly requested pursuant to this section shall
be calendared by the local child support agency. The hearing shall be
held within 20 days from the date that the local child support
agency receives the request for hearing. The local child support
agency shall provide notice of the time and place for hearing by
first-class mail no later than five days prior to the hearing.
(l) Nothing in this section shall limit any existing rights of the
member or beneficiary, including, but not limited to, the right to
seek a determination of arrearages or other appropriate relief
directly from the court. However, if the procedures of this section
are not utilized by the member or beneficiary, the court may not
require the local child support agency to refund any money that was
distributed to the child support obligee prior to the local child
support agency receiving notice of a court determination that a
refund is due to the member or beneficiary.
(m) The Department of Child Support Services and the Public
Employees' Retirement System shall enter into any agreement necessary
to implement this section which shall include provisions for the
department to provide funding to the Public Employees' Retirement
System to develop, implement, and maintain the intercept process
described in this section.
(n) The Public Employees' Retirement System may not assess service
charges on members or beneficiaries in order to recover any
administrative costs resulting from complying with this section.
(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, this section
shall apply to any actions taken to enforce a judgment or order for
support entered as a result of action filed by the local child
support agency pursuant to Section 17400, 17402, or 17404, where it
is alleged that the enforcement actions have been taken in error
against a person who is not the support obligor named in the judgment
or order.
(b) Any person claiming that any support enforcement actions have
been taken against that person, or his or her wages or assets, in
error, shall file a claim of mistaken identity with the local child
support agency. The claim shall include verifiable information or
documentation to establish that the person against whom the
enforcement actions have been taken is not the person named in the
support order or judgment. The local child support agency shall
resolve a claim of mistaken identity submitted pursuant to this
section in the same manner and time frames provided for resolution of
a complaint pursuant to Section 17800.
(c) If the local child support agency determines that a claim
filed pursuant to this section is meritorious, or if the court enters
an order pursuant to Section 17433, the agency shall immediately
take the steps necessary to terminate all enforcement activities with
respect to the claimant, to return to the claimant any assets
seized, to terminate any levying activities or attachment or
assignment orders, to release any license renewal or application
being withheld pursuant to Section 17520, to return any sums paid by
the claimant pursuant to the judgment or order, including sums paid
to any federal, state, or local government, but excluding sums paid
directly to the support obligee, and to ensure that all other
enforcement agencies and entities cease further actions against the
claimant. With respect to a claim filed under this section, the local
child support agency shall also provide the claimant with a
statement certifying that the claimant is not the support obligor
named in the support order or judgment, which statement shall be
prima facie evidence of the claimant's identity in any subsequent
enforcement proceedings or actions with respect to that support order
or judgment.
(d) If the local child support agency rejects a claim pursuant to
this section, or if the agency, after finding a claim to be
meritorious, fails to take any of the remedial steps provided in
subdivision (c), the claimant may file an action with the superior
court to establish his or her mistaken identity or to obtain the
remedies described in subdivision (c), or both.
(e) Filing a false claim pursuant to this section shall be a
misdemeanor.
(f) This section shall become operative on April 1, 2000.
When a local child support agency closes a child support
case containing summary criminal history information, the local child
support agency shall delete or purge from the file and destroy any
documents or information concerning or arising from offenses for or
of which the parent has been arrested, charged, or convicted, other
than offenses related to the parent's having failed to provide
support for minor children, no later than four years and four months,
or any other timeframe that is consistent with federal regulations
controlling child support records retention, after the date the local
child support agency closes the case.
(a) (1) Commencing July 1, 2000, the department shall pay
only those county claims for federal or state reimbursement under
this division which are filed with the department within nine months
of the end of the calendar quarter in which the costs are paid. A
claim filed after that time may only be paid if the claim falls
within the exceptions set forth in federal law.
(2) The department may change the nine-month limitation specified
in paragraph (1), as deemed necessary by the department to comply
with federal changes which affect time limits for filing a claim.
(b) (1) The department may waive the time limit imposed by
subdivision (a) if the department determines there was good cause for
a county's failure to file a claim or claims within the time limit.
(2) (A) For purposes of this subdivision, "good cause" means
circumstances which are beyond the county's control, including acts
of God and documented action or inaction by the state or federal
government.
(B) "Circumstances beyond the county's control" do not include
neglect or failure on the part of the county or any of its offices,
officers, or employees.
(C) A county shall request a waiver of the time limit imposed by
this section for good cause in accordance with regulations adopted
and promulgated by the department.
(3) The department's authority to waive the time limit under this
subdivision shall be subject to the availability of funds and shall
not apply to claims submitted more than 18 months after the end of
the calendar quarter in which costs were paid.
(a) The Department of Child Support Services, in
consultation with the State Department of Social Services, shall
establish regulations by which the local child support agency, in any
case of separation or desertion of a parent from a child that
results in aid under Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 11200) of
Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code being
granted to the child, may compromise the obligor parent or parents'
liability for public assistance debt, including interest thereon,
owed to the state where the child for whom public assistance was paid
is residing with the obligor parent, and all of the following
conditions are met:
(1) The obligor parent establishes one of the following:
(A) The child has been adjudged a dependent of the court under
Section 300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and the child has
been reunified with the obligor parent pursuant to a court order.
(B) The child received public assistance while living with a
guardian or relative caregiver and the child has been returned to the
custody of the obligor parent, provided that the obligor parent for
whom the debt compromise is being considered was the parent with whom
the child resided prior to the child's placement with the guardian
or relative caregiver.
(2) The obligor parent, for whom the debt compromise is being
considered, has an income less than 250 percent of the current
federal poverty level.
(3) The local child support agency, pursuant to regulations set
forth by the department, has determined that the compromise is
necessary for the child's support.
(b) Prior to compromising an obligor parent's liability for debt
incurred for either AFDC-FC payments provided to a child pursuant to
Section 11400 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, or incurred for
CalWORKs payments provided on behalf of a child, the local child
support agency shall consult with the county child welfare
department.
(c) Nothing in this section relieves an obligor, who has not been
reunified with his or her child, of any liability for public
assistance debt.
(d) For the purposes of this section, the following definitions
apply:
(1) "Guardian" means the legal guardian of the child, who assumed
care and control of the child while the child was in the guardian's
control, and who is not a biological or adoptive parent.
(2) "Relative caregiver" means a relative as defined in
subdivision (c) of Section 11362 of the Welfare and Institutions
Code, who assumed primary responsibility for the child while the
child was in the relative's care and control, and who is not a
biological or adoptive parent.
(e) The department shall promulgate all necessary regulations
pursuant to this section on or before October 1, 2002, including
regulations that set forth guidelines to be used by the local child
support agency when compromising public assistance debt.
(a) The State Department of Social Services, in consultation
with the Department of Child Support Services, shall promulgate
regulations by which the county child welfare department, in any case
of separation or desertion of a parent or parents from a child that
results in foster care assistance payments under Section 11400 of, or
a voluntary placement under Section 11401.1 of, or the payments for
a minor child placed in the same home as a minor or nonminor
dependent parent under Section 11401.4 of, the Welfare and
Institution Code, or CalWORKs payments to a caretaker relative of a
child who comes within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court under
Section 300, 601, or 602 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, who
has been removed from the parental home and placed with the caretaker
relative by court order, and who is under the supervision of the
county child welfare agency or probation department under Section
11250 of, or Kin-GAP payments under Article 4.5 (commencing with
Section 11360) or Article 4.7 (commencing with Section 11385) of, or
aid under subdivision (c) of Section 10101 of, the Welfare and
Institutions Code, shall determine whether it is in the best
interests of the child or nonminor to have the case referred to the
local child support agency for child support services. If
reunification services are not offered or are terminated, the case
may be referred to the local child support agency, unless the child's
permanent plan is legal guardianship with a relative who is
receiving Kin-GAP and the payment of support by the parent may
compromise the stability of the current placement with the related
guardian, or the permanent plan is transitional foster care for the
nonminor under Section 11403 of the Welfare and Institutions Code. In
making the determination, the department regulations shall provide
the factors the county child welfare department shall consider,
including:
(1) Whether the payment of support by the parent will pose a
barrier to the proposed reunification, in that the payment of support
will compromise the parent's ability to meet the requirements of the
parent's reunification plan.
(2) Whether the payment of support by the parent will pose a
barrier to the proposed reunification in that the payment of support
will compromise the parent's current or future ability to meet the
financial needs of the child.
(b) The department regulations shall provide that, where the
county child welfare department determines that it is not in the best
interests of the child to seek a support order against the parent,
the county child welfare department shall refrain from referring the
case to the local child support agency. The regulations shall define
those circumstances in which it is not in the best interest of the
child to refer the case to the local child support agency.
(c) The department regulations shall provide, where the county
child welfare department determines that it is not in the child's
best interest to have his or her case referred to the local child
support agency, the county child welfare department shall review that
determination periodically to coincide with the redetermination of
AFDC-FC eligibility under Section 11401.5 of, or the CalWORKs
eligibility under Section 11265 of, or Kin-GAP eligibility under
Article 4.5 (commencing with Section 11360) or Article 4.7
(commencing with Section 11385) of Chapter 2 of Part 3 of Division 9
of, the Welfare and Institutions Code, and shall refer the child's
case to the local child support agency upon a determination that, due
to a change in the child's circumstances, it is no longer contrary
to the child's best interests to have his or her case referred to the
local child support agency.
(d) The State Department of Social Services shall promulgate all
necessary regulations pursuant to this section on or before October
1, 2002.
(e) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a nonminor
dependent, as described in subdivision (v) of Section 11400 of the
Welfare and Institutions Code, who is over 19 years of age, is not a
child for purposes of referral to the local child support agency for
collection or enforcement of child support.
(f) Notwithstanding any other law, a minor or a nonminor
dependent, as defined in subdivision (v) of Section 11400 of the
Welfare and Institutions Code, who has a minor child placed in the
same licensed or approved facility pursuant to Section 11401.4 of the
Welfare and Institutions Code is not a parent for purposes of
referral to the local child support agency for collection or
enforcement of child support.
(a) Any appropriation made available in the annual Budget
Act for the purposes of augmenting funding for local child support
agencies in the furtherance of their revenue collection
responsibilities shall be subject to all of the following
requirements:
(1) Each local child support agency shall submit to the department
an early intervention plan with all components to take effect upon
receipt of their additional allocation as a result of this proposal.
(2) Funds shall be distributed to counties based on their
performance on the following two federal performance measures:
(A) Measure 3: Collections on Current Support.
(B) Measure 4: Cases with Collections on Arrears.
(3) A local child support agency shall be required to use and
ensure that 100 percent of the new funds allocated are dedicated to
maintaining caseworker staffing levels in order to stabilize child
support collections.
(4) At the end of each fiscal year that this augmentation is in
effect, the department shall provide a report on the
cost-effectiveness of this augmentation, including an assessment of
caseload changes over time.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature to review the results of
this augmentation and the level of related appropriation during the
legislative budget review process.
(a) The department shall establish and operate a statewide
compromise of arrears program pursuant to which the department may
accept offers in compromise of child support arrears and interest
accrued thereon owed to the state for reimbursement of aid paid
pursuant to Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 11200) of Part 3 of
Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code. The program shall
operate uniformly across California and shall take into consideration
the needs of the children subject to the child support order and the
obligor's ability to pay.
(b) If the obligor owes current child support, the offer in
compromise shall require the obligor to be in compliance with the
current support order for a set period of time before any arrears and
interest accrued thereon may be compromised.
(c) Absent a finding of good cause, or a determination by the
director that it is in the best interest of the state to do
otherwise, any offer in compromise entered into pursuant to this
section shall be rescinded, all compromised liabilities shall be
reestablished notwithstanding any statute of limitations that
otherwise may be applicable, and no portion of the amount offered in
compromise may be refunded, if either of the following occurs:
(1) The department or local child support agency determines that
the obligor did any of the following acts regarding the offer in
compromise:
(A) Concealed from the department or local child support agency
any income, assets, or other property belonging to the obligor or any
reasonably anticipated receipt of income, assets, or other property.
(B) Intentionally received, withheld, destroyed, mutilated, or
falsified any information, document, or record, or intentionally made
any false statement, relating to the financial conditions of the
obligor.
(2) The obligor fails to comply with any of the terms and
conditions of the offer in compromise.
(d) Pursuant to subdivision (k) of Section 17406, in no event may
the administrator, director, or director's designee within the
department, accept an offer in compromise of any child support
arrears owed directly to the custodial party unless that party
consents to the offer in compromise in writing and participates in
the agreement. Prior to giving consent, the custodial party shall be
provided with a clear written explanation of the rights with respect
to child support arrears owed to the custodial party and the
compromise thereof.
(e) Subject to the requirements of this section, the director
shall delegate to the administrator of a local child support agency
the authority to compromise an amount of child support arrears up to
five thousand dollars ($5,000), and may delegate additional authority
to compromise up to an amount determined by the director to support
the effective administration of the offers in compromise program.
(f) For an amount to be compromised under this section, the
following conditions shall exist:
(1) (A) The administrator, director or director's designee within
the department determines that acceptance of an offer in compromise
is in the best interest of the state and that the compromise amount
equals or exceeds what the state can expect to collect for
reimbursement of aid paid pursuant to Chapter 2 (commencing with
Section 11200) of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and
Institutions Code in the absence of the compromise, based on the
obligor's ability to pay.
(B) Acceptance of an offer in compromise shall be deemed to be in
the best interest of the state, absent a finding of good cause to the
contrary, with regard to arrears that accrued as a result of a
decrease in income when an obligor was a reservist or member of the
National Guard, was activated to United States military service, and
failed to modify the support order to reflect the reduction in
income. Good cause to find that the compromise is not in the best
interest of the state shall include circumstances in which the
service member's failure to seek, or delay in seeking, the
modification were not reasonable under the circumstances faced by the
service member. The director, no later than 90 days after the
effective date of the act adding this subparagraph, shall establish
rules that compromise, at a minimum, the amount of support that would
not have accrued had the order been modified to reflect the reduced
income earned during the period of active military service.
(2) Any other terms and conditions that the director establishes
that may include, but may not be limited to, paying current support
in a timely manner, making lump-sum payments, and paying arrears in
exchange for compromise of interest owed.
(3) The obligor shall provide evidence of income and assets,
including, but not limited to, wage stubs, tax returns, and bank
statements as necessary to establish all of the following:
(A) That the amount set forth in the offer in compromise of
arrears owed is the most that can be expected to be paid or collected
from the obligor's present assets or income.
(B) That the obligor does not have reasonable prospects of
acquiring increased income or assets that would enable the obligor to
satisfy a greater amount of the child support arrears than the
amount offered, within a reasonable period of time.
(C) That the obligor has not withheld payment of child support in
anticipation of the offers in compromise program.
(g) A determination by the administrator, director or the director'
s designee within the department that it would not be in the best
interest of the state to accept or rescind an offer in compromise in
satisfaction of child support arrears shall be final and not subject
to the provisions of Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 17800) of
Division 17, or subject to judicial review.
(h) Any offer in compromise entered into pursuant to this section
shall be filed with the appropriate court. The local child support
agency shall notify the court if the compromise is rescinded pursuant
to subdivision (c).
(i) Any compromise of child support arrears pursuant to this
section shall maximize to the greatest extent possible the state's
share of the federal performance incentives paid pursuant to the
Child Support Performance and Incentive Act of 1998 and shall comply
with federal law.
(j) The department shall ensure uniform application of this
section across the state.
The Office of the Chief Information Officer and the
Department of Child Support Services, beginning in 2010, shall
jointly produce an annual report to be submitted on March 1, to the
appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature on the
ongoing implementation of the California Child Support Automation
System (CCSAS), including all of the following components:
(a) A clear breakdown of funding elements for past, current, and
future years.
(b) Descriptions of active functionalities and a description of
their usefulness in child support collections by local child support
agencies.
(c) A review of current considerations relative to federal law and
policy.
(d) A policy narrative on future, planned changes to the CCSAS and
how those changes will advance activities for workers, collections
for the state, and payments for recipient families.