[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 869 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 869

 To require a parent who is delinquent in child support to include his 
unpaid obligation in gross income, and to allow custodial parents a bad 
           debt deduction for unpaid child support payments.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 27, 1997

Mr. Cox of California introduced the following bill; which was referred 
                   to the Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require a parent who is delinquent in child support to include his 
unpaid obligation in gross income, and to allow custodial parents a bad 
           debt deduction for unpaid child support payments.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Child Support Enforcement Act''.

SEC. 2. NO EFFECT ON RIGHTS AND LIABILITIES.

    Nothing in this Act shall be construed to affect--
            (1) the right of an individual or State to receive any 
        child support payment; or
            (2) the obligation of an individual to pay child support.

SEC. 3. INCLUSION IN INCOME OF AMOUNT OF UNPAID CHILD SUPPORT PAYMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Section 108 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
(relating to discharge of indebtedness income) is amended by adding at 
the end thereof the following new subsection:
    ``(h) Unpaid Child Support Payments.--
            ``(1) In general.--For purposes of this chapter, any 
        taxable unpaid child support payments of a taxpayer for any 
        taxable year shall be treated as amounts includible in gross 
        income of the taxpayer for the taxable year by reason of the 
        discharge of indebtedness of the taxpayer.
            ``(2) Taxable unpaid child support payments.--For purposes 
        of this subsection, the term `taxable unpaid child support 
        payments' means payments--
                    ``(A) which were applicable child support payments 
                which the taxpayer was required to pay under a support 
                instrument for the support of a child of the taxpayer, 
                and
                    ``(B) with respect to which the notice requirements 
                of paragraph (3) are met.
            ``(3) Notice requirements.--
                    ``(A) In general.--During January of the second 
                calendar year following a calendar year in which there 
                begins a taxable year for which a deduction allowed 
                under section 166(f) was claimed, the eligible taxpayer 
                shall send a notice (in such form as the Secretary may 
                prescribe) to the individual who failed to make 
                payments which contains--
                            ``(i) the amount of the applicable child 
                        support payments for such taxable year, and
                            ``(ii) notice that the individual is 
                        required to include such amount in gross income 
                        for the taxable year beginning in the preceding 
                        calendar year.
                    ``(B) Notice by secretary.--If notice cannot be 
                provided under subparagraph (A) because the address is 
                not known to the eligible taxpayer, the Secretary shall 
                send such notice if the address is available to the 
                Secretary.
                    ``(C) Address unknown.--If notice cannot be 
                provided under subparagraph (A) or (B) because there is 
                no known address, no income shall be included in gross 
                income for any taxable year beginning before the 
                calendar year preceding the calendar year in which such 
                notice may be sent.
            ``(4) Subsequent payments.--If any payment required to be 
        included in gross income under paragraph (1) is subsequently 
        made, the amount of such payment shall be allowed as a 
        deduction for the taxable year in which such payment is made.
            ``(5) Definitions.--For purposes of this subsection, the 
        terms `applicable child support payments' and `eligible 
        taxpayer' have the meanings given such terms by section 
        166(f).''
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 1997.

SEC. 4. ALLOWANCE OF BAD DEBT DEDUCTION FOR UNPAID CHILD SUPPORT 
              PAYMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Section 166 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
(relating to deduction for bad debts) is amended by redesignating 
subsection (f) as subsection (g) and by inserting after subsection (e) 
the following new subsection:
    ``(f) Unpaid Child Support Payments.--
            ``(1) In general.--In the case of any eligible taxpayer who 
        has any applicable child support payments remaining unpaid as 
        of the close of the taxable year--
                    ``(A) subsections (a) and (d) shall not apply to 
                such payments, and
                    ``(B) there shall be allowed as a deduction for 
                such taxable year an amount equal to the amount of such 
                payments.
            ``(2) Per child limitation on deduction.--The aggregate 
        amount allowable as a deduction for any taxable year under 
        paragraph (1) with respect to any child for whom applicable 
        child support payments are required to be paid shall not exceed 
        $10,000.
            ``(3) Eligible taxpayer.--For purposes of this subsection, 
        the term `eligible taxpayer' means an individual--
                    ``(A) whose adjusted gross income for the taxable 
                year does not exceed $50,000,
                    ``(B) with respect to whom the amount of applicable 
                child support payments remaining unpaid as of the close 
                of the taxable year is equal to or greater than $500, 
                and
                    ``(C) who meets the identification requirements of 
                paragraph (5).
            ``(4) Applicable child support payment.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The term `applicable child 
                support payment' means, with respect to any taxable 
                year of the eligible taxpayer--
                            ``(i) any periodic payment of a fixed 
                        amount, or
                            ``(ii) any payment of a medical or 
                        educational expense, insurance premium, or 
                        other similar item,
                which is required to be paid to such taxpayer during 
                such taxable year by an individual under a support 
                instrument meeting the requirements of paragraph (8) 
                for the support of any qualifying child of such 
                individual.
                    ``(B) Qualifying child.--For purposes of this 
                paragraph, the term `qualifying child' means a child of 
                an eligible individual with respect to whom a deduction 
                is allowable under section 151 for the taxable year (or 
                would be so allowable but for paragraph (2) or (4) of 
                section 152(e)).
                    ``(C) Payments must be delinquent for at least 
                entire year.--Any payment described in subparagraph (A) 
                which is required to be made by an individual to an 
                eligible taxpayer shall not be treated as an applicable 
                unpaid child support payment if at least half of the 
                payments which are required to be paid to the eligible 
                taxpayer during the 12-month period ending on the last 
                day of the taxable year are paid. In the case of the 
                1st taxable year to which this subsection applies to 
                payments from any individual, the preceding sentence 
                shall be applied by substituting `24-month' for `12-
                month'.
                    ``(D) Coordination with afdc.--The term `applicable 
                child support payment' shall not include any payment 
                the right to which has been assigned to a State under 
                section 402(a)(26) of the Social Security Act (42 
                U.S.C. 602(a)(26)).
            ``(5) Identification requirements.--The requirements of 
        this paragraph are met if the eligible taxpayer includes on the 
        return claiming the deduction under this subsection the name, 
        address, and taxpayer identification number of--
                    ``(A) each child with respect to whom child support 
                payments to which this subsection applies are required 
                to be paid, and
                    ``(B) the individual who was required to make such 
                child support payments.
        In the case of a failure to provide the information under 
        subparagraph (B), the preceding sentence shall not apply if the 
        eligible taxpayer certifies that any such information is not 
        known.
            ``(6) Cost-of-living adjustments.--In the case of any 
        taxable year beginning after 1998, the $50,000 amount under 
        paragraph (2)(A), the $50,000 amount under paragraph (3)(A), 
        and the $500 amount under paragraph (3)(B) shall each be 
        increased by an amount equal to--
                    ``(A) such dollar amount, multiplied by
                    ``(B) the cost-of-living adjustment determined 
                under section 1(f)(3) for the calendar year in which 
                the taxable year begins, except that section 1(f)(3)(B) 
                shall be applied by substituting `1997' for `1992'.
            ``(7) Subsequent payments.--If any payment with respect to 
        which a deduction was allowed under paragraph (1) is 
        subsequently made, such payment shall be included in gross 
        income of the eligible taxpayer for the taxable year in which 
        paid. This paragraph shall not apply to any amount if an 
        individual has assigned the right to receive such amount to a 
        State (and the State does not pay such amount to such 
        individual).
            ``(8) Support instrument.--For purposes of this subsection, 
        a support instrument meets the requirements of this paragraph 
        if it is--
                    ``(A) a decree of divorce or separate maintenance 
                or a written instrument incident to such a decree,
                    ``(B) a written separation agreement, or
                    ``(C) a decree (not described in subparagraph (A)) 
                of a court or administrative agency requiring a parent 
                to make payments for the support or maintenance of 1 or 
                more children of such parent.''
    (b) Deduction for Nonitemizers.--Section 62(a) of such Code is 
amended by inserting after paragraph (16) the following new paragraph:
            ``(17) Unpaid child support payments.--The deduction 
        allowed by section 166(f).''
    (c) Conforming Amendment.--Section 166(d)(2) of such Code is 
amended by striking ``or'' at the end of subparagraph (A), by striking 
the period at the end of subparagraph (B) and inserting ``, or'' and by 
adding at the end thereof the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(C) a debt which is an applicable child support 
                payment under subsection (f).''
    (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 1997.

SEC. 5. REDUCTION OF FEDERAL DEBT.

    Net revenues received in the Treasury pursuant to this Act shall be 
applied, as provided in appropriation Acts, solely to the retirement of 
outstanding public debt obligations of the United States and may not be 
obligated or expended for any other purpose, notwithstanding any other 
provision of law that does not specifically refer to this section.
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