Volume 98 · 1305
Public Law 98–378
To amend part D of title IV of the Social Security Act to assure, through mandatory income withholding, incentive payments to States, and other improvements in the child support enforcement program, that all children in the United States who are in need of assistance in securing financial support from their parents will receive such assistance regardless of their circumstances, and for other purposes.
Approved August 16, 1984
Statutory text
An Act
To amend part D of title IV of the Social Security Act to assure, through mandatory income withholding, incentive payments to States, and other improvements in the child support enforcement program, that all children in the United States who are in need of assistance in securing financial support from their parents will receive such assistance regardless of their circumstances, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
Section 1. short title; table of contents
This Act may be cited as the “Child Support Enforcement Amendments of 1984”.
table of contents
Sec. 2.
Section 451 of the Social Security Act is amended by
striking out “and obtaining child and spousal support,” and inserting in lieu thereof “obtaining child and spousal support, and assuring that assistance in obtaining support will be available under this
42 USC 601.
part to all children (whether or not eligible for aid under part A) for whom such assistance is requested,”.
Sec. 3. improved child support enforcement through required state laws and procedures
Section 454 of the Social Security Act is amended—
by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (18);
by striking out the period at the end of paragraph (19) and inserting in lieu thereof “; and”; and
by adding after paragraph (19) the following new paragraph:
“(20) provide, to the extent required by section 466, that the State (A) shall have in effect all of the laws to improve child support enforcement effectiveness which are referred to in that section, and (B) shall implement the procedures which are prescribed in or pursuant to such laws.”.
Part D of title IV of such Act is further amended by adding at the end thereof the following new section:
“Sec. 466. “requirement of statutorily prescribed procedures to improve effectiveness of child support enforcement
(a) In order to satisfy section 454(20)(A), each State must have in effect laws requiring the use of the following procedures, consistent with this section and with regulations of the Secretary, to increase the effectiveness of the program which the State administers under this part:
“(1) Procedures described in subsection (b) for the withholding from income of amounts payable as support.
“(2) Procedures under which expedited processes (determined in accordance with regulations of the Secretary) are in effect under the State judicial system or under State administrative processes (A) for obtaining and enforcing support orders, and (B) at the option of the State, for establishing paternity. The Secretary may waive the provisions of this paragraph with respect to one or more political subdivisions within the State on the basis of the effectiveness and timeliness of support order issuance and enforcement within the political subdivision (in accordance with the general rule for exemptions under subsection (d)).
“(3) Procedures under which the State child support enforcement agency shall request, and the State shall provide, that for the purpose of enforcing a support order under any State plan approved under this part—
“(A) any refund of State income tax which would otherwise be payable to an absent parent will be reduced, after notice has been sent to that absent parent of the proposed reduction and the procedures to be followed to contest it (and after full compliance with all procedural due process requirements of the State), by the amount of any overdue support owed by such absent parent;
“(B) the amount by which such refund is reduced shall be distributed in accordance with section 457 (h)(4) or (d)(3) in the case of overdue support assigned to a State pursuant to
Post, p 1318.
Post, pp. 1310, 1319, 1324.
section 402(a)(26) or 47i(a)(17), or, in the case of overdue support which a State has agreed to collect under section 454(6), shall be distributed, after deduction of any fees imposed by the State to cover the costs of collection, to the child or parent to whom such support is owed; and
“(C) notice of the absent parent’s social security account number (or numbers, if he has more than one such number) and home address shall be furnished to the State agency requesting the refund offset, and to the State agency enforcing the order.
“(4) Procedures under which liens are imposed against real and personal property for amounts of overdue support owed by an absent parent who resides or owns property in the State.
“(5) Procedures which permit the establishment of the paternity of any child at any time prior to such child’s eighteenth birthday.
“(6) Procedures which require that an absent parent give security, post a bond, or give some other guarantee to secure payment of overdue support, after notice has been sent to such absent parent of the proposed action and of the procedures to be followed to contest it (and after full compliance with all procedural due process requirements of the State).
“(7) Procedures by which information regarding the amount of overdue support owed by an absent parent residing in the State will be made available to any consumer reporting agency (as defined in section 603(f) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681a(D)) upon the request of such agency; except that (A) if the amount of the overdue support involved in any case is less than $1,000, information regarding such amount shall be made available only at the option of the State, (B) any information with respect to an absent parent shall be made available under such procedures only after notice has been sent to such absent parent of the proposed action, and such absent parent has been given a reasonable opportunity to contest the accuracy of such information (and after full compliance with all procedural due process requirements of the State), and (C) a fee for furnishing such information, in an amount not exceeding the actual cost thereof, may be imposed on the requesting agency by the State.
“(8) Procedures under which all child support orders which are issued or modified in the State will include provision for withholding from wages, in order to assure that withholding as a means of collecting child support is available if arrearages occur without the necessity of filing application for services under this part.
Notwithstanding section 454(20)(B), the procedures which are required
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under paragraphs (3), (4), (6), and (7) need not be used or applied in cases where the State determines (using guidelines which are generally available within the State and which take into account the payment record of the absent parent, the availability of other remedies, and other relevant considerations) that such use or application would not carry out the purposes of this part or would be otherwise inappropriate in the circumstances.
“(b) The procedures referred to in subsection (a)(1) (relating to the
Withholding of income.
withholding from income of amounts payable as support) must provide for the following:
“(1) In the case of each absent parent against whom a support order is or has been issued or modified in the State, and is being enforced under the State plan, so much of such parent’s wages (as defined by the State for purposes of this section) must be withheld, in accordance with the succeeding provisions of this subsection, as is necessary to comply with the order and provide for the payment of any fee to the employer which may be required under paragraph (6)(A), up to the maximum amount permitted under section 303(b) of the Consumer Credit Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1673(b)). If there are arrearages to be collected, amounts withheld to satisfy such arrearages, when added to the amounts withheld to pay current support and provide for the fee, may not exceed the limit permitted under such section
303(b), but the State need not withhold up to the maximum amount permitted under such section in order to satisfy arrearages.
“(2) Such withholding must be provided without the necessity of any application therefor in the case of a child (whether or not
eligible for aid under part A) with respect to whom services are already being provided under the State plan under this part, and must be provided in accordance with this subsection on the basis of an application for services under the State plan in the case of any other child in whose behalf a support order has been issued or modified in the State. In either case such withholding must occur without the need for any amendment to the support order involved or for any further action (other than those actions required under this part) by the court or other entity which issued such order.
“(3) An absent parent shall become subject to such withholding, and the advance notice required under paragraph (4) shall be given, on the earliest of—
“(A) the date on which the payments which the absent parent has failed to make under such order are at least equal to the support payable for one month,
“(B) the date as of which the absent parent requests that such withholding begin, or
“(C) such earlier date as the State may select.
“(4) (A) Such withholding must be carried out in full compliance with all procedural due process requirements of the State, and (subject to subparagraph (B)) the State must send advance notice to each absent parent to whom paragraph (1) applies regarding the proposed withholding and the procedures such absent parent should follow if he or she desires to contest such withholding on the grounds that withholding (including the amount to be withheld) is not proper in the case involved because of mistakes of fact. If the absent parent contests such withholding on those grounds, the State shall determine whether such withholding will actually occur, shall (within no more than 45 days after the provision of such advance notice) inform such parent of whether or not withholding will occur and (if so) of the date on which it is to begin, and shall furnish such parent with the information contained in any notice given to the employer under paragraph (6)(A) with respect to such withholding.
“(B) The requirement of advance notice set forth in the first sentence of subparagraph (A) shall not apply in the case of any State which has a system of income withholding for child support purposes in effect on the date of the enactment of this section if such system provides on that date, and continues to provide, such procedures as may be necessary to meet the procedural due process requirements of State law.
“(5) Such withholding must be administered by a public agency designated by the State, and the amounts withheld must be expeditiously distributed by the State or such agency in accordance with section 457 under procedures (specified by the
State) adequate to document payments of support and to track and monitor such payments, except that the State may establish or permit the establishment of alternative procedures for the collection and distribution of such amounts (under the supervision of such public agency) otherwise than through such public agency so long as the entity making such collection and distribution is publicly accountable for its actions taken in carrying out such procedures, and so long as such procedures will assure prompt distribution, provide for the keeping of adequate records to document payments of support, and permit the tracking and monitoring of such payments.
“(6) (A) (i) The employer of any absent parent to whom paragraph (1) applies, upon being given notice as described in clause (ii), must be required to withhold from such absent parent’s wages the amount specified by such notice (which may include a fee, established by the State, to be paid to the employer unless waived by such employer) and pay such amount (after deducting and retaining any portion thereof which represents the fee so established) to the appropriate agency (or other entity authorized to collect the amounts withheld under the alternative procedures described in paragraph (5)) for distribution in accordance with section 457.
“(ii) The notice given to the employer shall contain only such information as may be necessary for the employer to comply with the withholding order.
“(B) Methods must be established by the State to simplify the withholding process for employers to the greatest extent possible, including permitting any employer to combine all withheld amounts into a single payment to each appropriate agency or entity (with the portion thereof which is attributable to each individual employee being separately designated).
“(C) The employer must be held liable to the State for any amount which such employer fails to withhold from wages due an employee following receipt by such employer of proper notice under subparagraph (A), but such employer shall not be required to vary the normal pay and disbursement cycles in order to comply with this paragraph.
“(D) Provision must be made for the imposition of a fine against any employer who discharges from employment, refuses to employ, or takes disciplinary action against any absent parent subject to wage withholding required by this subsection because of the existence of such withholding and the obligations or additional obligations which it imposes upon the employer.
“(7) Support collection under this subsection must be given priority over any other legal process under State law against the same wages.
“(8) The State may take such actions as may be necessary to extend its system of withholding under this subsection so that such system will include withholding from forms of income other than wages, in order to assure that child support owed by absent parents in the State will be collected without regard to the types of such absent parents’ income or the nature of their income-producing activities.
“(9) The State must extend its withholding system under this subsection so that such system will include withholding from income derived within such State in cases where the applicable support orders were issued in other States, in order to assure that child support owed by absent parents in such State or any other State will be collected without regard to the residence of the child for whom the support is payable or of such child’s custodial parent.
“(10) Provision must be made for terminating withholding.
“(c) Any State may at its option, under its plan approved under section 454, establish procedures under which support payments under this part will be made through the State agency or other entity which administers the State’s income withholding system in any case where either the absent parent or the custodial parent requests it, even though no arrearages in child support payments are involved and no income withholding procedures have been instituted; but in any such case an annual fee for handling and processing such payments, in an amount not exceeding the actual costs incurred by the State in connection therewith or $25, whichever is less, shall be imposed on the requesting parent by the State.
“(d) If a State demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Secretary, through the presentation to the Secretary of such data pertaining to caseloads, processing times, administrative costs, and average support collections, and such other data or estimates as the Secretary may specify, that the enactment of any law or the use of any procedure or procedures required by or pursuant to this section will not increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the State child support enforcement program, the Secretary may exempt the State, subject to the Secretary’s continuing review and to termination of the exemption should circumstances change, from the requirement to enact the law or use the procedure or procedures involved.
“(e) For purposes of this section, the term ‘overdue support’ means the amount of a delinquency pursuant to an obligation determined under a court order, or an order of an administrative process established under State law, for support and maintenance of a minor child which is owed to or on behalf of such child, or for support and maintenance of the absent parent’s spouse (or former spouse) with whom the child is living if and to the extent that spousal support (with respect to such spouse or former spouse) would be included for purposes of paragraph (4) or (6) of section 454. At the option of the State, overdue support may include amounts which otherwise meet the definition in the first sentence of this subsection but which are owed to or on behalf of a child who is not a minor child. The option to include support owed to children who are not minors shall apply independently to each procedure specified under this section.“.
Section 454(6)(B) of such Act is amended to read as follows: “(B) an application fee for furnishing such services shall be imposed, which shall be paid by the individual applying for such services, or recovered from the absent parent, or paid by the State out of its own funds (the payment of which from State funds shall not be considered as an administrative cost of the State for the operation of the plan, and shall be considered income to the program), the amount of which (i) will not exceed $25 (or such higher or lower amount (which shall be uniform for all States) as the Secretary may determine to be appropriate for any fiscal year to reflect increases or decreases in administrative costs), and (ii) may vary among such individuals on the basis of ability to pay (as determined by the State), and”.
Section 454 of such Act {as amended by subsection (a) of this section) is further amended—
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by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (19);
by striking out the period at the end of paragraph (20) and inserting in lieu thereof “; and”; and
by adding after paragraph (20) the following new paragraph:
“(21) (A) at the option of the State, impose a late payment fee on all overdue support (as defined in section 466(e)) under any
Ante p. 1306.
obligation being enforced under this part, in an amount equal to a uniform percentage determined by the State (not less than 3 percent nor more than 6 percent) of the overdue support, which shall be payable by the absent parent owing the overdue support; and
“(B) assure that the fee will be collected in addition to, and only after full payment of, the overdue support, and that the imposition of the late payment fee shall not directly or indirectly result in a decrease in the amount of the support which is paid to the child (or spouse) to whom, or on whose behalf, it is owed.”.
Section 454(5) of such Act is amended by inserting after
42 USC 654.
“directly to the family” the following: “, and the individual will be notified at least annually of the amount of the support payments collected;”.
Section 454 of such Act is further amended by adding at the end thereof (after and below paragraph (21) (as added by subsection (d) of this section)) the following new sentence:
Supra.
“The State may allow the jurisdiction which makes the collection involved to retain any application fee under paragraph (6)(B) or any
Ante, p. 1310.
late payment fee under paragraph (21).”.
Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3), the amendments
Effective dates.
made by this section shall become effective on October 1, 1985.
Section 454(21) of the Social Security Act (as added by
Supra.
Ante, p. 1306.
subsection (d) of this section J, and section 466(e) of such Act (as added by subsection (b) of this section), shall be effective with respect to support owed for any month beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act.
In the case of a State with respect to which the Secretary of Health and Human Services has determined that State legislation is required in order to conform the State plan approved under part D of title IV of the Social Security Act to the requirements imposed by
any amendment made by this section, the State plan shall not be regarded as failing to comply with the requirements of such part solely by reason of its failure to meet the requirements imposed by such amendment prior to the beginning of the fourth month beginning after the end of the first session of the State legislature which ends on or after October 1, 1985. For purposes of the preceding sentence, the term “session” means a regular, special, budget, or other session of a State legislature.
Sec. 4. federal matching of administrative costs
Section 455(a) of the Social Security Act is amended—
by inserting “(1)” after “(a)”;
by striking out “, beginning with the quarter commencing July 1, 1975,”;
by striking out paragraph (2) and redesignating paragraphs (1) and (3) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively;
by amending paragraph (1)(A) as so redesignated to read as follows:
“(A) equal to the percent specified in paragraph (2) of the total amounts expended by such State during such quarter for the operation of the plan approved under section 454, and”;
in paragraph (1)(B) as so redesignated, by striking out “specified in clause (1) or (2)” and inserting in lieu thereof “specified in subparagraph (A)”; and
by adding at the end thereof the following new paragraph:
“(2) The percent applicable to quarters in a fiscal year for purposes of paragraph (1)(A) is—
“(A) 70 percent for fiscal years 1984, 1985, 1986, and 1987,
“(B) 68 percent for fiscal years 1988 and 1989, and
“(C) 66 percent for fiscal year 1990 and each fiscal year thereafter
Subsections (d)(1)(B), (d)(2)(A), (d)(2)(B), and (e) of section 452 of
such Act are each amended by striking out “455(a)(3)” and inserting in lieu thereof “455(a)(1)(B)”.
The amendments made by this section shall apply to fiscal years after fiscal year 1983.
Sec. 5. federal incentive payment
Section 458 of the Social Security Act is amended to read as follows:
“Sec. 458. “incentive payments to states
(a) In order to encourage and reward State child support enforcement programs which perform in a cost-effective and efficient manner to secure support for all children who have sought assistance in securing support, whether such children reside within the State or elsewhere and whether or not they are eligible for aid to families with dependent children under a State plan approved under part A of this title, and regardless of the economic circumstances of their parents, the Secretary shall, from support collected which would otherwise represent the Federal share of assistance to families of absent parents, pay to each State for each fiscal year, on a quarterly basis (as described in subsection (e)) beginning with the quarter commencing October 1, 1985, an incentive payment in an amount determined under subsection (b).
“(b) (1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2), (3), and (4), the incentive payment shall be equal to—
“(A) 6 percent of the total amount of support collected under the plan during the fiscal year in cases in which the support obligation involved is assigned to the State pursuant to section
Post. p. 1318,
402(a)(26) or section 471(a)(17) (with such total amount for any fiscal year being hereafter referred to in this section as the State’s ‘AFDC collections’ for that year), plus
“(B) 6 percent of the total amount of support collected during the fiscal year in all other cases under this part (with such total amount for any fiscal year being hereafter referred to in this section as the State’s ‘non-AFDC collections’ for that year).
“(2) If subsection (c) applies with respect to a State’s AFDC collections or non-AFDC collections for any fiscal year, the percent specified in paragraph (1) (A) or (B) (with respect to such collections) snail be increased to the higher percent determined under such subsection (with respect to such collections) in determining the State’s incentive payment under this subsection for that year.
“(3) The dollar amount of the portion of the State s incentive payment for any fiscal year which is determined on the basis of its non-AFDC collections under paragraph (1)(B) (after adjustment under subsection (c) if applicable) shall in no case exceed—
“(A) the dollar amount of the portion of such payment which is determined on the basis of its AFDC collections under paragraph (1)(A) (after adjustment under subsection (c) if applicable) in the case of fiscal year 1986 or 1987;
“(B) 105 percent of such dollar amount in the case of fiscal year 1988;
“(C) 110 percent of such dollar amount in the case of fiscal year 1989; or
“(D) 115 percent of such dollar amount in the case of fiscal year 1990 or any fiscal year thereafter.
“(4) The Secretary shall make such additional payments to the State under this part, for fiscal year 1986 or 1987, as may be necessary to assure that the total amount of payments under this
Ante, p. 1311.
section and section 455(a)(1)(A) for such fiscal year is no less than 80 percent of the amount that would have been payable to that State and its political subdivisions for such fiscal year under this section and section 455(a)(1)(A) if those sections (including the amendment made by section 5(c)(2)(A) of the Child Support Enforcement Amendments of 1984) had remained in effect as they were in effect for fiscal
Ante, p. 1312.
year 1985.
“(c) If the total amount of a State’s AFDC collections or non-AFDC collections for any fiscal year bears a ratio to the total amount expended by the State in that year for the operation of its plan approved under section 454 for which payment may be made under
section 455 (with the total amount so expended in any fiscal year being hereafter referred to in this section as the State’s ‘combined AFDC/non-AFDC administrative costs’ for that year) which is equal to or greater than 1.4, the relevant percent specified in subparagraph (A) or (B) of subsection (b)(1) (with respect to such collections) shall be increased to—
“(1) 6.5 percent, plus
“(2) one-half of 1 percent for each full two-tenths by which such ratio exceeds 1.4;
except that the percent so specified shall in no event be increased (for either AFDC collections or non-AFDC collections) to more than 10 percent. For purposes of the preceding sentence, laboratory costs incurred in determining paternity in any fiscal year may at the option of the State be excluded from the State’s combined AFDC/ non-AFDC administrative costs for that year.
“(d) In computing incentive payments under this section, support which is collected by one State on behalf of individuals residing in another State shall be treated as having been collected in full by each such State.
“(e) The amounts of the incentive payments to be made to the various States under this section for any fiscal year shall be estimated by the Secretary at or before the beginning of such year on the basis of the best information available. The Secretary shall make such payments for such year, on a quarterly basis (with each quarterly payment being made no later than the beginning of the quarter involved), in the amounts so estimated, reduced or increased to the extent of any overpayments or underpayments which the Secretary determines were made under this section to the States involved for prior periods and with respect to which adjustment has not already been made under this subsection. Upon the making of any estimate by the Secretary under the preceding sentence, any appropriations available for payments under this section shall be deemed obligated.”.
Section 454 of such Act (as amended by subsections (a), (d), and
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(f) of section 3 of this Act) is amended—
by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (20);
by striking out the period at the end of paragraph (21) and inserting in lieu thereof “, and”; and
by inserting immediately after paragraph (21) the following new paragraph:
“(22) m order for the State to be eligible to receive any incentive payments under section 458, provide that, if one or more political subdivisions of the State participate in the costs of carrying out activities under the State plan during any period, each such subdivision shall be entitled to receive an appropriate share (as determined by the State) of any such incentive payments made to the State for such period, taking into account the efficiency and effectiveness of the activities carried out under the State plan by such political subdivision.”.
The amendments made by the preceding provisions of this section shall become effective on October 1, 1985.
Effective until September 30, 1985, section 458(a) of the
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Social Security Act is amended by striking out “distributed as provided in section 457 to reduce or repay assistance payments” and inserting in lieu thereof “distributed as provided in paragraphs (1), (2), and (4)(A) of section 457(b)”.
The reference to provisions of section 457(b) of the Social Security Act in the amendment made by subparagraph (A) of this paragraph is a reference to such provisions as in effect after the
Ante, p. 1145.
effective date of section 2640(b) of the Deficit Reduction Act of 1984.
Sec. 6. 90-percent matching for automated management systems used in income withholding and other required procedures
Section 454(16) of the Social Security Act is amended by striking out “and (D)” and inserting in lieu thereof the following: “(D) to facilitate the development and improvement of the income withholding and other procedures required under section 466(a) through the monitoring of support payments, the maintenance of accurate records regarding the payment of support, and the prompt provision of notice to appropriate officials with respect to any arrearages in support payments which may occur, and (E)”.
Section 455(a)(1)(B) of such Act (as redesignated by section 4(a)
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of this Act) is amended—
by inserting after “automatic data processing and information retrieval system” the following: “(including in such sums the full cost of the hardware components of such system)”; and
by inserting before the semicolon at the end thereof the following: “, or meets such requirements without regard to clause (D) thereof”.
The amendments made by this section shall apply with respect
Effective date.
to quarters beginning on or after October 1, 1984.
Sec. 7. continuation of support enforcement for afdc recipients whose benefits are being terminated
Section 457(c) of the Social Security Act is amended—
by striking out “may” in the matter preceding paragraph (1) and inserting in lieu thereof “shall”; and
by striking out “the net amount of’ in paragraph (2), and by striking out “to the family” and all that follows in such paragraph and inserting in lieu thereof “to the family (without requiring any formal reapplication and without the imposition of any application fee) on the same basis as in the case of other individuals who are not receiving assistance under part A of
this title,”.
The amendments made by subsection (a) shall become effective
Effective date.
October 1, 1984.
Sec. 8. special project grants to promote improvements in interstate enforcement
Section 455 of the Social Security Act is amended by adding
at the end thereof the following new subsection:
“(e) (1) In order to encourage and promote the development and use of more effective methods of enforcing support obligations under this part in cases where either the children on whose behalf the support is sought or their absent parents do not reside in the State where such cases are filed, the Secretary is authorized to make grants, in such amounts and on such terms and conditions as the Secretary determines to be appropriate, to States which propose to undertake new or innovative methods of support collection in such cases and which will use the proceeds of such grants to carry out special projects designed to demonstrate and test such methods.
“(2) A grant under this subsection shall be made only upon a finding by the Secretary that the project involved is likely to be of significant assistance in carrying out the purpose of this subsection; and with respect to such project the Secretary may waive any of the requirements of this part which would otherwise be applicable, to such extent and for such period as the Secretary determines is necessary or desirable in order to enable the State to carry out the project.
“(3) At the time of its application for a grant under this subsection
Reports.
the State shall submit to the Secretary a statement describing in reasonable detail the project for which the proceeds of the grant are to be used, and the State shall from time to time thereafter submit to the Secretary such reports with respect to the project as the Secretary may specify.
“(4) Amounts expended by a State in carrying out a special project assisted under thus section shall be considered, for purposes of section 458(b) (as amended by section 5(a) of the Child Support Enforcement Amendments of 1984), to have been expended for the
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Appropriation authorization.
operation of the State’s plan approved under section 454.
“(5) There is authorized to be appropriated the sum of $7,000,000 for fiscal year 1985, $12,000,000 for fiscal year 1986, and $15,000,000 for each fiscal year thereafter, to be used by the Secretary in making grants under this subsection.”.
Sec. 9. periodic review of effectiveness of state programs; modification of penalty
Section 452(a)(4) of the Social Security Act is amended by striking out “not less often than annually” and inserting in lieu thereof “not less often than once every three years (or not less often than annually in the case of any State to which a reduction is being
infra.
applied under section 403(h)(1), or which is operating under a corrective action plan in accordance with section 403(h)(2))”.
Section 402(a)(27) of such Act is amended by striking out “operate a child support program in conformity with such plan” and inserting in lieu thereof “operates a child support program in substantial compliance with such plan”.
Section 403(h) of such Act is amended to read as follows:
“(h) (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, if a State’s
Supra.
program operated under part D is found as a result of a review conducted under section 452(a)(4) not to have complied substantially with the requirements of such part for any quarter beginning after September 30, 1983, and the Secretary determines that the State’s program is not complying substantially with such requirements at the time such finding is made, the amounts otherwise payable to the State under this part for such quarter and each subsequent quarter, prior to the first quarter throughout which the State program is found to be in substantial compliance with such requirements, shall be reduced (subject to paragraph (2)) by—
“(A) not less than one nor more than two percent, or
“(B) not less than two nor more than three percent, if the finding is the second consecutive such finding made as a result of such a review, or
“(C) not less than three nor more than five percent, if the finding is the third or a subsequent consecutive such finding made as a result of such a review.
“(2) (A) The reductions required under paragraph (1) shall be suspended for any quarter if—
“(i) the State submits a corrective action plan, within a period prescribed by the Secretary following notice of the finding under paragraph (1), which contains steps necessary to achieve substantial compliance within a time period which the Secretary finds to be appropriate;
“(ii) the Secretary approves such corrective action plan (and any amendments thereto) as being sufficient to achieve substantial compliance; and
“(iii) the Secretary finds that the corrective action plan (and any amendment thereto approved by the Secretary under clause (ii)), is being fully implemented by the State and that the State is progressing in accordance with the timetable contained in the plan to achieve substantial compliance with such requirements.
“(B) A suspension of the penalty under subparagraph (A) shall continue until such time as the Secretary determines that—
“(i) the State has achieved substantial compliance,
“(ii) the State is no longer implementing its corrective action plan, or
“(iii) the State is implementing or has implemented its corrective action plan but has failed to achieve substantial compliance within the appropriate time period (as specified in subparagraph (A)(i)).
“(C) (i) In the case of a State whose penalty suspension ends pursuant to subparagraph (B)(i), the penalty shall not be applied.
“(ii) In the case of a State whose penalty suspension ends pursuant to subparagraph (B)(ii), the penalty shall be applied as if the suspension had not occurred.
“(iii) In the case of a State whose penalty suspension ends pursuant to subparagraph (B)(iii), the penalty shall be applied to all quarters ending after the expiration of the time period specified in such subparagraph (and prior to the first quarter throughout which the State program is found to be in substantial compliance).
“(3) For purposes of this subsection, section 402(a)(27), and section
Ante, p. 1316.
Ante, p. 1316.
452(a)(4), a State which is not in full compliance with the requirements of this part shall be determined to be in substantial compliance with such requirements only if the Secretary determines that any noncompliance with such requirements is of a technical nature which does not adversely affect the performance of the child support enforcement program.”,
The amendments made by this section shall be effective on and
Effective date.
after October 1, 1983.
Sec. 10. extension of section 1115 demonstration authority to child support enforcement program
Section 1115(a) of the Social Security Act is amended—
by striking out “part A” in the matter preceding paragraph (1) and inserting in lieu thereof “part A or D”;
by striking out “402,” in paragraph (1) and inserting in lieu thereof “402, 454,”; and
by striking out “403,” in paragraph (2) and inserting in lieu thereof “403,455,”.
Section 1115 of such Act is further amended by adding at the
end thereof the following new subsection:
“(c) In the case of any experimental, pilot, or demonstration project undertaken under subsection (a) to assist in promoting the objectives of part D of title IV, the project—
“(1) must be designed to improve the financial well-being of children or otherwise improve the operation of the child support program;
“(2) may not permit modifications in the child support program which would have the effect of disadvantaging children in need of support; and
“(3) must not result in increased cost to the Federal Government under the program of aid to families with dependent children.”,
Sec. 11. child support enforcement for certain children in foster care
Section 457 of the Social Security Act is amended by
adding at the end thereof the following new subsection:
“(d) Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this section, amounts collected by a State as child support for months in any period on behalf of a child for whom a public agency is making foster care maintenance payments under part E—
“(1) shall be retained by the State to the extent necessary to reimburse it for the foster care maintenance payments made with respect to the child during such period (with appropriate reimbursement of the Federal Government to the extent of its participation in the financing);
“(2) shall be paid to the public agency responsible for supervising the placement of the child to the extent that the amounts collected exceed the foster care maintenance payments made with respect to the child during such period but not the amounts required by a court or administrative order to be paid as support on behalf of the child during such period; and the responsible agency may use the payments in the manner it determines will serve the best interests of the child, including setting such payments aside for the child’s future needs or making ail or a part thereof available to the person responsible for meeting the child’s day-to-day needs; and •
“(3) shall be retained by the State, if any portion of the amounts collected remains after making the payments required under paragraphs (1) and (2), to the extent that such portion is necessary to reimburse the State (with appropriate reimbursement to the Federal Government to the extent of its participation in the financing) for any past foster care maintenance payments (or payments of aid to families with dependent children) which were made with respect to the child (and with respect to which past collections have not previously been retained);
and any balance shall be paid to the State agency responsible for supervising the placement of the child, for use by such agency in accordance with paragraph (2).”.
Section 457(b) of such Act is amended by inserting “(subject to subsection (d))” after “shall” in the matter preceding paragraph (1).
Part D of title IV of such Act is further amended—
in section 454(4)(B), by inserting “including an assignment with respect to a child on whose behalf a State agency is making
foster care maintenance payments under part E,” immediately after “such assignment is effective,”, and by inserting “or E” immediately after “part A”; and
in section 456(a), by inserting “or secured on behalf of a child receiving foster care maintenance payments” immediately after “section 402(a)(26)”.
Section 471(a) of such Act is amended—
by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (15);
by striking out the period at the end of paragraph (16) and inserting in lieu thereof “; and”; and
by adding at the end thereof the following new paragraph:
“(17) provides that, where appropriate, all steps will be taken, including cooperative efforts with the State agencies administering
the plans approved under parts A and D, to secure an assignment to the State of any rights to support on behalf of each child receiving foster care maintenance payments under this part.”.
Section 464(a) of such Act is amended—
by inserting “or section 471(a)(17)” after “402(a)(26)”; and
by striking out “457(b)(3)” and inserting in lieu thereof “457 (b)(4) or (d)(3)”.
The amendments made by this section shall become effective October 1, 1984, and shall apply to collections made on or after that date.
Sec. 12. enforcement with respect to both child and spousal support
Section 454(4)(B) of the Social Security Act is
amended—
by striking out “and, at the option of the State,” and inserting in lieu thereof “, and ”; and
by inserting “, and only if the support obligation established with respect to the child is being enforced under the plan” immediately after “but only if a support obligation has been established with respect to such spouse”.
Clause (A) of section 454(6) of such Act is amended—
by striking out “, at the option of the State,”; and
by inserting “, and only if the support obligation established with respect to the child is being enforced under the plan” immediately after “but only if a support obligation has been established with respect to such spouse”.
The amendments made by this section shall become effective
Effective date.
October 1, 1985.
Sec. 13. modifications in content of annual report of the secretary
Section 452(a)(10)(C) of the Social Security Act is
amended to read as follows:
“(C) the following data, with the data required under each clause being separately stated for cases where the child is receiving aid to families with dependent children (or foster care maintenance payments under part E), cases where the child was formerly receiving such aid or payments and the State is continuing to collect support assigned to it under section 402(a)(26) or 471(a)(17), and all
Ante, p. 1318.
other cases under this part:
“(i) the total number of cases in which a support obligation has been established in the fiscal year for which the report is submitted, and the total amount of such obligations;
“(ii) the total number of cases in which a support obligation has been established, and the total amount of such obligations;
“(iii) the number of cases described in clause (i) in which support was collected during such fiscal year, and the total amount of such collections;
“(iv) the number of cases described in clause (ii) in which support was collected during such fiscal year, and the total amount of such collections; and
“(v) the number of child support cases filed in each State in such fiscal year, and the amount of the collections made in each State in such fiscal year, on behalf of children residing in another State or against parents residing in another State;”.
Section 452(a)(10) of such Act is further amended—
by striking out “and” at the end of subparagraph (G);
by striking out the period at the end of subparagraph (H) and inserting in lieu thereof “; and”; and
by inserting immediately after subparagraph (H) the following new subparagraph:
“(I) the amount of administrative costs which are expended in each functional category of expenditures, including establishment of paternity.”.
The amendments made by this section shall be effective for reports for fiscal year 1986 and each fiscal year thereafter.
Sec. 14. requirement that availability of child support enforcement services be publicized
Section 454 of the Social Security Act (as amended by the preceding provisions of this Act) is further amended—
by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (21);
by striking out the period at the end of paragraph (22) and inserting in lieu thereof “; and”; and
by inserting immediately after paragraph (22) the following new paragraph:
“(23) provide that the State will regularly and frequently publicize, through public service announcements, the availability of child support enforcement services under the plan and otherwise, including information as to any application fees for such services and a telephone number or postal address at which further information may be obtained.”.
The amendments made by subsection (a) shall become effective October 1, 1985.
Sec. 15. state commissions on child support
As a condition of the State’s eligibility for Federal payments under part A or D of title IV of the Social Security Act for quarters beginning more than 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act and ending prior to October 1, 1985, the Governor of each State, on or before December 1, 1984, shall (subject to subsection (f) appoint a State Commission on Child Support.
Each State Commission appointed under subsection (a) shall be composed of members appropriately representing all aspects of the child support system, including custodial and non-custodial parents, the agency or organizational unit administering the State’s plan under part D of such title IV, the State judiciary, the executive and legislative branches of the State government, child welfare and social services agencies, and others.
It shall be the function of each State Commission to examine, investigate, and study the operation of the State’s child support system for the primary purpose of determining the extent to which such system has been successful in securing support and parental involvement both for children who are eligible for aid under a State plan approved under part A of title IV of such Act and for children who are not eligible for such aid, giving particular attention to such specific problems (among others) as visitation, the establishment of appropriate objective standards for support, the enforcement of interstate obligations, the availability, cost, and effectiveness of services both to children who are eligible for such aid and to children who are not, and the need for additional State or Federal legislation to obtain support for all children.
Each State Commission shall submit to the Governor of the State and make available to the public, no later than October 1, 1985, a full and complete report of its findings and recommendations resulting from the examination, investigation, and study under this section. The Governor shall transmit such report to the Secretary of Health and Human Services along with the Governor’s comments thereon.
None of the costs incurred in the establishment and operation of a State Commission under this section, or incurred by such a Commission in carrying out its functions under subsections (c) and (d), shall be considered as expenditures qualifying for Federal payments under part A or D of title IV of the Social Security Act or be
otherwise payable or reimbursable by the United States or any agency thereof.
If the Secretary determines, at the request of any State on the basis of information submitted by the State and such other information as may be available to the Secretary, that such State—
has placed in effect and is implementing objective standards for the determination and enforcement of child support obligations,
has established within the five years prior to the enactment
Ante, p. 1305.
of this Act a commission or council with substantially the same functions as the State Commissions provided for under this section, or
is making satisfactory progress toward fully effective child support enforcement and will continue to do so,
then such State shall not be required to establish a State Commission under this section and the preceding provisions of this section shall not apply.
Sec. 16. inclusion of medical support in child support orders
Section 452 of the Social Security Act is amended by
adding at the end thereof the following new subsection:
“(f) The Secretary shall issue regulations to require that State
Regulations.
agencies administering the child support enforcement program under this part petition for the inclusion of medical support as part of any child support order whenever health care coverage is available to the absent parent at a reasonable cost. Such regulation shall also provide for improved information exchange between such State agencies and the State agencies administering the State medicaid programs under title XIX with respect to the availability of health
insurance coverage.”.
Sec. 17. increased availability of federal parent locator service to state agencies
Section 453(f) of the Social Security Act is amended by
striking out “, after determining that the absent parent cannot be located through the procedures under the control of such State agencies,”.
Sec. 18. state guidelines for child support awards
Part D of title IV of the Social Security Act (as amended by section 3(b) of this Act) is further amended by adding at
Ante. p. 1306.
the end thereof the following new section:
“Sec. 467. “state guidelines for child support awards
(a) Each State, as a condition for having its State plan
approved under this part, must establish guidelines for child support award amounts within the State. The guidelines may be established by law or by judicial or administrative action.
“(b) The guidelines established pursuant to subsection (a) shall be made available to all judges and other officials who have the power to determine child support awards within such State, but need not be binding upon such judges or other officials.
“(c) The Secretary shall furnish technical assistance to the States for establishing the guidelines, and each State shall furnish the Secretary with copies of its guidelines.”.
The amendment made by subsection (a) shall become effective on October 1, 1987.
Sec. 19. availability of social security numbers for child support enforcement purposes
Section 453(b) of the Social Security Act is amended by inserting “the social security account number (or numbers, if the individual involved has more than one such number) and” before “the most recent address”.
Section 6103(l)(6)(A)(i) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 is amended by inserting “social security account number (or numbers, if the individual involved has more than one such number),” before “address”.
Section 6103(l)(8)(A) of such Code is amended by inserting “social security account numbers,” before “net earnings”.
Sec. 20. extension of eligibility under title xix when support collection results in termination of afdc eligibility
Section 406 of the Social Security Act is amended by adding at the end thereof the following new subsection:
“(h) Each dependent child, and each relative with whom such a child is living (including the spouse of such relative as described in subsection (b)), who becomes ineligible for aid to families with dependent children as a result (wholly or partly) of the collection or
increased collection of child or spousal support under part D, and who has received such aid in at least three of the six months immediately preceding the month in which such ineligibility begins, shall be deemed to be a recipient of aid to families with dependent
children for purposes of title XIX for an additional four calendar months beginning with the month in which such ineligibility begins.”.
The amendment made by subsection (a) shall apply only with respect to individuals becoming ineligible for aid to families with dependent children (as described in section 406(h) of the Social
Supra.
Security Act as added by such subsection) on or after the date of the enactment of this Act and before October 1, 1988.
Section 1902(a)(10)(A)(i)(I) of such Act is amended by inserting “or 406(h)” after “402(a)(37)”.
Sec. 21. collection of past-due support from federal tax refunds
Section 464(a) of the Social Security Act (as amended by section 12(d) of this Act) is further amended by inserting “(1)” after “Sec. 464. (a)” and by adding at the end thereof the following new paragraphs:
“(2) (A) Upon receiving notice from a State agency administering a plan approved under this part that a named individual owes past-due support {as that term is defined for purposes of this paragraph under subsection (c)) which such State has agreed to collect under section 454(6), and that the State agency has sent notice to such
Ante, p. 1310, 1319.
Post, p. 1324.
individual in accordance with paragraph (3)(A), the Secretary of the Treasury shall determine whether any amounts, as refunds of Federal taxes paid, are payable to such individual (regardless of whether such individual filed a tax return as a married or unmarried individual). If the Secretary of the Treasury finds that any such amount is payable, he shall withhold from such refunds an amount equal to such past-due support, and shall concurrently send notice to such individual that the withholding has been made, including in or with such notice a notification to any other person who may have filed a joint return with such individual of the steps which such other person may take in order to secure his or her proper share of the refund. The Secretary of the Treasury shall pay the amount withheld to the State agency, and the State shall pay to the Secretary of the Treasury any fee imposed by the Secretary of the Treasury to cover the costs of the withholding and any required notification. The State agency shall, subject to paragraph (3)(B), distribute such amount to or on behalf of the child to whom the support was owed.
“(B) This paragraph shall apply only with respect to refunds
Effective date.
Ante, p. 1154.
payable under section 6402 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 after December 31, 1985, and before January 1, 1991.
“(3) (A) Prior to notifying the Secretary of the Treasury under paragraph (1) or (2) that an individual owes past-due support, the State shall send notice to such individual that a withholding will be made from any refund otherwise payable to such individual. The notice shall also (i) instruct the individual owing the past-due support of the steps which may be taken to contest the State’s determination that past-due support is owed or the amount of the past-due support, and (ii) provide information, as may be prescribed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services by regulation in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, with respect to procedures to be followed, in the case of a joint return, to protect the share of the refund which may be payable to another person.
“(B) If the Secretary of the Treasury determines that an amount should be withheld under paragraph (1) or (2), and that the refund from which it should be withheld is based upon a joint return, the Secretary of the Treasury shall notify the State that the withholding is being made from a refund based upon a joint return, and shall furnish to the State the names and addresses of each taxpayer filing such joint return. In the case of a withholding under paragraph (2), the State may delay distribution of the amount withheld until the State has been notified by the Secretary of the Treasury that the other person filing the joint return has received his or her proper share of the refund, but such delay may not exceed six months.
“(C) If the other person filing the joint return with the named individual owing the past-due support takes appropriate action to secure his or her proper share of a refund from which a withholding was made under paragraph (1) or (2), the Secretary of the Treasury shall pay such share to such other person. The Secretary of the Treasury shall deduct the amount of such payment from amounts subsequently payable to the State agency to which the amount originally withheld from such refund was paid.
“(D) In any case in which an amount was withheld under paragraph (1) or (2) and paid to a State, and the State subsequently determines that the amount certified as past-due support was in excess of the amount actually owed at the time the amount withheld is to be distributed to or on behalf of the child, the State shall pay the excess amount withheld to the named individual thought to have owed the past-due support (or, in the case of amounts withheld on the basis of a joint return, jointly to the parties filing such return).”.
Section 464(a)(1) of such Act (as redesignated by subsection
Ante, p. 1322.
(a) of this section) is amended by striking out “and pay” in the second sentence and inserting in lieu thereof the following: “shall concurrently send notice to such individual that the withholding has been made (including in or with such notice a notification to any other person who may have filed a joint return with such individual of the steps which such other person may take in order to secure his or her proper share of the refund), and shall pay”.
Section 464(b) of such Act is amended—
by inserting “(1)” after “(b)”;
by striking out “The regulations shall specify” in the second sentence and inserting in lieu thereof “The regulations shall be consistent with the provisions of subsection (a)(3), shall specify”;
by striking out “and provide” and inserting in lieu thereof “and shall provide”;
by adding at the end of paragraph (1) as so redesignated the following; “Any fee paid to the Secretary of the Treasury pursuant to this subsection may be used to reimburse appropriations which bore all or part of the cost of applying such procedure.”; and
by adding at the end thereof the following new paragraph:
“(2) In the case of withholdings made under subsection (a)(2), the regulations promulgated pursuant to this subsection shall include the following requirements:
“(A) The withholding shall apply only in the case where the State determines that the amount of the past-due support which will be owed at the time the withholding is to be made, based upon the pattern of payment of support and other enforcement actions being pursued to collect the past-due support, is equal to or greater than $500. The State may limit the $500 threshhold amount to amounts of past-due support accrued since the time that the State first began to enforce the child support order involved under the State plan, and may limit the application of the withholding to past-due support accrued since such time.
“(B) The fee which the Secretary of the Treasury may impose to cover the costs of the withholding and notification may not exceed $25 per case submitted.”.
Section 464(c) of such Act is amended—
by striking out “(c) As used in this part” and inserting in lieu thereof “(c)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), as used in this part”; and
by adding at the end thereof the following new paragraph:
“(2) For purposes of subsection (a)(2), the term ‘past-due support’ means only past-due support owed to or on behalf of a minor child.”,
Section 454(6) of the Social Security Act (as amended by section
Ant,, p. 1307.
3(c) of this Act) is further amended—
by redesignating clause (C) as clause (D);
by striking out “fee so imposed” in clause (D) as so redesignated and inserting in lieu thereof “fees so imposed”; and
by striking out “, and” at the end of clause (B) and inserting in lieu thereof “, (C) a fee of not more than $25 may be imposed in any case where the State requests the Secretary of the Treasury to withhold past-due support owed to or on behalf of such individual from a tax refund pursuant to section 464(a)(2), and”.
Ante, p. 1322.
Section 6402(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 is amended—
by striking out “to which such support has been assigned” and inserting in lieu thereof “collecting such support”; and
by inserting before the last sentence thereof the following: “A reduction under this subsection shall be applied first to satisfy any past-due support which has been assigned to the State under section 402(a)(26) or 471(a)(17) of the Social Security Act, and shall be applied to satisfy any other past-due support
Ante, p. 1318.
after any other reductions allowed by law (but before a credit against future liability for an internal revenue tax) have been made.”.
Section 6402 of such Code (as amended by section 2653 of the
Ante, p. 1154.
Deficit Reduction Act of 1984) is further amended by redesignating subsection (g) as subsection (h), and by inserting after subsection (f) the following new subsection:
Treatment of Payments to States.—
The Secretary may provide that, for purposes of determining interest, the payment of any amount withheld under subsection (c) to a State shall be treated as a payment to the person or persons making the overpayment.”.
Section 6103(1) of such Code (as so amended) is further
Ante, p. 1155
amended by adding at the end thereof the following new paragraph:
“(11) Disclosure of certain information to agencies requesting a reduction under section 6402(c).—
“(A) Return information from internal revenue service.—
The Secretary shall, upon receiving a written request, disclose to officers and employees of a State agency seeking a reduction under section 6402(c)—
“(i) the fact that a reduction has been made or has not been made under such subsection with respect to any taxpayer;
“(ii) the amount of such reduction;
“(iii) whether such taxpayer filed a joint return;
“(iv) taxpayer identity information with respect to the taxpayer against whom a reduction was made or not made and of any other person filing a joint return with such taxpayer; and
“(v) the fact that a payment was made (and the amount of the payment) on the basis of a joint return in accordance with section 464(a)(3) of the Social Security
Ante, p. 1322.
Act.
“(B) Restriction on use of disclosed information.—
Any officers and employees of an agency receiving return information under subparagraph (A) shall use such information only for the purposes of, and to the extent necessary in, establishing appropriate agency records or in the defense of any litigation or administrative procedure ensuing from a reduction made under section 6402(c).”.
Supra.
Section 6103(p)(3)(A) of such Code (as so amended) is further amended by striking out “or (10)” and inserting in lieu thereof “(10), or (11)”.
Section 6103(p)(4) of such Code (as so amended) is further amended by striking out “or (10)” and inserting in lieu thereof “(IO), or (11)”.
Section 6103(p)(4)(F)(ii) of such Code (as so amended) is further amended by striking out “or (10)” and inserting in lieu thereof “(10), or (11)”.
Section 7213(a)(2) of such Code (as so amended) is further amended by striking out “or (10)” and inserting in lieu thereof “(10), or (11)”.
The amendments made by this section shall apply with respect to refunds payable under section 6402 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 after December 31, 1985.
Sec. 22. wisconsin child support initiative
If the State of Wisconsin requests the Secretary of Health and Human Services to waive the requirements of parts A and D of title IV of the Social Security Act, or to waive the requirements of part D and only those requirements of part A of such Act as relate to the provision of aid to dependent children as
defined (without regard to section 407) in section 406(a) of the Social Security Act (hereafter referred to in this section as “dependent children in single-parent families”), in order to permit the State to make an adequate test in any county or counties, or throughout the State, of its Child Support Initiative, the Secretary shall waive such requirements if—
the State provides a complete description, in accordance with paragraph (2), of the program, known as the Initiative, which it will operate in place of the programs under such parts
A and D, and makes the description readily available to the public throughout the State;
the Governor provides assurances that, under the Initiative, assistance will be provided to all children in need of financial support, and the State will continue to operate an effective child support enforcement program;
the State agrees that, during the conduct of such test, it will continue to determine eligibility for medical assistance under the State plan approved under title XIX of the Social Security Act, applying the criteria (insofar as may be applicable to members of families with dependent children affected by the Initiative) in effect under its State plan approved under part A
of title IV for the month preceding the month in which the Initiative (approved under this section) becomes effective, except that such criteria shall be deemed to have been changed to the extent necessary to comply with generally applicable changes in Federal law or regulations occurring after the date of the enactment of this Act;
the State specifies measurable performance objectives, submits an evaluation plan (including criteria for evaluating the Initiative), and agrees to submit interim and final evaluations and reports, at such time or times and containing such information, as the Secretary may require; and
the State agrees to obtain, at least once every two years, a financial and compliance audit of the funds received under this section and to obtain, after the close of the operation of the Initiative under this section, such an audit and make it public within the State on a timely basis and provide a copy to the Secretary within 30 days after its completion.
The program description provided under paragraph (1)(A) shall describe in detail how the proposed Initiative will affect children and families, with specific reference to the principles for calculating benefits and establishing and enforcing child support obligations. The description shall also include estimates of cost and program effects and provide other relevant information necessary for the Secretary to determine whether the financial well-being of children and their families will be adversely affected by the operation of the Initiative.
The Child Support Initiative proposed by the State of Wisconsin
Effective date.
as detailed in the program description submitted to the Secretary, and the related requested waivers, shall become effective within 120 days after its submission unless the Secretary determines that the financial well-being of children in the State will be adversely affected by the Initiative. The Secretary shall notify the State in writing that, effective with the beginning of the following quarter (or of such later quarter as the State may select), the State may operate its Child Support Initiative instead of its programs of aid to families with dependent children (or, if the State had so requested, instead of its program of aid to dependent children in single-parent families) and child support enforcement in such county or counties, or on a statewide basis, as the State has indicated in its request. Except as specifically provided in subsection (c), no amount will be payable for any quarter under section 403(a) (or
under section 403(a) with respect to single-parent families, if the State had so requested), 455(a), or 458 of the Social Security Act with
Ante, pp. 1311, 1312.
respect to such county or counties in which the Initiative is in effect.
For each quarter during which such program is in effect throughout the State, the Secretary will pay to the State the sum of its proportionate share (as defined in paragraph (4)(A)) of each of the following:
the amount advanced by the Secretary to all the other States (as defined in section 1101(a) of the Social Security Act)
for such quarter with respect to section 403(a) (1) and (2) of such Act;
the amount so advanced by the Secretary with respect to section 403(a)(3) of such Act;
the amount so advanced by the Secretary with respect to
Ante, p. 1311.
Ante, p. 1312.
section 455(a) of such Act; and
the amount so advanced by the Secretary with respect to section 458(a) of such Act,
reduced by so much of its proportionate share of support collections on behalf of individuals receiving aid to families with dependent children (as defined in paragraph (4)(B)) as would have been credited to the Federal Government under section 457(b) of such Act had
Ante, p. 1318.
such collections been made in the last quarter of fiscal year 1986.
If in any quarter the Initiative approved under this section is in operation in fewer than all the counties in the State, the amount paid to the State with respect to the counties to which the waiver under subsection (a) applies shall equal (in lieu of the amount specified in paragraph (1)) the proportionate share with respect to the counties in which the Initiative is operated (as defined in paragraph (5)(A)) of the amount advanced to the State under the four authorities specified in paragraph (1) with respect to all the other counties for such quarter, reduced by so much of the proportionate share of support collections (as defined in paragraph (5)(B)) with respect to the counties in which the Initiative is operated, as would have been credited to the Federal Government under section
Ante, p. 1318.
457(b) of such Act had such collections been made in the last quarter of fiscal year 1986.
Payment under this subsection shall be estimated by the Secretary before the beginning of each quarter during which the Initiative is in effect on the basis of the advances made under parts
A and D of title IV of the Social Security Act for such quarter, and the Secretary shall make payments for such quarter on a monthly basis (with each payment made no later than the beginning of the month involved), in the amounts so estimated, and adjusted as necessary to reflect the amount of any previously made overpayment or underpayment under this section. Payment of any amount determined with respect to paragraphs (1)(A) and (1)(B) shall be made from amounts appropriated to carry out part A of title IV of the Social Security Act for the appropriate fiscal year; payment of any amount determined with respect to paragraphs (1)(C) and (1)(D) shall be made from amounts appropriated to carry out part D of title IV of the Social Security Act.
The State’s proportionate share of each amount enumerated in paragraph (1) shall be the portion of such amount that bears the same ratio to such amount as the corresponding portion advanced to the State for quarters in fiscal years 1984 through 1986 bears to the total corresponding amount advanced to all the other States for such quarters.
The State’s proportionate share of support collections means the amount that bears the same ratio to such collections on behalf of individuals receiving aid to families with dependent children by all the other States for the quarter involved as such collections by the State for quarters in fiscal years 1984 through 1986 bear to the total of such collections by all the other States for such quarters.
The proportionate share with respect to the counties in which the Initiative is operated, in the case of—
the amount advanced to the State with respect to all other
counties under section 403(a)(1) of the Social Security Act;
the amount so advanced under section 403(a)(3) of such Act;
the amount so advanced under section 455(a) of such Act; and
the amount so advanced with respect to section 458(a) of
Ante, p. 1312.
such Act,
is the sum of such amounts, each having been multiplied by the ratio of (I) the corresponding amount advanced with respect to such counties for all quarters in fiscal years 1984 through 1986 to (II) the corresponding amount advanced with respect to all the other counties in the State for all such quarters.
The proportionate share of support collections for any quarter, with respect to the counties in which the Initiative is operated, means the amount that bears the same ratio to such collections on behalf of individuals receiving aid to families with dependent children with respect to all the other counties in the State for such quarter as such collections by such counties for quarters in fiscal years 1984 through 1986 bear to the total of such collections by all the other counties in the State for such quarters.
If the State requests, under subsection (a), waiver of only those requirements under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act as
relate to the provision of aid to dependent children in single-parent families, and continues to operate its program of aid to families with dependent children deprived by reason of the unemployment of a parent—
the State’s proportionate share of the amount specified in paragraph (1)(A) (and only that amount) shall be computed under paragraph (4) by application of the ratio of (i) the amount advanced to the State, under section 403(a)(1) of the Social Security Act for quarters in fiscal years 1984 through 1986 with
respect to expenditures in the form of aid to dependent children in single-parent families, to (ii) the amount advanced to all the other States, under section 403(a) (1) and (2) of such Act with respect to such expenditures, rather than by application of the ratio specified in paragraph (4); and
part A of title IV of such Act shall continue to apply to the
State’s program of aid to families with dependent children deprived by reason of the unemployment of a parent; except that section 403(a)(3) shall not apply during the period that, or
in the part or parts of the State where, the Initiative is in effect.
The State may cease to conduct the Initiative under this section and (if it so chooses) return to the administration of its plans approved under part A and part D of title IV of the Social Security
Act upon the provision to the Secretary of at least 3 months advance notice (or such greater advance notice as may be necessary so that administration of such plans will resume at the beginning of a quarter in the fiscal year).
The Secretary may terminate approval of the Initiative upon the giving of at least 3 months advance, notice (or such greater advance notice as may be necessary as specified in paragraph (1)) to the State if it is determined that the financial well-being of children in the State (or county or counties involved) would be better achieved by the operation of programs under part A and part D of title IV of the Social Security Act.
This section shall be in effect for quarters beginning after
Effective date.
September 30, 1986, and ending before October 1, 1994.
Sec. 23. sense of the congress that state and local governments should focus on the problems of child custody, child support, and related domestic issues
The Congress finds that—
the divorce rate in the United States has reached alarming proportions and the number of children being raised in single parent families has grown accordingly;
there is a critical lack of child support enforcement, which Congress has undertaken to address through the child support enforcement program;
Congress is strengthening that program to recognize the needs of all children;
related domestic issues, such as visitation rights and child custody, are often intricately intertwined with the child support problem and have received inadequate consideration; and
these related issues remain within the jurisdiction of State and local governments, but have a critical impact on the health and welfare of the children of the Nation.
It is the sense of Congress that—
State and local governments must focus on the vital issues of child support, child custody, visitation rights, and other related domestic issues that are properly within the jurisdictions of such governments;
all individuals involved in the domestic relations process should recognize the seriousness of these matters to the health and welfare of our Nation’s children and assign them the highest priority; and
a mutual recognition of the needs of all parties involved in divorce actions will greatly enhance the health and welfare of America’s children and families.
Approved August 16, 1984.