By: Smithee (Senate Sponsor - West) H.B. No. 3538
(In the Senate - Received from the House May 11, 2015;
May 11, 2015, read first time and referred to Committee on
Administration; May 13, 2015, reported favorably by the following
vote: Yeas 5, Nays 0; May 13, 2015, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the adoption of the Uniform Interstate Family Support
Act of 2008.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 159.102, Family Code, is amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 159.102. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Child" means an individual, whether over or under
the age of majority, who:
(A) is or is alleged to be owed a duty of support
by the individual's parent; or
(B) is or is alleged to be the beneficiary of a
support order directed to the parent.
(2) "Child support order" means a support order for a
child, including a child who has attained the age of majority under
the law of the issuing state or foreign country.
(3) "Convention" means the Convention on the
International Recovery of Child Support and Other Forms of Family
Maintenance, concluded at The Hague on November 23, 2007.
(4) "Duty of support" means an obligation imposed or
imposable by law to provide support for a child, spouse, or former
spouse, including an unsatisfied obligation to provide support.
(5) "Foreign country" means a country, including a
political subdivision thereof, other than the United States, that
authorizes the issuance of support orders and:
(A) which has been declared under the law of the
United States to be a foreign reciprocating country;
(B) which has established a reciprocal
arrangement for child support with this state as provided in
Section 159.308;
(C) which has enacted a law or established
procedures for the issuance and enforcement of support orders which
are substantially similar to the procedures under this chapter; or
(D) in which the Convention is in force with
respect to the United States.
(6) "Foreign support order" means a support order of a
foreign tribunal.
(7) "Foreign tribunal" means a court, administrative
agency, or quasi-judicial entity of a foreign country which is
authorized to establish, enforce, or modify support orders or to
determine parentage of a child. The term includes a competent
authority under the Convention.
(8) [(4)] "Home state" means the state or foreign
country in which a child lived with a parent or a person acting as
parent for at least six consecutive months immediately preceding
the time of filing of a petition or a comparable pleading for
support and, if a child is less than six months old, the state or
foreign country in which the child lived from birth with any of them
[with a parent or a person acting as parent from the time of birth].
A period of temporary absence of any of them is counted as part of
the six-month or other period.
(9) [(5)] "Income" includes earnings or other
periodic entitlements to money from any source and any other
property subject to withholding for support under the law of this
state.
(10) [(6)] "Income-withholding order" means an order
or other legal process directed to an obligor's employer, as
provided in Chapter 158, to withhold support from the income of the
obligor.
(11) [(7) "Initiating state" means a state from which
a proceeding is forwarded or in which a proceeding is filed for
forwarding to a responding state under this chapter or a law or
procedure substantially similar to this chapter.
[(8)] "Initiating tribunal" means the [authorized]
tribunal of a state or foreign country from which a petition or
comparable pleading is forwarded or a petition or comparable
pleading is filed for forwarding to another state or foreign
country [in an initiating state].
(12) "Issuing foreign country" means the foreign
country in which a tribunal issues a support order or a judgment
determining parentage of a child.
(13) [(9)] "Issuing state" means the state in which a
tribunal issues a support order or [renders] a judgment determining
parentage of a child.
(14) [(10)] "Issuing tribunal" means the tribunal of a
state or foreign country that issues a support order or [renders] a
judgment determining parentage of a child.
(15) [(11)] "Law" includes decisional and statutory
law and rules and regulations having the force of law.
(16) [(12)] "Obligee" means:
(A) an individual to whom a duty of support is or
is alleged to be owed or in whose favor a support order [has been
issued] or a judgment determining parentage of a child has been
issued [rendered];
(B) a foreign country, state, or political
subdivision of a state to which the rights under a duty of support
or support order have been assigned or that has independent claims
based on financial assistance provided to an individual obligee in
place of child support; [or]
(C) an individual seeking a judgment determining
parentage of the individual's child; or
(D) a person that is a creditor in a proceeding
under Subchapter H.
(17) [(13)] "Obligor" means an individual, or the
estate of a decedent, that:
(A) [who] owes or is alleged to owe a duty of
support;
(B) [who] is alleged but has not been adjudicated
to be a parent of a child; [or]
(C) [who] is liable under a support order; or
(D) is a debtor in a proceeding under Subchapter
H.
(18) "Outside this state" means a location in another
state or a country other than the United States, whether or not the
country is a foreign country.
(19) [(14)] "Person" means an individual,
corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited
liability company, association, joint venture, public corporation,
government or [,] governmental subdivision, agency, or
instrumentality, [public corporation,] or any other legal or
commercial entity.
(20) [(15)] "Record" means information that is:
(A) inscribed on a tangible medium or that is
stored in an electronic or other medium; and
(B) retrievable in a perceivable form.
(21) [(16)] "Register" means to file in a tribunal of
this state a support order or judgment determining parentage of a
child issued in another state or a [in the registry of] foreign
country [support orders].
(22) [(17)] "Registering tribunal" means a tribunal
in which a support order or judgment determining parentage of a
child is registered.
(23) [(18)] "Responding state" means a state in which
a petition or comparable pleading for support or to determine
parentage of a child [proceeding] is filed or to which a petition or
comparable pleading [proceeding] is forwarded for filing from
another [an initiating] state or a foreign country [under this
chapter or a law or procedure substantially similar to this
chapter].
(24) [(19)] "Responding tribunal" means the
authorized tribunal in a responding state or foreign country.
(25) [(20)] "Spousal support order" means a support
order for a spouse or former spouse of the obligor.
(26) [(21)] "State" means a state of the United
States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States
Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to
the jurisdiction of the United States. The term includes[:
[(A)] an Indian nation or tribe[; and
[(B) a foreign country or political subdivision
that has:
[(i) been declared to be a foreign
reciprocating country or political subdivision under federal law;
[(ii) established a reciprocal arrangement
for child support with this state as provided by Section 159.308; or
[(iii) enacted a law or established
procedures for issuance and enforcement of support orders that are
substantially similar to the procedures under this chapter].
(27) [(22)] "Support enforcement agency" means a
public official, governmental entity, or private agency authorized
to [seek]:
(A) seek enforcement of support orders or laws
relating to the duty of support;
(B) seek establishment or modification of child
support;
(C) request determination of parentage of a
child;
(D) attempt to locate [the location of] obligors
or their assets; or
(E) request determination of the controlling
child support order.
"Support enforcement agency" does not include a domestic
relations office unless that office has entered into a cooperative
agreement with the Title IV-D agency to perform duties under this
chapter.
(28) [(23)] "Support order" means a judgment, decree,
order, decision, or directive, whether temporary, final, or subject
to modification, issued in a state or foreign country [by a
tribunal] for the benefit of a child, a spouse, or a former spouse
that provides for monetary support, health care, arrearages,
retroactive support, or reimbursement for financial assistance
provided to an individual obligee in place of child support. The
term [and] may include related costs and fees, interest, income
withholding, automatic adjustment, reasonable attorney's fees, and
other relief.
(29) [(24)] "Tribunal" means a court, administrative
agency, or quasi-judicial entity authorized to establish, enforce,
or modify support orders or to determine parentage of a child.
SECTION 2. Section 159.103, Family Code, is amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 159.103. STATE TRIBUNAL AND SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT AGENCY
[OF STATE]. (a) The court is the tribunal of this state.
(b) The office of the attorney general is the support
enforcement agency of this state.
SECTION 3. Sections 159.104(a) and (b), Family Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) Remedies provided by [in] this chapter are cumulative
and do not affect the availability of remedies under other law or [,
including] the recognition of a foreign support order [of a foreign
country or political subdivision] on the basis of comity.
(b) This chapter does not:
(1) provide the exclusive method of establishing or
enforcing a support order under the law of this state; or
(2) grant a tribunal of this state jurisdiction to
render [a] judgment or issue an order relating to child custody or
visitation in a proceeding under this chapter.
SECTION 4. Subchapter B, Chapter 159, Family Code, is
amended by adding Section 159.105 to read as follows:
Sec. 159.105. APPLICATION OF CHAPTER TO RESIDENT OF FOREIGN
COUNTRY AND FOREIGN SUPPORT PROCEEDING. (a) A tribunal of this
state shall apply Subchapters B through G and, as applicable,
Subchapter H to a support proceeding involving:
(1) a foreign support order;
(2) a foreign tribunal; or
(3) an obligee, obligor, or child residing in a
foreign country.
(b) A tribunal of this state that is requested to recognize
and enforce a support order on the basis of comity may apply the
procedural and substantive provisions of Subchapters B through G.
(c) Subchapter H applies only to a support proceeding under
the Convention. In such a proceeding, if a provision of Subchapter H
is inconsistent with Subchapters B through G, Subchapter H
controls.
SECTION 5. Section 159.201, Family Code, as amended by
S.B. 219, Acts of the 84th Legislature, Regular Session, 2015, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 159.201. BASES FOR JURISDICTION OVER NONRESIDENT. (a)
In a proceeding to establish or enforce a support order or to
determine parentage of a child, a tribunal of this state may
exercise personal jurisdiction over a nonresident individual or the
individual's guardian or conservator if:
(1) the individual is personally served with citation
in this state;
(2) the individual submits to the jurisdiction of this
state by consent in a record, by entering a general appearance, or
by filing a responsive document having the effect of waiving any
contest to personal jurisdiction;
(3) the individual resided with the child in this
state;
(4) the individual resided in this state and provided
prenatal expenses or support for the child;
(5) the child resides in this state as a result of the
acts or directives of the individual;
(6) the individual engaged in sexual intercourse in
this state and the child may have been conceived by that act of
intercourse;
(7) the individual asserted parentage of a child in
the paternity registry maintained in this state by the vital
statistics unit; or
(8) there is any other basis consistent with the
constitutions of this state and the United States for the exercise
of personal jurisdiction.
(b) The [A tribunal of this state may not use the] bases of
personal jurisdiction listed in Subsection (a) or in any other law
of this state may not be used to acquire personal jurisdiction for a
tribunal of this state to modify a child support order of another
state unless the requirements of Section 159.611 are met, or, in the
case of a foreign support order, unless the requirements of Section
159.615 are met [or 159.615 are satisfied].
SECTION 6. Section 159.202, Family Code, is amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 159.202. DURATION OF PERSONAL JURISDICTION. Personal
jurisdiction acquired by a tribunal of this state in a proceeding
under this chapter or other law of this state relating to a support
order continues as long as the tribunal of this state has
continuing, exclusive jurisdiction to modify its order or
continuing jurisdiction to enforce its order as provided by [under]
Sections 159.205, 159.206, and 159.211.
SECTION 7. Section 159.203, Family Code, is amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 159.203. INITIATING AND RESPONDING TRIBUNAL OF STATE.
Under this chapter, a tribunal of this state may serve as an
initiating tribunal to forward proceedings to a tribunal of another
state and as a responding tribunal for proceedings initiated in
another state or a foreign country.
SECTION 8. Section 159.204, Family Code, is amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 159.204. SIMULTANEOUS PROCEEDINGS. (a) A tribunal of
this state may exercise jurisdiction to establish a support order
if the petition or comparable pleading is filed after a pleading is
filed in another state or a foreign country only if:
(1) the petition or comparable pleading in this state
is filed before the expiration of the time allowed in the other
state or the foreign country for filing a responsive pleading
challenging the exercise of jurisdiction by the other state or the
foreign country;
(2) the contesting party timely challenges the
exercise of jurisdiction in the other state or the foreign country;
and
(3) if relevant, this state is the home state of the
child.
(b) A tribunal of this state may not exercise jurisdiction
to establish a support order if the petition or comparable pleading
is filed before a petition or comparable pleading is filed in
another state or a foreign country if:
(1) the petition or comparable pleading in the other
state or foreign country is filed before the expiration of the time
allowed in this state for filing a responsive pleading challenging
the exercise of jurisdiction by this state;
(2) the contesting party timely challenges the
exercise of jurisdiction in this state; and
(3) if relevant, the other state or foreign country is
the home state of the child.
SECTION 9. Sections 159.205(a), (b), (c), and (d), Family
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) A tribunal of this state that has issued a child support
order consistent with the law of this state has and shall exercise
continuing, exclusive jurisdiction to modify its child support
order if the order is the controlling order and:
(1) at the time of the filing of a request for
modification [is filed,] this state is the [state of] residence of
the obligor, the individual obligee, or the child for whose benefit
the support order is issued; or
(2) even if this state is not the residence of the
obligor, the individual obligee, or the child for whose benefit the
support order is issued, the parties consent in a record or in open
court that the tribunal of this state may continue to exercise
jurisdiction to modify its order.
(b) A tribunal of this state that has issued a child support
order consistent with the law of this state may not exercise
continuing, exclusive jurisdiction to modify the order if:
(1) all of the parties [each party] who are
individuals file [is an individual files a] consent in a record with
the tribunal of this state that a tribunal of another state that has
jurisdiction over at least one of the parties who is an individual
or that is located in the state of residence of the child may modify
the order and assume continuing, exclusive jurisdiction; or
(2) the tribunal's order is not the controlling order.
(c) If a [A] tribunal of another [this] state [shall
recognize the continuing, exclusive jurisdiction of a tribunal of
another state if the tribunal of the other state] has issued a child
support order pursuant to the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act
or a law substantially similar to that Act that modifies a child
support order of a tribunal of this state, tribunals of this state
shall recognize the continuing, exclusive jurisdiction of the
tribunal of the other state [under a law substantially similar to
this chapter].
(d) A tribunal of this state that lacks [does not have]
continuing, exclusive jurisdiction to modify a child support order
may serve as an initiating tribunal to request a tribunal of another
state to modify a support order issued in that state.
SECTION 10. Section 159.206(a), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) A tribunal of this state that has issued a child support
order consistent with the law of this state may serve as an
initiating tribunal to request a tribunal of another state to
enforce:
(1) the order, if the order:
(A) is the controlling order; and
(B) has not been modified by a tribunal of
another state that assumed jurisdiction under the Uniform
Interstate Family Support Act; or
(2) a money judgment for arrears of support
[arrearages] and interest on the order accrued before a
determination that an order of a tribunal of another state is the
controlling order.
SECTION 11. Section 159.207, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.207. DETERMINATION OF CONTROLLING CHILD SUPPORT
ORDER. (a) If a proceeding is brought under this chapter and only
one tribunal has issued a child support order, the order of that
tribunal controls and must be [so] recognized.
(b) If a proceeding is brought under this chapter and two or
more child support orders have been issued by tribunals of this
state, [or] another state, or a foreign country with regard to the
same obligor and same child, a tribunal of this state having
personal jurisdiction over both the obligor and individual obligee
shall apply the following rules and by order shall [to] determine
[by order] which order controls and must be recognized:
(1) if only one of the tribunals would have
continuing, exclusive jurisdiction under this chapter, the order of
that tribunal controls [and must be so recognized];
(2) if more than one of the tribunals would have
continuing, exclusive jurisdiction under this chapter:
(A) an order issued by a tribunal in the current
home state of the child controls [if an order is issued in the
current home state of the child]; or
(B) [the order most recently issued controls] if
an order has not been issued in the current home state of the child,
the order most recently issued controls; and
(3) if none of the tribunals would have continuing,
exclusive jurisdiction under this chapter, the tribunal of this
state shall issue a child support order that controls.
(c) If two or more child support orders have been issued for
the same obligor and same child, on request of a party who is an
individual or that is a support enforcement agency, a tribunal of
this state having personal jurisdiction over both the obligor and
the obligee who is an individual shall determine which order
controls under Subsection (b). The request may be filed[:
[(1)] with a registration for enforcement or
registration for modification under Subchapter G[;] or may be filed
[(2)] as a separate proceeding.
(d) A request to determine which is the controlling order
must be accompanied by a copy of every [each] child support order in
effect and the applicable record of payments. The requesting party
shall give notice of the request to each party whose rights may be
affected by the determination.
(e) The tribunal that issued the controlling order under
Subsection (a), (b), or (c) has continuing jurisdiction to the
extent provided by [under] Section 159.205 or 159.206.
(f) A tribunal of this state that determines by order which
[order] is the controlling order under Subsection (b)(1) or (2) or
Subsection (c), or that issues a new controlling order under
Subsection (b)(3), shall state in that order:
(1) the basis upon which the tribunal made its
determination;
(2) the amount of prospective [child] support, if any;
and
(3) the total amount of consolidated arrears
[arrearages] and accrued interest, if any, under all of the orders
after all payments made are credited as provided by [under] Section
159.209.
(g) Within 30 days after issuance of an order determining
which order is the controlling order, the party obtaining the order
shall file a certified copy of the controlling order in each
tribunal that issued or registered an earlier order of child
support. A party or support enforcement agency obtaining [that
obtains] the order that [and] fails to file a certified copy [of the
order] is subject to appropriate sanctions by a tribunal in which
the issue of failure to file arises. The failure to file does not
affect the validity or enforceability of the controlling order.
(h) An order that has been determined to be the controlling
order, or a judgment for consolidated arrears of support
[arrearages] and interest, if any, made [issued] under this
section, must be recognized in proceedings [a proceeding] under
this chapter.
SECTION 12. Section 159.208, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.208. CHILD SUPPORT ORDERS FOR TWO OR MORE
OBLIGEES. In responding to registrations or petitions for
enforcement of two or more child support orders in effect at the
same time with regard to the same obligor and different individual
obligees, at least one of which was issued by a tribunal of another
state or a foreign country, a tribunal of this state shall enforce
those orders in the same manner as if the orders had been issued by a
tribunal of this state.
SECTION 13. Section 159.209, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.209. CREDIT FOR PAYMENTS. A tribunal of this state
shall credit amounts collected for a particular period under any
child [a] support order against the amounts owed for the same period
under any other child support order for support of the same child
issued by a tribunal of this state, [or] another state, or a foreign
country.
SECTION 14. Section 159.210, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.210. APPLICATION OF CHAPTER [APPLICABILITY] TO
NONRESIDENT SUBJECT TO PERSONAL JURISDICTION. A [(a) Except as
provided by Subsection (b), Subchapters D-H do not apply to a]
tribunal of this state exercising personal jurisdiction over a
nonresident in a proceeding under this chapter or under other law of
this state relating to a support order or recognizing a foreign
support order [of a foreign country or political subdivision on the
basis of comity. The tribunal shall apply the procedural and
substantive law of this state in a proceeding described by this
subsection.
[(b) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), a tribunal of this
state exercising personal jurisdiction over a nonresident in a
proceeding under this chapter or under other law of this state
relating to a support order or recognizing a support order of a
foreign country or political subdivision on the basis of comity]
may[:
[(1)] receive evidence from outside this [another]
state as provided by Section 159.316,[;
[(2)] communicate with a tribunal outside this [of
another] state as provided by Section 159.317,[;] and
[(3)] obtain discovery through a tribunal outside this
[of another] state as provided by Section 159.318. In all other
respects, Subchapters D, E, F, and G do not apply and the tribunal
shall apply the procedural and substantive law of this state.
SECTION 15. Section 159.211(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) A tribunal of this state may not modify a spousal
support order issued by a tribunal of another state or a foreign
country having continuing, exclusive jurisdiction over that order
under the law of that state or foreign country.
SECTION 16. Section 159.301(c), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(c) An individual petitioner or a support enforcement
agency may initiate a proceeding authorized under this chapter by
filing a petition in an initiating tribunal for forwarding to a
responding tribunal or by filing a petition or a comparable
pleading directly in a tribunal of another state or foreign country
that has or [that] can obtain personal jurisdiction over the
respondent.
SECTION 17. Section 159.304(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) If requested by the responding tribunal, a tribunal of
this state shall issue a certificate or other document and make
findings required by the law of the responding state. If the
responding tribunal [state] is in a foreign country [or political
subdivision], on request the tribunal of this state shall specify
the amount of support sought, convert that amount into the
equivalent amount in the foreign currency under the applicable
official or market exchange rate as publicly reported, and provide
any other documents necessary to satisfy the requirements of the
responding foreign tribunal [state].
SECTION 18. Sections 159.305(b) and (f), Family Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(b) A [Except as prohibited by other law, a] responding
tribunal of this state, to the extent not prohibited by other law,
may do one or more of the following:
(1) establish [issue] or enforce a support order,
modify a child support order, determine the controlling child
support order, or determine parentage of a child;
(2) order an obligor to comply with a support order,
specifying [and specify] the amount and the manner of compliance;
(3) order income withholding;
(4) determine the amount of any arrearages and specify
a method of payment;
(5) enforce orders by civil or criminal contempt, or
both;
(6) set aside property for satisfaction of the support
order;
(7) place liens and order execution on the obligor's
property;
(8) order an obligor to keep the tribunal informed of
the obligor's current residential address, electronic mail
address, telephone number, employer, address of employment, and
telephone number at the place of employment;
(9) issue a bench warrant or capias for an obligor who
has failed after proper notice to appear at a hearing ordered by the
tribunal and enter the bench warrant or capias in any local and
state computer systems for criminal warrants;
(10) order the obligor to seek appropriate employment
by specified methods;
(11) award reasonable attorney's fees and other fees
and costs; and
(12) grant any other available remedy.
(f) If requested to enforce a support order, arrears
[arrearages], or [a] judgment or [to] modify a support order stated
in a foreign currency, a responding tribunal of this state shall
convert the amount stated in the foreign currency to the equivalent
amount in dollars under the applicable official or market exchange
rate as publicly reported.
SECTION 19. Sections 159.307(b), (c), (d), and (e), Family
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(b) A support enforcement agency of this state that is
providing [provides] services to the petitioner shall:
(1) take all steps necessary to enable an appropriate
tribunal of [in] this state, [or] another state, or a foreign
country to obtain jurisdiction over the respondent;
(2) request an appropriate tribunal to set a date,
time, and place for a hearing;
(3) make a reasonable effort to obtain all relevant
information, including information as to income and property of the
parties;
(4) within two days [not later than the second day],
exclusive of [excluding] Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays,
after [the date of] receipt of [a written] notice in a record from
an initiating, responding, or registering tribunal, send a copy of
the notice to the petitioner;
(5) within two days [not later than the second day],
exclusive of [excluding] Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays,
after [the date of] receipt of [a written] communication in a record
from the respondent or the respondent's attorney, send a copy of the
communication to the petitioner; and
(6) notify the petitioner if jurisdiction over the
respondent cannot be obtained.
(c) A support enforcement agency of this state that requests
registration of a child support order in this state for enforcement
or for modification shall make reasonable efforts [to ensure that]:
(1) to ensure that the order to be registered is the
controlling order; or
(2) if two or more child support orders exist and the
identity of the controlling order has not been determined, to
ensure that a request for such a determination [of which order is
the controlling order] is made in a tribunal having jurisdiction to
do so [to make the determination, if two or more child support
orders have been issued and a determination of the controlling
order has not been made].
(d) A support enforcement agency of this state that requests
registration and enforcement of a support order, arrears
[arrearages], or a judgment stated in a foreign currency shall
convert the amount stated in the foreign currency into [to] the
equivalent amount in dollars under the applicable official or
market exchange rate as publicly reported.
(e) A support enforcement agency of this state shall issue,
or request a tribunal of this state to issue, a child support order
and an income-withholding order that redirects payment of current
support, arrears [arrearages], and interest if requested to do so
by a support enforcement agency of another state under Section
159.319.
SECTION 20. The heading of Section 159.308, Family Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 159.308. DUTY OF ATTORNEY GENERAL AND GOVERNOR
[CERTAIN STATE OFFICIALS].
SECTION 21. Section 159.308(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) The governor may determine that a foreign country [or
political subdivision] has established a reciprocal arrangement
for child support with this state and take appropriate action for
notification of the determination.
SECTION 22. Section 159.310(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) The state information agency shall:
(1) compile and maintain a current list, including
addresses, of the tribunals in this state that have jurisdiction
under this chapter and any support enforcement agencies in this
state and transmit [send] a copy to the state information agency of
every other state;
(2) maintain a register of names and addresses of
tribunals and support enforcement agencies received from other
states;
(3) forward to the appropriate tribunal in the county
in this state in which [where] the obligee who is an individual or
the obligor resides, or in which [where] the obligor's property is
believed to be located, all documents concerning a proceeding under
this chapter received from another state or a foreign country [an
initiating tribunal or the state information agency of the
initiating state]; and
(4) obtain information concerning the location of the
obligor and the obligor's property in this state not exempt from
execution, by such means as postal verification and federal or
state locator services, examination of telephone directories,
requests for the obligor's address from employers, and examination
of governmental records, including, to the extent not prohibited by
other law, those relating to real property, vital statistics, law
enforcement, taxation, motor vehicles, driver's licenses, and
social security.
SECTION 23. Section 159.311(a), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) In a proceeding under this chapter, a petitioner seeking
to establish a support order, to determine parentage of a child, or
to register and modify a support order of a tribunal of another
state or foreign country must file a petition. Unless otherwise
ordered under Section 159.312, the petition or accompanying
documents must provide, so far as known, the name, residential
address, and social security numbers of the obligor and the obligee
or the parent and alleged parent, and the name, sex, residential
address, social security number, and date of birth of each child for
whose benefit support is sought or whose parentage is to be
determined. Unless filed at the time of registration, the petition
must be accompanied by a copy of any support order known to have
been issued by another tribunal. The petition may include any other
information that may assist in locating or identifying the
respondent.
SECTION 24. Section 159.312, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.312. NONDISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION IN EXCEPTIONAL
CIRCUMSTANCES. If a party alleges in an affidavit or pleading under
oath that the health, safety, or liberty of a party or child would
be jeopardized by disclosure of specific identifying information
[regarding the party or the child], that [the identifying]
information must [shall] be sealed and may not be disclosed to the
other party or [to] the public. After a hearing in which a tribunal
takes into consideration [considers] the health, safety, or liberty
of the party or [the] child, the tribunal may order disclosure of
information that [if] the tribunal determines to be in the interest
[that the disclosure serves the interests] of justice.
SECTION 25. Sections 159.313(b) and (c), Family Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(b) If an obligee prevails, a responding tribunal of this
state may assess against an obligor filing fees, reasonable
attorney's fees, other costs, and necessary travel and other
reasonable expenses incurred by the obligee and the obligee's
witnesses. The tribunal may not assess fees, costs, or expenses
against the obligee or the support enforcement agency of either the
initiating [state] or [the] responding state or foreign country,
except as provided by other law. Attorney's fees may be taxed as
costs, and may be ordered paid directly to the attorney, who may
enforce the order in the attorney's own name. Payment of support
owed to the obligee has priority over fees, costs, and expenses.
(c) The tribunal shall order the payment of costs and
reasonable attorney's fees if it determines that a hearing was
requested primarily for delay. In a proceeding under Subchapter G
[pursuant to Sections 159.601 through 159.608], a hearing is
presumed to have been requested primarily for delay if a registered
support order is confirmed or enforced without change.
SECTION 26. Section 159.314(c), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(c) The immunity granted by this section does not extend to
civil litigation based on acts unrelated to a proceeding under this
chapter committed by a party while physically present in this state
to participate in the proceeding.
SECTION 27. Sections 159.316(a), (b), (d), (e), and (f),
Family Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) The physical presence of a nonresident party who is an
individual in a tribunal of this state is not required for the
establishment, enforcement, or modification of a support order or
the rendition of a judgment determining parentage of a child.
(b) An affidavit, a document substantially complying with
federally mandated forms, or a document incorporated by reference
in an affidavit or document, that would not be excluded under the
hearsay rule if given in person, is admissible in evidence if given
under penalty of perjury by a party or witness residing outside this
[in another] state.
(d) Copies of bills for testing for parentage of a child,
and for prenatal and postnatal health care of the mother and child
[that are] furnished to the adverse party at least [not less than]
10 days before [the date of] trial are admissible in evidence to
prove the amount of the charges billed and that the charges were
reasonable, necessary, and customary.
(e) Documentary evidence transmitted from outside this
[another] state to a tribunal of this state by telephone,
telecopier, or other electronic [another] means that does not
provide an original record may not be excluded from evidence on an
objection based on the means of transmission.
(f) In a proceeding under this chapter, a tribunal of this
state shall permit a party or witness residing outside this [in
another] state to be deposed or to testify under penalty of perjury
by telephone, audiovisual means, or other electronic means at a
designated tribunal or other location [in that state]. A tribunal
of this state shall cooperate with other tribunals [a tribunal of
another state] in designating an appropriate location for the
deposition or testimony.
SECTION 28. Section 159.317, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.317. COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN TRIBUNALS. A tribunal
of this state may communicate with a tribunal outside this [of
another] state [or of a foreign country or political subdivision]
in a record or [,] by telephone, electronic mail, or by other means,
to obtain information concerning the laws, the legal effect of a
judgment, decree, or order of that tribunal, and the status of a
proceeding [in the other state, foreign country, or political
subdivision]. A tribunal of this state may furnish similar
information by similar means to a tribunal outside this state [of
another state or of a foreign country or political subdivision].
SECTION 29. Section 159.318, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.318. ASSISTANCE WITH DISCOVERY. A tribunal of
this state may:
(1) request a tribunal outside this [of another] state
to assist in obtaining discovery; and
(2) on request, compel a person over whom the tribunal
has jurisdiction to respond to a discovery order issued by a
tribunal outside this [of another] state.
SECTION 30. Section 159.319(a), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) A support enforcement agency or tribunal of this state
shall disburse promptly any amounts received under a support order,
as directed by the order. The agency or tribunal shall furnish to a
requesting party or tribunal of another state or a foreign country a
certified statement by the custodian of the record of the amounts
and dates of all payments received.
SECTION 31. The heading to Subchapter E, Chapter 159,
Family Code, is amended to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER E. ESTABLISHMENT OF SUPPORT ORDER OR DETERMINATION OF
PARENTAGE
SECTION 32. Section 159.401, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.401. ESTABLISHMENT OF [PETITION TO ESTABLISH]
SUPPORT ORDER. (a) If a support order entitled to recognition under
this chapter has not been issued, a responding tribunal of this
state with personal jurisdiction over the parties may issue a
support order if:
(1) the individual seeking the order resides outside
this [in another] state; or
(2) the support enforcement agency seeking the order
is located outside this [in another] state.
(b) The tribunal may issue a temporary child support order
if the tribunal determines that such an [the] order is appropriate
and the individual ordered to pay is:
(1) a presumed father of the child;
(2) [a man] petitioning to have his paternity
adjudicated;
(3) [a man] identified as the father of the child
through genetic testing;
(4) an alleged father who has declined to submit to
genetic testing;
(5) [a man] shown by clear and convincing evidence to
be the father of the child;
(6) an acknowledged father as provided by applicable
state law;
(7) the mother of the child; or
(8) an individual who has been ordered to pay child
support in a previous proceeding and the order has not been reversed
or vacated.
(c) On finding, after notice and an opportunity to be heard,
that an obligor owes a duty of support, the tribunal shall issue a
support order directed to the obligor and may issue other orders
under Section 159.305.
SECTION 33. Subchapter E, Chapter 159, Family Code, is
amended by adding Section 159.402 to read as follows:
Sec. 159.402. PROCEEDING TO DETERMINE PARENTAGE. A
tribunal of this state authorized to determine parentage of a child
may serve as a responding tribunal in a proceeding to determine
parentage of a child brought under this chapter or a law or
procedure substantially similar to this chapter.
SECTION 34. The heading to Subchapter F, Chapter 159,
Family Code, is amended to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER F. ENFORCEMENT OF SUPPORT ORDER [OF ANOTHER STATE]
WITHOUT REGISTRATION
SECTION 35. Section 159.506, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.506. CONTEST BY OBLIGOR. (a) An obligor may
contest the validity or enforcement of an income-withholding order
issued in another state and received directly by an employer in this
state by registering the order in a tribunal of this state and [:
[(1)] filing a contest to that order as provided in
[under] Subchapter G[;] or otherwise
[(2)] contesting the order in the same manner as if the
order had been issued by a tribunal of this state.
(b) The obligor shall give notice of the contest to:
(1) a support enforcement agency providing services to
the obligee;
(2) each employer that has directly received an
income-withholding order relating to the obligor; and
(3) the person designated to receive payments in the
income-withholding order or [to the obligee], if no person is
designated, to the obligee.
SECTION 36. Section 159.507(a), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) A party or support enforcement agency seeking to enforce
a support order or an income-withholding order, or both, issued in
[by a tribunal of] another state or a foreign support order may send
the documents required for registering the order to a support
enforcement agency of this state.
SECTION 37. Sections 159.601, 159.602, 159.603, and
159.604, Family Code, are designated as Part 1, Subchapter G,
Chapter 159, Family Code, and a heading for that part is added to
read as follows:
PART 1. REGISTRATION FOR ENFORCEMENT OF SUPPORT ORDER
SECTION 38. Section 159.601, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.601. REGISTRATION OF ORDER FOR ENFORCEMENT. A
support order or income-withholding order issued in [by a tribunal
of] another state or a foreign support order may be registered in
this state for enforcement.
SECTION 39. Sections 159.602(a), (b), and (d), Family Code,
are amended to read as follows:
(a) Except as otherwise provided by Section 159.706, a [A]
support order or income-withholding order of another state or a
foreign support order may be registered in this state by sending
[to] the following records to the appropriate tribunal in this
state:
(1) a letter of transmittal to the tribunal requesting
registration and enforcement;
(2) two copies, including one certified copy, of the
order to be registered, including any modification of the order;
(3) a sworn statement by the person requesting
registration or a certified statement by the custodian of the
records showing the amount of any arrearage;
(4) the name of the obligor and, if known:
(A) the obligor's address and social security
number;
(B) the name and address of the obligor's
employer and any other source of income of the obligor; and
(C) a description of and the location of property
of the obligor in this state not exempt from execution; and
(5) except as otherwise provided by Section 159.312,
the name and address of the obligee and, if applicable, the person
to whom support payments are to be remitted.
(b) On receipt of a request for registration, the
registering tribunal shall cause the order to be filed as an order
of a tribunal of another state or a foreign support order
[judgment], together with one copy of the documents and
information, regardless of their form.
(d) If two or more orders are in effect, the person
requesting registration shall:
(1) furnish [provide] to the tribunal a copy of each
support order asserted to be in effect in addition to [and] the
documents specified in this section;
(2) specify [identify] the order alleged to be the
controlling order, if any; and
(3) specify [state] the amount of consolidated arrears
[arrearages], if any.
SECTION 40. Section 159.603, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.603. EFFECT OF REGISTRATION FOR ENFORCEMENT. (a)
A support order or income-withholding order issued in another state
or a foreign support order is registered when the order is filed in
the registering tribunal of this state.
(b) A registered support order issued in another state or a
foreign country is enforceable in the same manner and is subject to
the same procedures as an order issued by a tribunal of this state.
(c) Except as otherwise provided in this subchapter, a
tribunal of this state shall recognize and enforce, but may not
modify, a registered support order if the issuing tribunal had
jurisdiction.
SECTION 41. Section 159.604, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.604. CHOICE OF LAW. (a) Except as otherwise
provided by Subsection (d), the law of the issuing state or foreign
country governs:
(1) the nature, extent, amount, and duration of
current payments under a registered support order;
(2) the computation and payment of arrearages and
accrual of interest on the arrearages under the support order; and
(3) the existence and satisfaction of other
obligations under the support order.
(b) In a proceeding for arrears [arrearages] under a
registered support order, the statute of limitation of this state,
or of the issuing state or foreign country, whichever is longer,
applies.
(c) A responding tribunal of [in] this state shall apply the
procedures and remedies of this state to enforce current support
and collect arrears [arrearages] and interest due on a support
order of another state or a foreign country registered in this
state.
(d) After a tribunal of this state or another state
determines which [order] is the controlling order and issues an
order consolidating arrears [arrearages], if any, the tribunal of
this state shall prospectively apply the law of the state or foreign
country issuing the controlling order, including that state's or
country's law on interest on arrears [arrearages], on current and
future support, and on consolidated arrears [arrearages].
SECTION 42. Sections 159.605, 159.606, 159.607, and
159.608, Family Code, are designated as Part 2, Subchapter G,
Chapter 159, Family Code, and a heading for that part is added to
read as follows:
PART 2. CONTEST OF VALIDITY OR ENFORCEMENT
SECTION 43. Section 159.605, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.605. NOTICE OF REGISTRATION OF ORDER. (a) When a
support order or income-withholding order issued in another state
or a foreign support order is registered, the registering tribunal
of this state shall notify the nonregistering party. The notice
must be accompanied by a copy of the registered order and the
documents and relevant information accompanying the order.
(b) A notice [under this section] must inform the
nonregistering party:
(1) that a registered order is enforceable as of the
date of registration in the same manner as an order issued by a
tribunal of this state;
(2) that a hearing to contest the validity or
enforcement of the registered order must be requested within 20
days after notice unless the registered order is under Section
159.707;
(3) that failure to contest the validity or
enforcement of the registered order in a timely manner[:
[(A)] will result in confirmation of the order
and enforcement of the order and the alleged arrearages; and
[(B) precludes further contest of that order with
respect to any matter that could have been asserted; and]
(4) of the amount of any alleged arrearages.
(c) If the registering party asserts that two or more orders
are in effect, the notice [under this section] must also:
(1) identify[:
[(A)] the two or more orders and the [, including
which] order [is] alleged by the registering party [person] to be
the controlling order[;] and
[(B)] the consolidated arrears [arrearages], if
any;
(2) notify the nonregistering party of the right to a
determination of which [order] is the controlling order;
(3) state that the procedures provided in Subsection
(b) apply to the determination of which [order] is the controlling
order; and
(4) state that failure to contest the validity or
enforcement of the order alleged to be the controlling order in a
timely manner may result in confirmation that the order is the
controlling order.
(d) On registration of an income-withholding order for
enforcement, the support enforcement agency or the registering
tribunal shall notify the obligor's employer under Chapter 158.
SECTION 44. Section 159.606, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.606. PROCEDURE TO CONTEST VALIDITY OR ENFORCEMENT
OF REGISTERED SUPPORT ORDER. (a) A nonregistering party seeking to
contest the validity or enforcement of a registered support order
in this state shall request a hearing within the time required by
Section 159.605 [20 days after notice of the registration]. The
nonregistering party may seek [under Section 159.607] to[:
[(1)] vacate the registration, to [;
[(2)] assert any defense to an allegation of
noncompliance with the registered order, [;] or to
[(3)] contest the remedies being sought or the amount
of any alleged arrearages under Section 159.607.
(b) If the nonregistering party fails to contest the
validity or enforcement of the registered support order in a timely
manner, the order is confirmed by operation of law.
(c) If a nonregistering party requests a hearing to contest
the validity or enforcement of the registered support order, the
registering tribunal shall schedule the matter for hearing and give
notice to the parties of the date, time, and place of the hearing.
SECTION 45. Section 159.607, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.607. CONTEST OF REGISTRATION OR ENFORCEMENT. (a)
A party contesting the validity or enforcement of a registered
support order or seeking to vacate the registration has the burden
of proving one or more of the following defenses:
(1) the issuing tribunal lacked personal jurisdiction
over the contesting party;
(2) the order was obtained by fraud;
(3) the order has been vacated, suspended, or modified
by a later order;
(4) the issuing tribunal has stayed the order pending
appeal;
(5) there is a defense under the law of this state to
the remedy sought;
(6) full or partial payment has been made;
(7) the statute of limitation under Section 159.604
precludes enforcement of some or all of the alleged arrearages; or
(8) the alleged controlling order is not the
controlling order.
(b) If a party presents evidence establishing a full or
partial defense under Subsection (a), a tribunal may stay
enforcement of the registered support order, continue the
proceeding to permit production of additional relevant evidence,
and issue other appropriate orders. An uncontested portion of the
registered support order may be enforced by all remedies available
under the law of this state.
(c) If the contesting party does not establish a defense
under Subsection (a) to the validity or enforcement of the
registered support order, the registering tribunal shall issue an
order confirming the order.
SECTION 46. Section 159.608, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.608. CONFIRMED ORDER. Confirmation of a
registered support order, whether by operation of law or after
notice and hearing, precludes further contest of the order with
respect to any matter that could have been asserted at the time of
registration.
SECTION 47. Sections 159.609, 159.610, 159.611, 159.612,
159.613, and 159.614, Family Code, are designated as Part 3,
Subchapter G, Chapter 159, Family Code, and a heading is added for
that part to read as follows:
PART 3. REGISTRATION AND MODIFICATION OF CHILD SUPPORT ORDER OF
ANOTHER STATE
SECTION 48. Section 159.609, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.609. PROCEDURE TO REGISTER CHILD SUPPORT ORDER OF
ANOTHER STATE FOR MODIFICATION. A party or support enforcement
agency seeking to modify, or to modify and enforce, a child support
order issued in another state shall register that order in this
state in the same manner provided in Sections 159.601 through
159.608 [159.601-159.604] if the order has not been registered. A
petition for modification may be filed at the same time as a request
for registration, or later. The pleading must specify the grounds
for modification.
SECTION 49. Section 159.610, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.610. EFFECT OF REGISTRATION FOR MODIFICATION. A
tribunal of this state may enforce a child support order of another
state registered for purposes of modification in the same manner as
if the order had been issued by a tribunal of this state, but the
registered support order may be modified only if the requirements
of Section 159.611 or [,]159.613 [, or 159.615] have been met.
SECTION 50. Section 159.611, Family Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a), (c), (d), and (e) and adding Subsection
(f) to read as follows:
(a) If [Except as provided by] Section 159.613 does not
apply [159.615], on petition a tribunal of this state may modify a
child support order issued in another state that is [and]
registered in this state [only] if, [Section 159.613 does not apply
and] after notice and hearing, the tribunal finds that:
(1) the following requirements are met:
(A) the child, the obligee who is an individual,
and the obligor do not reside in the issuing state;
(B) a petitioner who is a nonresident of this
state seeks modification; and
(C) the respondent is subject to the personal
jurisdiction of the tribunal of this state; or
(2) this state is the [state of] residence of the
child, or a party who is an individual is subject to the personal
jurisdiction of the tribunal of this state, and all of the parties
who are individuals have filed consents in a record in the issuing
tribunal for a tribunal of this state to modify the support order
and assume continuing, exclusive jurisdiction.
(c) A [Except as provided by Section 159.615, a] tribunal of
this state may not modify any aspect of a child support order that
may not be modified under the law of the issuing state, including
the duration of the obligation of support [, that may not be
modified under the law of the issuing state]. If two or more
tribunals have issued child support orders for the same obligor and
same child, the order that controls and must be so recognized under
Section 159.207 establishes the aspects of the support order that
are nonmodifiable.
(d) In a proceeding to modify a child support order, the law
of the state that is determined to have issued the initial
controlling order governs the duration of the obligation of
support. The obligor's fulfillment of the duty of support
established by that order precludes imposition of a further
obligation of support by a tribunal of this state.
(e) On issuance of an order by a tribunal of this state
modifying a child support order issued in another state, the
tribunal of this state becomes the tribunal of continuing,
exclusive jurisdiction.
(f) Notwithstanding Subsections (a) through (e) of this
section and Section 159.201(b), a tribunal of this state retains
jurisdiction to modify an order issued by a tribunal of this state
if:
(1) one party resides in another state; and
(2) the other party resides outside the United States.
[(e) In a proceeding to modify a child support order, the
law of the state that is determined to have issued the initial
controlling order governs the duration of the obligation of
support. The obligor's fulfillment of the duty of support
established by that order precludes imposition of a further
obligation of support by a tribunal of this state.]
SECTION 51. Section 159.612, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.612. RECOGNITION OF ORDER MODIFIED IN ANOTHER
STATE. If a child support order issued by a tribunal of this state
is modified by a tribunal of another state that assumed
jurisdiction under the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act, a
tribunal of this state:
(1) may enforce the order that was modified only as to
arrears [arrearages] and interest accruing before the
modification;
(2) may provide appropriate relief for violations of
the order that occurred before the effective date of the
modification; and
(3) shall recognize the modifying order of the other
state, on registration, for the purpose of enforcement.
SECTION 52. Section 159.613(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) A tribunal of this state exercising jurisdiction under
this section shall apply the provisions of Subchapters B and C, this
subchapter, [Sections 159.101 through 159.209] and [159.601
through 159.614 and] the procedural and substantive law of this
state to the proceeding for enforcement or modification.
Subchapters D, E, F, H, and I [Sections 159.301 through 159.507 and
159.701 through 159.802] do not apply.
SECTION 53. Section 159.615, Family Code, is designated as
Part 4, Subchapter G, Chapter 159, Family Code, and a heading for
that part is added to read as follows:
PART 4. REGISTRATION AND MODIFICATION OF FOREIGN CHILD SUPPORT
ORDER
SECTION 54. Section 159.615, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.615. JURISDICTION TO MODIFY CHILD SUPPORT ORDER OF
FOREIGN COUNTRY [OR POLITICAL SUBDIVISION]. (a) Except as
otherwise provided by Section 159.711, if [If] a foreign country
lacks or [political subdivision that is a state] refuses to
exercise jurisdiction to modify its child support order pursuant to
its laws [or may not under its law modify its order], a tribunal of
this state may assume jurisdiction to modify the child support
order and bind all individuals subject to the personal jurisdiction
of the tribunal regardless of whether the[:
[(1)] consent to modification of a child support order
otherwise required of the individual [has been given] under Section
159.611 has been given[;] or whether
[(2)] the individual seeking modification is a
resident of this state or of the foreign country [or political
subdivision].
(b) An order issued by a tribunal of this state modifying a
foreign child support order under this section is the controlling
order.
SECTION 55. Part 4, Subchapter G, Chapter 159, Family Code,
as designated by this Act, is amended by adding Section 159.616 to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.616. PROCEDURE TO REGISTER CHILD SUPPORT ORDER OF
FOREIGN COUNTRY FOR MODIFICATION. A party or support enforcement
agency seeking to modify, or to modify and enforce, a foreign child
support order not under the Convention may register that order in
this state under Sections 159.601 through 159.608 if the order has
not been registered. A petition for modification may be filed at the
same time as a request for registration or at another time. The
petition must specify the grounds for modification.
SECTION 56. The heading to Subchapter H, Chapter 159,
Family Code, is amended to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER H. SUPPORT PROCEEDING UNDER CONVENTION [DETERMINATION
OF PARENTAGE]
SECTION 57. Section 159.701, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.701. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Application" means a request under the Convention
by an obligee or obligor, or on behalf of a child, made through a
central authority for assistance from another central authority.
(2) "Central authority" means the entity designated by
the United States or a foreign country described in Section
159.102(5)(D) to perform the functions specified in the Convention.
(3) "Convention support order" means a support order
of a tribunal of a foreign country described in Section
159.102(5)(D).
(4) "Direct request" means a petition filed by an
individual in a tribunal of this state in a proceeding involving an
obligee, obligor, or child residing outside the United States.
(5) "Foreign central authority" means the entity
designated by a foreign country described in Section 159.102(5)(D)
to perform the functions specified in the Convention.
(6) "Foreign support agreement":
(A) means an agreement for support in a record
that:
(i) is enforceable as a support order in the
country of origin;
(ii) has been:
(a) formally drawn up or registered as
an authentic instrument by a foreign tribunal; or
(b) authenticated by, or concluded,
registered, or filed with a foreign tribunal; and
(iii) may be reviewed and modified by a
foreign tribunal; and
(B) includes a maintenance arrangement or
authentic instrument under the Convention.
(7) "United States central authority" means the
secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human
Services. [PROCEEDING TO DETERMINE PARENTAGE. A court of this
state authorized to determine the parentage of a child may serve as
a responding tribunal in a proceeding to determine parentage
brought under this chapter or a law substantially similar to this
chapter.]
SECTION 58. Subchapter H, Chapter 159, Family Code, is
amended by adding Sections 159.702 through 159.713 to read as
follows:
Sec. 159.702. APPLICABILITY. This subchapter applies only
to a support proceeding under the Convention. In such a proceeding,
if a provision of this subchapter is inconsistent with Subchapters
B through G, this subchapter controls.
Sec. 159.703. RELATIONSHIP OF OFFICE OF ATTORNEY GENERAL TO
UNITED STATES CENTRAL AUTHORITY. The office of the attorney
general of this state is recognized as the agency designated by the
United States central authority to perform specific functions under
the Convention.
Sec. 159.704. INITIATION BY OFFICE OF ATTORNEY GENERAL OF
SUPPORT PROCEEDING UNDER CONVENTION. (a) In a support proceeding
under this subchapter, the office of the attorney general of this
state shall:
(1) transmit and receive applications; and
(2) initiate or facilitate the institution of a
proceeding regarding an application in a tribunal of this state.
(b) The following support proceedings are available to an
obligee under the Convention:
(1) recognition or recognition and enforcement of a
foreign support order;
(2) enforcement of a support order issued or
recognized in this state;
(3) establishment of a support order if there is no
existing order, including, if necessary, determination of
parentage of a child;
(4) establishment of a support order if recognition of
a foreign support order is refused under Section 159.708(b)(2),
(4), or (9);
(5) modification of a support order of a tribunal of
this state; and
(6) modification of a support order of a tribunal of
another state or a foreign country.
(c) The following support proceedings are available under
the Convention to an obligor against which there is an existing
support order:
(1) recognition of an order suspending or limiting
enforcement of an existing support order of a tribunal of this
state;
(2) modification of a support order of a tribunal of
this state; and
(3) modification of a support order of a tribunal of
another state or a foreign country.
(d) A tribunal of this state may not require security, bond,
or deposit, however described, to guarantee the payment of costs
and expenses in proceedings under the Convention.
Sec. 159.705. DIRECT REQUEST. (a) A petitioner may file a
direct request seeking establishment or modification of a support
order or determination of parentage of a child. In the proceeding,
the law of this state applies.
(b) A petitioner may file a direct request seeking
recognition and enforcement of a support order or support
agreement. In the proceeding, Sections 159.706 through 159.713
apply.
(c) In a direct request for recognition and enforcement of a
Convention support order or foreign support agreement:
(1) a security, bond, or deposit is not required to
guarantee the payment of costs and expenses; and
(2) an obligee or obligor that in the issuing country
has benefited from free legal assistance is entitled to benefit, at
least to the same extent, from any free legal assistance provided
for by the law of this state under the same circumstances.
(d) A petitioner filing a direct request is not entitled to
assistance from the office of the attorney general.
(e) This subchapter does not prevent the application of laws
of this state that provide simplified, more expeditious rules
regarding a direct request for recognition and enforcement of a
foreign support order or foreign support agreement.
Sec. 159.706. REGISTRATION OF CONVENTION SUPPORT ORDER.
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this subchapter, a party who is
an individual or a support enforcement agency seeking recognition
of a Convention support order shall register the order in this state
as provided in Subchapter G.
(b) Notwithstanding Sections 159.311 and 159.602(a), a
request for registration of a Convention support order must be
accompanied by:
(1) the complete text of the support order or an
abstract or extract of the support order drawn up by the issuing
foreign tribunal, which may be in the form recommended by the Hague
Conference on Private International Law;
(2) a record stating that the support order is
enforceable in the issuing country;
(3) if the respondent did not appear and was not
represented in the proceedings in the issuing country, a record
attesting, as appropriate, either that the respondent had proper
notice of the proceedings and an opportunity to be heard or that the
respondent had proper notice of the support order and an
opportunity to be heard in a challenge or appeal on fact or law
before a tribunal;
(4) a record showing the amount of arrears, if any, and
the date the amount was calculated;
(5) a record showing a requirement for automatic
adjustment of the amount of support, if any, and the information
necessary to make the appropriate calculations; and
(6) if necessary, a record showing the extent to which
the applicant received free legal assistance in the issuing
country.
(c) A request for registration of a Convention support order
may seek recognition and partial enforcement of the order.
(d) A tribunal of this state may vacate the registration of
a Convention support order without the filing of a contest under
Section 159.707 only if, acting on its own motion, the tribunal
finds that recognition and enforcement of the order would be
manifestly incompatible with public policy.
(e) The tribunal shall promptly notify the parties of the
registration or the order vacating the registration of a Convention
support order.
Sec. 159.707. CONTEST OF REGISTERED CONVENTION SUPPORT
ORDER. (a) Except as otherwise provided in this subchapter,
Sections 159.605 through 159.608 apply to a contest of a registered
Convention support order.
(b) A party contesting a registered Convention support
order shall file a contest not later than 30 days after notice of
the registration. If the contesting party does not reside in the
United States, the contest must be filed not later than 60 days
after notice of the registration.
(c) If the nonregistering party fails to contest the
registered Convention support order by the time specified in
Subsection (b), the order is enforceable.
(d) A contest of a registered Convention support order may
be based only on grounds set forth in Section 159.708. The
contesting party bears the burden of proof.
(e) In a contest of a registered Convention support order, a
tribunal of this state:
(1) is bound by the findings of fact on which the
foreign tribunal based its jurisdiction; and
(2) may not review the merits of the order.
(f) A tribunal of this state deciding a contest of a
registered Convention support order shall promptly notify the
parties of its decision.
(g) A challenge or appeal, if any, does not stay the
enforcement of a Convention support order unless there are
exceptional circumstances.
Sec. 159.708. RECOGNITION AND ENFORCEMENT OF REGISTERED
CONVENTION SUPPORT ORDER. (a) Except as otherwise provided in
Subsection (b), a tribunal of this state shall recognize and
enforce a registered Convention support order.
(b) The following grounds are the only grounds on which a
tribunal of this state may refuse recognition and enforcement of a
registered Convention support order:
(1) recognition and enforcement of the order is
manifestly incompatible with public policy, including the failure
of the issuing tribunal to observe minimum standards of due
process, which include notice and an opportunity to be heard;
(2) the issuing tribunal lacked personal jurisdiction
consistent with Section 159.201;
(3) the order is not enforceable in the issuing
country;
(4) the order was obtained by fraud in connection with
a matter of procedure;
(5) a record transmitted in accordance with Section
159.706 lacks authenticity or integrity;
(6) a proceeding between the same parties and having
the same purpose is pending before a tribunal of this state and that
proceeding was the first to be filed;
(7) the order is incompatible with a more recent
support order involving the same parties and having the same
purpose if the more recent support order is entitled to recognition
and enforcement under this chapter in this state;
(8) payment, to the extent alleged arrears have been
paid in whole or in part;
(9) in a case in which the respondent neither appeared
nor was represented in the proceeding in the issuing foreign
country:
(A) if the law of that country provides for prior
notice of proceedings, the respondent did not have proper notice of
the proceedings and an opportunity to be heard; or
(B) if the law of that country does not provide
for prior notice of the proceedings, the respondent did not have
proper notice of the order and an opportunity to be heard in a
challenge or appeal on fact or law before a tribunal; or
(10) the order was made in violation of Section
159.711.
(c) If a tribunal of this state does not recognize a
Convention support order under Subsection (b)(2), (4), or (9):
(1) the tribunal may not dismiss the proceeding
without allowing a reasonable time for a party to request the
establishment of a new Convention support order; and
(2) the office of the attorney general shall take all
appropriate measures to request a child support order for the
obligee if the application for recognition and enforcement was
received under Section 159.704.
Sec. 159.709. PARTIAL ENFORCEMENT. If a tribunal of this
state does not recognize and enforce a Convention support order in
its entirety, it shall enforce any severable part of the order. An
application or direct request may seek recognition and partial
enforcement of a Convention support order.
Sec. 159.710. FOREIGN SUPPORT AGREEMENT. (a) Except as
otherwise provided by Subsections (c) and (d), a tribunal of this
state shall recognize and enforce a foreign support agreement
registered in this state.
(b) An application or direct request for recognition and
enforcement of a foreign support agreement must be accompanied by:
(1) the complete text of the foreign support
agreement; and
(2) a record stating that the foreign support
agreement is enforceable as an order of support in the issuing
country.
(c) A tribunal of this state may vacate the registration of
a foreign support agreement only if, acting on its own motion, the
tribunal finds that recognition and enforcement would be manifestly
incompatible with public policy.
(d) In a contest of a foreign support agreement, a tribunal
of this state may refuse recognition and enforcement of the
agreement if it finds:
(1) recognition and enforcement of the agreement is
manifestly incompatible with public policy;
(2) the agreement was obtained by fraud or
falsification;
(3) the agreement is incompatible with a support order
involving the same parties and having the same purpose in this
state, another state, or a foreign country if the support order is
entitled to recognition and enforcement under this chapter in this
state; or
(4) the record submitted under Subsection (b) lacks
authenticity or integrity.
(e) A proceeding for recognition and enforcement of a
foreign support agreement must be suspended during the pendency of
a challenge to or appeal of the agreement before a tribunal of
another state or a foreign country.
Sec. 159.711. MODIFICATION OF CONVENTION CHILD SUPPORT
ORDER. (a) A tribunal of this state may not modify a Convention
child support order if the obligee remains a resident of the foreign
country where the support order was issued unless:
(1) the obligee submits to the jurisdiction of a
tribunal of this state, either expressly or by defending on the
merits of the case without objecting to the jurisdiction at the
first available opportunity; or
(2) the foreign tribunal lacks or refuses to exercise
jurisdiction to modify its support order or issue a new support
order.
(b) If a tribunal of this state does not modify a Convention
child support order because the order is not recognized in this
state, Section 159.708(c) applies.
Sec. 159.712. PERSONAL INFORMATION; LIMIT ON USE. Personal
information gathered or transmitted under this subchapter may be
used only for the purposes for which it was gathered or transmitted.
Sec. 159.713. RECORD IN ORIGINAL LANGUAGE; ENGLISH
TRANSLATION. A record filed with a tribunal of this state under this
subchapter must be in the original language and, if not in English,
must be accompanied by an English translation.
SECTION 59. Section 159.801(a), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) For purposes of this [In this] subchapter, "governor"
includes an individual performing the functions of governor or the
executive authority of a state covered by this chapter.
SECTION 60. Section 159.802(a), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) Before making a demand that the governor of another
state surrender an individual charged criminally in this state with
having failed to provide for the support of an obligee, the governor
of this state may require a prosecutor of this state to
demonstrate[:
[(1)] that, not less than 60 days previously [before
the date of the demand], the obligee had initiated proceedings for
support under this chapter[;] or
[(2)] that [initiating] the proceeding would be of no
avail.
SECTION 61. Section 159.901, Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 159.901. UNIFORMITY OF APPLICATION AND CONSTRUCTION.
In applying and construing this uniform act [chapter],
consideration must be given to the need to promote uniformity of the
law with respect to its [the] subject matter [of this chapter] among
states that enact it [a law similar to this chapter].
SECTION 62. Chapter 159, Family Code, as amended by this
Act, applies to proceedings commenced on or after the effective
date of this Act to establish a support order, determine parentage
of a child, or register, recognize, enforce, or modify a prior
support order, determination, or agreement regardless of the date
the order, determination, or agreement was issued or entered.
SECTION 63. This Act takes effect July 1, 2015, 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 effect on that
date, this Act takes effect on the 91st day after the last day of the
legislative session.
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