By: West S.B. No. 1675
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the duties of the Title IV-D agency regarding the
collection, modification, and enforcement of child support.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS.
SECTION 1. Section 156.401, Family Code. is amended by
amending Subsection (b) to read as follows:
(b) Except as provided by Sections 231.1015 and 231.1016, a
[A] support order may be modified with regard to the amount of
support ordered only as to obligations accruing after the earlier
of:
(1) the date of service of citation; or
(2) an appearance in the suit to modify.
SECTION 2. Section 231.002(e), Family Code is amended by
modifying Subsections (3) and (4) and adding Subsection (5) to read
as follows:
(3) order income withholding, as provided by Chapter
233, and issue an administrative writ of withholding, as provided
by Chapter 158; and
(4) take any action with respect to execution,
collection, and release of a judgment or lien for child support
necessary to satisfy the judgment or lien, as provided by Chapter
157.; and
(5) administratively modify the support obligations
of incarcerated obligors, as provided by Sections 231.1015 and
231.1016.
SECTION 3. Sections 231.103(a), (b) and (c), Family Code
are amended to read as follows:
(a) The Title IV-D agency may:
(1) charge a reasonable application fee;
(2) charge an [$25] annual service fee; and
(3) to the extent permitted by federal law, recover
costs for the services provided in a Title IV-D case.
(b) An application fee may not be charged in a case in which
the Title IV-D agency provides services because the family receives
public assistance.
(c) [An] The application and service fees may not exceed [a]
the maximum amounts established by federal law.
SECTION 4. Subchapter B, Chapter 231, Family Code, is
amended by adding Section 231.1015 to read as follows:
Sec. 231.1015. NOTICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE ADJUSTMENT OF
SUPPORT OBLIGATIONS DURING INCARCERATION. (a) In a Title IV-D
case, upon learning that the obligor will be incarcerated for more
than 180 consecutive calendar days in a local, state, or federal
jail or prison, the Title IV-D agency shall review and adjust an
obligor's current child support, medical support, and dental
support obligations to amounts that are based on the application of
the child support guidelines in Chapter 154 to the current net
resources available to the obligor to pay support while
incarcerated. This section does not apply if:
(1) The incarceration resulted from the obligor's
failure to comply with a court order to pay child support; or
(2) The obligor is incarcerated for an offense
constituting family violence as defined by Section 71.004 against
the obligee or the supported child.
(b) The adjustment of the obligor's current support
obligations under this section does not affect support obligations
due prior to the effective date of the adjustment.
(c) In a case meeting the requirements of subsection (a),
the Title IV-D agency shall file a notice of administrative
adjustment with the court of continuing, exclusive jurisdiction and
notify the parties of the administrative adjustment. The notice of
adjustment shall state the amounts of the adjusted support
obligations, the effective date of the adjustment, and include the
style and the cause number of the case in which support was ordered.
In lieu of filing a notice of administrative adjustment, the Title
IV-D agency may elect to seek a modification of the support order of
an incarcerated obligor under Subchapter E, Chapter 156.
(d) The obligor or obligee may contest the notice of
administrative adjustment by requesting an administrative review
as provided by Section 231.1016.
(e) In a Title IV-D case, following the release from
incarceration of an obligor whose support obligations were adjusted
under this section, the Title IV-D agency shall conduct a review
under Section 231.101(d) and may pursue appropriate remedies under
Chapter 156 or Chapter 233.
(f) The Title IV-D agency may adopt rules to implement this
section.
SECTION 5. Subchapter B, Chapter 231, Family Code, is
amended by adding Section 231.1016 to read as follows:
Sec. 231.1016. CONTEST TO NOTICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE
ADJUSTMENT DUE TO INCARCERATION. (a) An obligor or an obligee
contesting an adjustment under Section 231.1015 shall, within 30
days of receipt of a notice of adjustment, request a review by the
Title IV-D agency to resolve any issue in dispute regarding the
applicability of Section 231.1015(a) or the amounts of the adjusted
support obligations. The Title IV-D agency shall provide an
opportunity for a review, by telephonic conference or in person, as
may be appropriate under the circumstances.
(b) Following a review under this section, the Title IV-D
agency shall:
(1) issue to the parties a notice of determination
affirming the adjustment; or
(2) file a notice with the court withdrawing the
notice of administrative adjustment and shall notify the parties of
the outcome of the review.
(c) If a review under this section fails to resolve any
issue in dispute, a party may file a motion with the court of
continuing, exclusive jurisdiction to contest the administrative
adjustment and request a hearing with the court not later than the
30th day after receiving notice of the agency's determination. In
the event a party files a motion pursuant to this subsection, the
administrative adjustment shall remain in effect until either the
Title IV-D agency files a notice of withdrawal of the adjustment, or
further order of the court.
SECTION 6. Section 233.021(c), Family Code is amended to
read as follows:
(c) The clerk shall deliver by personal service, or by
substituted service, if court ordered, a copy of the petition for
confirmation of a nonagreed review order and a copy of the order, to
each party entitled to service who has not waived service.
SECTION 7. Sec. 233.024(a), Family Code is amended to read
as follows:
(a) On the filing of an agreed child support review order
signed by all parties, together with waiver of service, the court
shall sign the order not later than the [third] seventh day after
the filing of the order. On expiration of the [third] seventh day
after the filing of the order, the order is considered confirmed by
the court by operation of law, regardless of whether the court has
signed the order. The court may sign the order before filing the
order, but the signed order shall immediately be filed.
SECTION 8. The change in law made by this Act to Subchapter
B, Chapter 231, Family Code, in adding Sections 231.1015 and
231.1016 applies to all orders with current child support, medical
support or dental support accruals on or after September 1, 2019.
SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.