[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4282 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4282

 To amend part D of title IV of the Social Security Act to ensure that 
 the United States can comply fully with the obligations of the Hague 
 Convention of 23 November 2007 on the International Recovery of Child 
 Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 28, 2012

Mr. Berg (for himself, Mr. Doggett, Mr. Davis of Kentucky, Mr. Lewis of 
    Georgia, Mr. Boustany, Mr. Price of Georgia, Mr. McDermott, Mr. 
Crowley, Mr. Paulsen, Mrs. Black, Mr. Reed, and Mr. Rangel) introduced 
  the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and 
    Means, and in addition to the Committees on the Budget and the 
 Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 
 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the 
                jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend part D of title IV of the Social Security Act to ensure that 
 the United States can comply fully with the obligations of the Hague 
 Convention of 23 November 2007 on the International Recovery of Child 
 Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance, 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; REFERENCES.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``International 
Child Support Recovery Improvement Act of 2012''.
    (b) References.--Except as otherwise expressly provided in this 
Act, wherever in this Act an amendment is expressed in terms of an 
amendment to a section or other provision, the amendment shall be 
considered to be made to a section or other provision of the Social 
Security Act.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO ENSURE ACCESS TO CHILD SUPPORT SERVICES FOR 
              INTERNATIONAL CHILD SUPPORT CASES.

    (a) Authority of the Secretary of HHS To Ensure Compliance With 
Multilateral Child Support Conventions.--
            (1) In general.--Section 452 (42 U.S.C. 652) is amended--
                    (A) by redesignating the second subsection (l) (as 
                added by section 7306 of the Deficit Reduction Act of 
                2005) as subsection (m); and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(n) The Secretary shall use the authorities otherwise provided by 
law to ensure the compliance of the United States with any multilateral 
child support convention to which the United States is a party.''.
            (2) Conforming amendment.--Section 453(k)(3) (42 U.S.C. 
        653(k)(3)) is amended by striking ``452(l)'' and inserting 
        ``452(m)''.
    (b) Access to the Federal Parent Locator Service.--Section 453(c) 
(42 U.S.C. 653(c)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (3);
            (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (4) and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(5) an entity designated as a Central Authority for child 
        support enforcement in a foreign reciprocating country or a 
        foreign treaty country for purposes specified in section 
        459A(c)(2).''.
    (c) State Option To Require Individuals in Foreign Countries To 
Apply Through Their Country's Appropriate Central Authority.--Section 
454 (42 U.S.C. 654) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (4)(A)(ii), by inserting before the 
        semicolon ``(except that, if the individual applying for the 
        services resides in a foreign reciprocating country or foreign 
        treaty country, the State may opt to require the individual to 
        request the services through the Central Authority for child 
        support enforcement in the foreign reciprocating country or the 
        foreign treaty country, and if the individual resides in a 
        foreign country that is not a foreign reciprocating country or 
        a foreign treaty country, a State may accept or reject the 
        application)''; and
            (2) in paragraph (32)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``, a foreign 
                treaty country,'' after ``a foreign reciprocating 
                country''; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``or foreign 
                obligee'' and inserting ``, foreign treaty country, or 
                foreign individual''.
    (d) Amendments to International Support Enforcement Provisions.--
Section 459A (42 U.S.C. 659a) is amended--
            (1) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(e) References.--In this part:
            ``(1) Foreign reciprocating country.--The term `foreign 
        reciprocating country' means a foreign country (or political 
        subdivision thereof) with respect to which the Secretary has 
        made a declaration pursuant to subsection (a).
            ``(2) Foreign treaty country.--The term `foreign treaty 
        country' means a foreign country for which the 2007 Family 
        Maintenance Convention is in force.
            ``(3) 2007 family maintenance convention.--The term `2007 
        Family Maintenance Convention' means the Hague Convention of 23 
        November 2007 on the International Recovery of Child Support 
        and Other Forms of Family Maintenance.'';
            (2) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by 
                striking ``foreign countries that are the subject of a 
                declaration under this section'' and inserting 
                ``foreign reciprocating countries or foreign treaty 
                countries''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``and foreign 
                treaty countries'' after ``foreign reciprocating 
                countries''; and
            (3) in subsection (d), by striking ``the subject of a 
        declaration pursuant to subsection (a)'' and inserting 
        ``foreign reciprocating countries or foreign treaty 
        countries''.
    (e) Collection of Past-Due Support From Federal Tax Refunds.--
Section 464(a)(2)(A) (42 U.S.C. 664(a)(2)(A)) is amended by striking 
``under section 454(4)(A)(ii)'' and inserting ``under paragraph 
(4)(A)(ii) or (32) of section 454''.
    (f) State Law Requirement Concerning the Uniform Interstate Family 
Support Act (UIFSA).--
            (1) In general.--Section 466(f) (42 U.S.C. 666(f)) is 
        amended--
                    (A) by striking ``on and after January 1, 1998,'';
                    (B) by striking ``and as in effect on August 22, 
                1996,''; and
                    (C) by striking ``adopted as of such date'' and 
                inserting ``adopted as of September 30, 2008''.
            (2) Conforming amendment to title 28, united states code.--
        Section 1738B of title 28, United States Code, is amended--
                    (A) in subsection (d), by striking ``individual 
                contestant'' and inserting ``individual contestant or 
                the parties have consented in a record or open court 
                that the tribunal of the State may continue to exercise 
                jurisdiction to modify its order,'';
                    (B) in subsection (e)(2)(A), by striking 
                ``individual contestant'' and inserting ``individual 
                contestant and the parties have not consented in a 
                record or open court that the tribunal of the other 
                State may continue to exercise jurisdiction to modify 
                its order''; and
                    (C) in subsection (b)--
                            (i) by striking ```child' means--'' and 
                        inserting ``(1) The term `child' means'';
                            (ii) by striking ```child's State' means'' 
                        and inserting ``(2) The term `child's State' 
                        means'';
                            (iii) by striking ```child's home State' 
                        means'' and inserting ``(3) The term `child's 
                        home State' means'';
                            (iv) by striking ```child support' means'' 
                        and inserting ``(4) The term `child support' 
                        means'';
                            (v) by striking ```child support order' 
                        means'' and inserting ``(5) The term `child 
                        support order' means'';
                            (vi) by striking ```contestant' means'' and 
                        inserting ``(6) The term `contestant' means'';
                            (vii) by striking ```court' means'' and 
                        inserting ``(7) The term `court' means'';
                            (viii) by striking ```modification' means'' 
                        and inserting ``(8) The term `modification' 
                        means''; and
                            (ix) by striking ```State' means'' and 
                        inserting ``(9) The term `State' means''.
            (3) Effective date; grace period for state law changes.--
                    (A) Paragraph (1).--(i) The amendments made by 
                paragraph (1) shall take effect with respect to a State 
                on the later of--
                            (I) October 1, 2013; or
                            (II) the effective date of laws enacted by 
                        the legislature of the State implementing such 
                        paragraph, but in no event later than the first 
                        day of the first calendar quarter beginning 
                        after the close of the first regular session of 
                        the State legislature that begins after the 
                        date of the enactment of this Act.
                    (ii) For purposes of clause (i), in the case of a 
                State that has a 2-year legislative session, each year 
                of the session shall be deemed to be a separate regular 
                session of the State legislature.
                    (B) Paragraph (2).--(i) The amendments made by 
                subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2) shall take 
                effect on the date on which the Hague Convention of 23 
                November 2007 on the International Recovery of Child 
                Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance enters 
                into force for the United States.
                    (ii) The amendments made by subparagraph (C) of 
                paragraph (2) shall take effect on the date of the 
                enactment of this Act.

SEC. 3. DATA EXCHANGE STANDARDIZATION FOR IMPROVED INTEROPERABILITY.

    (a) In General.--Section 452 (42 U.S.C. 652), as amended by section 
2(a)(1) of this Act, is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(o) Data Exchange Standardization for Improved 
Interoperability.--
            ``(1) Data exchange standards.--
                    ``(A) Designation.--The Secretary, in consultation 
                with an interagency work group which shall be 
                established by the Office of Management and Budget, and 
                considering State and tribal perspectives, shall, by 
                rule, designate a data exchange standard for any 
                category of information required to be reported under 
                this part.
                    ``(B) Data exchange standards must be 
                nonproprietary and interoperable.--The data exchange 
                standard designated under subparagraph (A) shall, to 
                the extent practicable, be nonproprietary and 
                interoperable.
                    ``(C) Other requirements.--In designating data 
                exchange standards under this section, the Secretary 
                shall, to the extent practicable, incorporate--
                            ``(i) interoperable standards developed and 
                        maintained by an international voluntary 
                        consensus standards body, as defined by the 
                        Office of Management and Budget, such as the 
                        International Organization for Standardization;
                            ``(ii) interoperable standards developed 
                        and maintained by intergovernmental 
                        partnerships, such as the National Information 
                        Exchange Model; and
                            ``(iii) interoperable standards developed 
                        and maintained by Federal entities with 
                        authority over contracting and financial 
                        assistance, such as the Federal Acquisition 
                        Regulatory Council.
            ``(2) Data exchange standards for reporting.--
                    ``(A) Designation.--The Secretary, in consultation 
                with an interagency work group established by the 
                Office of Management and Budget, and considering State 
                and tribal perspectives, shall, by rule, designate data 
                exchange standards to govern the data reporting 
                required under this part.
                    ``(B) Requirements.--The data exchange standards 
                required by subparagraph (A) shall, to the extent 
                practicable--
                            ``(i) incorporate a widely-accepted, 
                        nonproprietary, searchable, computer-readable 
                        format;
                            ``(ii) be consistent with and implement 
                        applicable accounting principles; and
                            ``(iii) be capable of being continually 
                        upgraded as necessary.
                    ``(C) Incorporation of nonproprietary standards.--
                In designating reporting standards under this 
                paragraph, the Secretary shall, to the extent 
                practicable, incorporate existing nonproprietary 
                standards, such as the eXtensible Markup Language.''.
    (b) Effective Dates.--
            (1) Data exchange standards.--The Secretary of Health and 
        Human Services shall issue a proposed rule under section 
        452(o)(1) of the Social Security Act within 12 months after the 
        date of the enactment of this section, and shall issue a final 
        rule under such section 452(o)(1), after public comment, within 
        24 months after such date of enactment.
            (2) Data reporting standards.--The reporting standards 
        required under section 452(o)(2) of such Act shall become 
        effective with respect to reports required in the first 
        reporting period, after the effective date of the final rule 
        referred to in paragraph (1) of this subsection, for which the 
        authority for data collection and reporting is established or 
        renewed under the Paperwork Reduction Act.

SEC. 4. EFFICIENT USE OF THE NATIONAL DIRECTORY OF NEW HIRES DATABASE 
              FOR FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH ASSESSING THE 
              EFFECTIVENESS OF FEDERAL POLICIES AND PROGRAMS IN 
              ACHIEVING POSITIVE LABOR MARKET OUTCOMES.

    Section 453 (42 U.S.C. 653) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (i)(2)(A), by striking ``24'' and 
        inserting ``48''; and
            (2) in subsection (j), by striking paragraph (5) and 
        inserting the following:
            ``(5) Research.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B) of 
                this paragraph, the Secretary may provide access to 
                data in each component of the Federal Parent Locator 
                Service maintained under this section and to 
                information reported by employers pursuant to section 
                453A(b), for--
                            ``(i) research undertaken by a State or 
                        Federal agency (including through grant or 
                        contract) for purposes found by the Secretary 
                        to be likely to contribute to achieving the 
                        purposes of part A or this part; or
                            ``(ii) an evaluation or statistical 
                        analysis undertaken to assess the effectiveness 
                        of a Federal program in achieving positive 
                        labor market outcomes (including through grant 
                        or contract), by--
                                    ``(I) the Department of Health and 
                                Human Services;
                                    ``(II) the Social Security 
                                Administration;
                                    ``(III) the Department of Labor;
                                    ``(IV) the Department of Education;
                                    ``(V) the Department of Housing and 
                                Urban Development;
                                    ``(VI) the Department of Justice;
                                    ``(VII) the Department of Veterans 
                                Affairs;
                                    ``(VIII) the Bureau of the Census;
                                    ``(IX) the Department of 
                                Agriculture; or
                                    ``(X) the National Science 
                                Foundation.
                    ``(B) Personal identifiers.--Data or information 
                provided under this paragraph may include a personal 
                identifier only if, in addition to meeting the 
                requirements of subsections (l) and (m)--
                            ``(i) the State or Federal agency 
                        conducting the research described in 
                        subparagraph (A)(i), or the Federal department 
                        or agency undertaking the evaluation or 
                        statistical analysis described in subparagraph 
                        (A)(ii), as applicable, enters into an 
                        agreement with the Secretary regarding the 
                        security and use of the data or information;
                            ``(ii) the agreement includes such 
                        restrictions or conditions with respect to the 
                        use, safeguarding, disclosure, or redisclosure 
                        of the data or information (including by 
                        contractors or grantees) as the Secretary deems 
                        appropriate;
                            ``(iii) the data or information is used 
                        exclusively for the purposes defined in the 
                        agreement; and
                            ``(iv) the Secretary determines that the 
                        provision of data or information under this 
                        paragraph is the minimum amount needed to 
                        conduct the research, evaluation, or 
                        statistical analysis, as applicable, and will 
                        not interfere with the effective operation of 
                        the program under this part.
                    ``(C) Penalties for unauthorized disclosure of 
                data.--Any individual who willfully discloses a 
                personal identifier (such as a name or social security 
                number) provided under this paragraph, in any manner to 
                an entity not entitled to receive the data or 
                information, shall be guilty of a class E felony under 
                title 18, United States Code. Any penalty imposed under 
                the preceding sentence shall be in addition to any 
                applicable penalty under subsection (l).''.

SEC. 5. BUDGETARY EFFECTS.

    The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of complying 
with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall be determined by 
reference to the latest statement titled ``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO 
Legislation'' for this Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional 
Record by the Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, provided that 
such statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.
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