Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2163 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	88R8895 MLH-D
2	2	By: Rogers H.B. No. 2163
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to requiring a man determined by adjudication or
8	8	acknowledgment to be a child's father to pay retroactive child
9	9	support beginning on the date of the child's conception.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 154, Family Code, is
12	12	amended by adding Section 154.0091 to read as follows:
13	13	Sec. 154.0091. RETROACTIVE CHILD SUPPORT ON ADJUDICATION OR
14	14	ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF PATERNITY. (a) Notwithstanding any other
15	15	provision of this chapter or other law, in any order rendered under
16	16	Chapter 160 establishing a man's paternity of a child, or in any
17	17	suit to establish the child support obligation of a man whose
18	18	paternity has been established by the execution of a valid
19	19	acknowledgment of paternity in regard to the child under Subchapter
20	20	D, Chapter 160, the court shall order the man to:
21	21	(1) pay retroactive child support beginning on the
22	22	earliest possible date of the child's conception, as determined by
23	23	standard medical practice, as defined by Section 171.201, Health
24	24	and Safety Code; and
25	25	(2) reimburse the child's mother for an equitable
26	26	portion of:
27	27	(A) the reasonable and necessary medical
28	28	expenses incurred by the mother and the child during gestation and
29	29	delivery and incurred by the mother during postpartum recovery that
30	30	are not reimbursed by medical insurance;
31	31	(B) the cost of materials purchased by the mother
32	32	in preparing for the child's birth that are necessary for the
33	33	child's health and safety, including:
34	34	(i) diapers;
35	35	(ii) a car seat;
36	36	(iii) a crib;
37	37	(iv) clothing; and
38	38	(v) infant formula; and
39	39	(C) lost wages as a result of time spent
40	40	receiving medical attention during gestation, delivery, and
41	41	postpartum recovery.
42	42	(b) In ordering retroactive child support under Subsection
43	43	(a)(1), the court shall apply the child support guidelines provided
44	44	by this chapter. In ordering reimbursement under Subsection
45	45	(a)(2), the court shall consider the specific circumstances of the
46	46	mother's gestation, delivery, and any other relevant factor in
47	47	determining the amount constituting the equitable portion owed by
48	48	the man under that provision.
49	49	(c) Notwithstanding Section 157.261 or any other law,
50	50	interest does not begin to accrue on a retroactive child support
51	51	payment due under this section until the first anniversary of the
52	52	date the judge renders the order establishing the man's paternity
53	53	or the man executes a valid acknowledgment of paternity with
54	54	respect to the child, as applicable.
55	55	SECTION 2. Section 160.636(g), Family Code, is amended to
56	56	read as follows:
57	57	(g) On a finding of parentage, the court shall [may] order
58	58	retroactive child support as provided by Section 154.0091 [Chapter
59	59	154 and, on a proper showing, order a party to pay an equitable
60	60	portion of all of the prenatal and postnatal health care expenses of
61	61	the mother and the child].
62	62	SECTION 3. Section 160.636(h), Family Code, is repealed.
63	63	SECTION 4. The changes in law made by this Act with respect
64	64	to an order adjudicating paternity apply only to an order rendered
65	65	on or after the effective date of this Act. An order adjudicating
66	66	paternity rendered before the effective date of this Act is
67	67	governed by the law in effect on the date the order is rendered, and
68	68	the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
69	69	SECTION 5. The changes in law made by this Act with respect
70	70	to an acknowledgment of paternity apply only to an acknowledgment
71	71	of paternity executed on or after the effective date of this Act.
72	72	An acknowledgment of paternity executed before the effective date
73	73	of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the
74	74	acknowledgment is executed, and the former law is continued in
75	75	effect for that purpose.
76	76	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.