[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2411 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2411

 To expand child support enforcement through means other than programs 
                      financed at Federal expense.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 31, 1998

Mrs. Hutchison introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
                  referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To expand child support enforcement through means other than programs 
                      financed at Federal expense.

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

SECTION 1. EQUAL USE OF INCOME WITHHOLDING FOR UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE 
              BENEFITS.

    (a) Disclosure of Wage Information to Persons Other Than the Title 
IV-D Agency.--Section 303(e)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
503(e)(1)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``, or to any other 
        individual or person enforcing child support obligations,'' 
        after ``enforcement agency''; and
            (2) in the second sentence--
                    (A) by striking ``only''; and
                    (B) by inserting ``and which are being enforced by 
                an individual or person other than the State or local 
                child support enforcement agency'' before the period.
    (b) Authority To Withhold in the Case of Non-Title IV-D 
Enforcement.--Section 303(e)(2)(A) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 503(e)(2)(A)) is amended--
            (1) in clause (i), by inserting ``and the identity and 
        location of the agency, individual, or person enforcing the 
        obligations, to the extent known'' before the comma;
            (2) in clause (ii), by inserting ``or the individual or 
        person'' after ``agency'';
            (3) in clause (iii)(III)--
                    (A) by striking ``462(e)'' and inserting 
                ``459(i)(5)''; and
                    (B) by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (4) in clause (iv), by striking the period and inserting 
        ``or individual or person disclosed under clause (i); and''; 
        and
            (5) in the matter following clause (iv)--
                    (A) by inserting ``or to the individual or person 
                disclosed under clause (i) through legal process (as 
                defined in section 459(i)(5))'' after ``agency''; and
                    (B) by striking ``his'' and inserting ``the 
                individual's''.
    (c) Fees.--Section 303(e)(2) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
503(e)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(D) The State agency charged with the administration of the State 
law may require payment, not to exceed $5.00 per calendar month, for 
the administrative costs incurred by the agency under this paragraph 
for any child support obligations enforced pursuant to subparagraph (A) 
which are attributable to child support obligations that are enforced 
by an individual or person other than a State or local child support 
enforcement agency.''.

SEC. 2. COMPREHENSIVE COORDINATION WITH OTHER ENFORCEMENT EFFORTS.

    (a) Secretarial Responsibilities.--
            (1) In general.--Section 452 of the Social Security Act (42 
        U.S.C. 652), as amended by the Child Support Performance and 
        Incentive Act of 1998 (Public Law 105-200) is amended by adding 
        at the end the following:
    ``(m) Coordination With Other Enforcement Activities.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall seek and promote, to 
        the extent consistent with this part, the enforcement of child 
        support obligations through activities conducted by a private 
        attorney or a public entity not providing services pursuant to 
        a State plan under this part in order to ensure the fullest 
        practicable utilization of available enforcement resources not 
        requiring Federal financial support.
            ``(2) Access to enforcement remedies and resources.--The 
        Secretary shall provide, to the maximum extent feasible and for 
        the sole purpose of establishing paternity and establishing, 
        modifying, and enforcing support obligations, access through 
        the State agency providing child support enforcement services 
        under this part to the following procedures, remedies, and 
        information to a State or local governmental enforcement agency 
        not providing enforcement services under a plan approved under 
        this part and to any private attorney that is registered with 
        the Secretary under this section, and without the requirement 
        of an application for services pursuant to section 
        454(4)(A)(ii) and subject to such reasonable fees as the 
        Secretary may prescribe:
                    ``(A) The collection of past-due child support from 
                Federal income tax refunds pursuant to section 464, 
                subject to such regulations governing the time, 
                content, and form of requests for such collection as 
                are issued by the Secretary of the Treasury, and 
                approved by the Secretary.
                    ``(B) The collection of overdue child support from 
                State income tax refunds pursuant to section 466(a)(3).
                    ``(C) The denial, revocation, or limitation of 
                passports for overdue child support pursuant to section 
                452(k).
                    ``(D) The reporting to consumer credit bureaus of 
                noncustodial parents who are delinquent in the payment 
                of child support and the amount of overdue support 
                pursuant to section 466(a)(7).
                    ``(E) Financial institution data matches and the 
                enforcement of past-due support pursuant to section 
                466(a)(17).
                    ``(F) In addition to all information authorized to 
                be disclosed to an authorized person under section 
                453(a)(2), pertinent case information, including 
                information comparisons under section 453(j), 
                maintained in components of the Federal Parent Locator 
                Service under section 453 and information reported by 
                employers pursuant to section 453A(b), subject to 
                section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
                (relating to the confidentiality of Federal income tax 
                returns and return information) and other Federal 
                requirements applicable to the confidentiality of 
                information and the protection of privacy rights.
            ``(3) Registration with the secretary of a public 
        enforcement agency or a private attorney.--
                    ``(A) In general.--For the purposes of this 
                subsection, the Secretary shall develop a form and 
                procedures, including the charging of a reasonable fee, 
                for the registration of a public child support 
                enforcement agency not providing services under this 
                part or of a private attorney. The form established 
                under this subparagraph shall require--
                            ``(i) the disclosure of the legal name and 
                        address of the public agency or of the law 
                        offices of the attorney or other entity for 
                        which the attorney provides legal services, 
                        that provides enforcement of child support 
                        obligations;
                            ``(ii) the length of time the public agency 
                        or the attorney or the entity for which the 
                        attorney provides legal services in the 
                        enforcement of child support, has provided such 
                        enforcement services;
                            ``(iii) the nature of the child support 
                        enforcement services provided by the public 
                        agency or by the attorney or entity for which 
                        the attorney provides legal services in the 
                        enforcement of child support;
                            ``(iv) the amount of fees and other costs 
                        charged a client for such services; and
                            ``(v) evidence of any bond or other 
                        assurance of client funds security.
                    ``(B) Registration numbers.--Upon receiving a 
                completed and sworn registration form under this 
                paragraph, the Secretary shall assign a registration 
                number to the registering agency or attorney. The 
                Secretary shall provide registration information, 
                including the assigned registration number for a public 
                agency or private attorney, to each State agency 
                operating an enforcement program under an approved plan 
                under this part and, upon request and payment of a 
                reasonable fee, to any other entity or individual.
            ``(4) Penalties.--In addition to any other penalties 
        provided under Federal or State law, with respect to any public 
        agency or private attorney registered with the Secretary under 
        this subsection that knowingly and intentionally uses for 
        purposes other than establishing paternity, or establishing, 
        modifying, or enforcing child support obligations any 
        information made available under this subsection to such agency 
        or attorney, the Secretary may impose either or both of the 
        following penalties:
                    ``(A) An administrative fine not to exceed $1,000.
                    ``(B) The revocation of the agency's or the 
                attorney's registration under this subsection, with 
                appropriate notice to State enforcement agencies 
                providing services under this part and to disciplinary 
                bodies of the State in which the attorney is licensed 
                to practice law.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Section 453(c)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
        653(c)(1)) is amended by inserting ``and any agent or attorney 
of any public child support enforcement agency not providing services 
under a plan approved under this part or of a private attorney 
registered with the Secretary pursuant to section 452(l)'' before the 
semicolon.
            (2) Section 453(j) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 653(j)) is 
        amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(6) Release of information.--The Secretary shall share 
        pertinent information maintained in each component of the 
        Federal Parent Locator Service under this section and 
        information reported by employers pursuant to section 453A(b) 
        on any case or order with a public enforcement agency not 
        providing services under this part or with a private attorney 
        that is registered with the Secretary under section 452(l) and 
        that has submitted a request for such information through a 
        State agency providing services under this part in a manner 
        prescribed by the Secretary, subject to section 6103 of the 
        Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to the confidentiality 
        of Federal income tax returns and return information) and other 
        Federal requirements applicable to the confidentiality of 
        information and the protection of privacy rights.''.
            (3) Section 453A(h)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 
        U.S.C. 653(h)(1)) is amended by inserting ``or, upon payment of 
        a reasonable fee not to exceed actual administrative costs, to 
        any person or entity authorized to receive such information 
        under section 452(l)(2)(F)'' before the period.

SEC. 3. EXPEDITIOUS PAYMENT OF SUPPORT COLLECTIONS.

    (a) State Plan Requirements.--Section 454(11) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 654(11)) is amended in subparagraph (B) by 
inserting ``at the address (including a financial institution for 
electronic transfer or direct deposit of funds) and in care of the 
individual or entity last specified for receipt of such payment by any 
individual legally able to so specify'' before the semicolon.
    (b) State Law Requirements.--Section 466(a) of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 666(a)) is amended by inserting after paragraph (19) the 
following:
            ``(20) Payment of support collections.--Procedures under 
        which any payment of child support due a family which is 
        received by an instrumentality of or a political subdivision of 
        the State, or by an entity acting under authority of such an 
        instrumentality or political subdivision, shall be paid on 
        behalf of the individual entitled to such support at the 
        address (including a financial institution for electronic 
        transfer or direct deposit of funds) and in care of the 
        individual or entity last specified for receipt of such payment 
        by any individual legally able to so specify, without regard to 
        whether the child support obligation is being enforced under a 
        State plan approved under this part.''.
    (c) Conforming Amendment.--Section 454B of the Social Security Act 
(42 U.S.C. 654B) is amended by adding the following:
    ``(e) Redirection of Disbursements.--The State disbursement unit 
shall redirect and forward any portion due a family of a support 
payment to any address (including a financial institution for the 
electronic transfer or direct deposit of funds) and in care of any 
person or entity last specified for receipt of such payment by any 
individual legally able to so specify on behalf of the person entitled 
to such support.''.
                                 <all>