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. (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.