83R1466 KKA-D
By: Taylor H.B. No. 154
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the termination of the parent-child relationship and
the duty to pay child support in circumstances involving mistaken
paternity.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 161.005, Family Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (e) and (i) and adding Subsections (e-2),
(e-3), and (p) to read as follows:
(e) A petition under Subsection (c) may [must] be filed at
any time, regardless [not later than the first anniversary] of the
date on which the petitioner becomes aware of the facts alleged in
the petition indicating that the petitioner is not the child's
genetic father.
(e-2) A man who files a petition under Subsection (c) and is
unable for at least 60 days to obtain service of citation on the
child's mother may request that the court order the suspension of
withholding for support of the child from the man's disposable
earnings. After hearing, the court shall order suspension if the
man demonstrates he was unable to obtain service of citation
despite a good faith effort. The suspension ends on the date that
citation is served on the child's mother. A suspension ordered
under this subsection applies to an order or judicial or
administrative writ of withholding, notwithstanding any provision
in Chapter 154 or 158.
(e-3) If, as a result of the suspension of child support
withholding under Subsection (e-2), the child's mother contacts the
court and indicates that the mother has concealed the address of her
residence because of the threat of family violence as defined by
Section 71.004, the court may order the court clerk to:
(1) make arrangements for citation to be served on the
child's mother without disclosure of the address of the mother's
residence to the man seeking to obtain service;
(2) strike information concerning the address of the
mother's residence from the public records of the court; and
(3) maintain a confidential record of the address of
the mother's residence for use only by the court.
(i) An order under Subsection (h) terminating the
parent-child relationship ends the petitioner's obligation for
future support of the child as of the date the order is rendered.
The order also ends [does not affect] the petitioner's obligation
to pay child support arrearages, including interest, accrued
[obligations for support of the child incurred] before that date
[or the petitioner's obligation to pay interest that accrues after
that date on the basis of child support arrearages existing on that
date. Those obligations are enforceable until satisfied by any
means available for the enforcement of child support other than
contempt]. The elimination of the obligation to pay child support
arrearages, including interest, is for the purpose of correcting an
act induced by a mistaken belief based on misrepresentations and is
not a retroactive modification.
(p) A man who previously sought termination of the
parent-child relationship under this section as it existed on or
before January 1, 2011, is not precluded by Section 161.004 from
filing a petition under Subsection (c) and obtaining the remedy to
which he may be entitled under this section.
SECTION 2. Section 161.005, Family Code, as amended by this
Act, applies only to a suit affecting the parent-child relationship
pending in a trial court on the effective date of this Act or filed
on or after that date. A suit affecting the parent-child
relationship in which a final order is rendered before the
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
date the order was rendered, and the former law is continued in
effect for that purpose.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2013.