Child Support Legislation In 1999, the State of California enacted legislation to make the child support system more accountable to children and parents.  These reforms established a new California Department of Child Support Services and transferred local program representatives from the counties district attorneys to county departments, which were dedicated exclusively to child support collection. This new legislation built upon the child support collection program created in 1975, through Title IV-D of the Social Security Act, this act required each state to establish a child and spousal enforcement program. Section 45, Part 300 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) further details the responsibilities of the federal, state, and local governments for the child and spousal support enforcement program. The goal of the Child Support Enforcement Program is to ensure that children are financially supported by both parents. Subsequent laws, such as the Family Support Act of 1988 and the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA), provide for strong child support enforcement measures to assure that parental financial responsibility is met. Child support enforcement services are required for those families on public assistance and available upon request for those families who do not receive public assistance. The federal laws create the current framework for child support collection in California.  Additionally, new laws are created from time to time to address the needs of children, parents, and the Department of Child Support Services.  Through this site, we will strive to keep the public informed of such changes, including SB 84 Section 17601 for comparative data for managing program performance containing quarterly child support program statistics.  We also encourage you to review the Child Support Handbook distributed the State of California Department of Child Support Services . Recent changes in child support collection laws include: Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Civil Relief Act (SSCRA) – Restrictions on Interest As a result of the incidents of September 11, 2001, many custodial parties and non-custodial parties are being called to active military duty.  Active military personnel are accorded certain specific protections that may impact child support under the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Civil Relief Act of 1940, as amended, 50 U.S.C. Appendix Section 501 et seq.  Among other things, this amendment is intended to postpone or suspend certain civil obligations to enable service members to devote full attention to duty.  Section 526 of the SSCRA permits a service member to obtain a reduction in the interest rate on the service member’s debts to six percent per annum--only if those debts were created before the service member came onto active duty, or if the service member had a break in service before their current period of active duty.  Custodial and non-custodial parties can request that a local child support agency reduce the interest rate charged on arrearages accumulated prior to the date of entry into active duty from the statutory amount of ten percent to six percent.  Reservists and members of the National Guard get the benefits of the SSCRA while on active duty.  The protection begins on the date of entering active duty and terminates within 30 to 90 days after the date of discharge from active duty. Assembly Bill (AB) 1426, Chapter 371 (Employer Responsibilities) (AB 1426, Chapter 371 ) This bill became effective January 1, 2002 and amends Section 5241 of the Family Code providing an additional tool for local child support agencies to secure compliance with wage assignments.  If an employer willfully fails to comply with a wage assignment order or has otherwise failed to comply with a particular wage assignment order on three separate occasions within the prior 12 months, AB 1426 permits the following actions: n      The local child support agency may, by notice of motion, secure a court order requiring the employer to pay support owing under that wage assignment by electronic funds transfer (EFT) from the employer’s bank account. n      In addition to any other penalty permitted by law, the court may also impose a civil penalty on the employer of up to 50% of the support amount not properly forwarded from the employer.  Any penalty assessed by the court is payable directly to the oblige. Assembly Bill (AB) 891, Chapter 651 (SSDI Payments)  (AB 891, Chapter 651) Effective January 1, 2002. Provides disabled non-custodial parents receiving Supplemental Security Income/State Supplemental Payments (SSI/SSP) or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) payments or those eligible to receive such payments, but for certain excess income as provided in Federal law, may: n      Receive credit toward child support obligations for certain derivative payments received by the child (ren) of those disabled obligors, n      Have no more than 5% of the disabled obligor’s SSDI benefits withheld for arrearage payments, n      Have current child support obligations modified when appropriate, and n      Have certain collections actions by Franchise Tax Board (FTB) withdrawn or rescinded by the local child support agency. We encourage you to research these legislative changes further and to seek advice from a private attorney or other legal advisor on how these statutes, m Assembly Bill (AB) 1449, Chapter 463  (Compromise of Child Support Arrears) This bill became effective on October 3, 2001 and amends Section 17415 of, and adds Sections 17550 and 17552 to, the Family Code and amends Section 903 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to children.  This bill requires the Department of Child Support Services, in consultation with the Department of Social Services, to establish and promulgate, by October 1, 2002, specified regulations by which the local child support agency may compromise an obligor’s liability for public assistance debt in cases where the parent separated from or deserted a child who consequently became the recipient of aid under the AFDC-FC or CalWORKS programs, if specific conditions are met and the department determines that compromise is necessary for the child’s support. Some of the specific conditions for possible compromise of arrearage are: n Was the child living with the parent (subject to the compromise of arrears) directly prior to placement ? n Did the child go directly from the Foster Care facility or relative caretaker’s home to the home of the parent (subject to the compromise) and is the child living with that parent now? n Is the net income of the parent (subject to the compromise) less than 250% of the  Federal Poverty Level? n Did the child support arrears accrue during the time that the child was in placement, and are the child support arrears owed to the state? The amount of your child support debt that may be reduced due to compromise is determined by the local child support agency based on the facts of your case.