Child Support Enforcement Act of 1995

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Title I: Eligibility and Other Matters Concerning Child

Support Enforcement Program Clients

Title II: Program Administration and Funding

Title III: Locate and Case Tracking

Title IV: Streamlining and Uniformity of Procedures

Title V: Paternity Establishment

Title VI: Establishment and Modification of Support Orders

Title VII: Enforcement of Support Orders

Title VIII: Demonstrations

Title IX: Access and Visitation Grants

Title X: Effect of Enactment

Child Support Enforcement Act of 1995 - Title I: Eligibility and Other Matters Concerning Child Support Enforcement Program Clients - Amends part D (Child Support and Establishment of Paternity) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) to require State plans for child and spousal support, Aid to Families with Dependent Children, and Medicaid to provide that the State agency administering the plan will make a determination as to whether a recipient of such programs is cooperating with efforts to establish paternity and secure support or has good cause not to cooperate with such efforts.

(Sec. 102) Requires States to have statutorily prescribed procedures to: (1) record child support orders in a central case registry; and (2) collect child support payments through a centralized collections unit. Revises the guidelines for: (1) State plans for child and spousal support; and (2) payments distribution.

(Sec. 104) Requires State plans to establish procedures for: (1) notification of all proceedings and orders affecting child support obligations; (2) privacy safeguards regarding paternity and child support actions; and (3) outreach to parents designed to disseminate information about and increase access to child support enforcement services.

Title II: Program Administration and Funding - Revises the formula for: (1) Federal matching payments to the States; and (2) incentive adjustments to the Federal matching rate.

(Sec. 203) Requires a State plan for child and spousal support to include prescribed procedures for State reviews and audits. Revises the guidelines for Federal evaluation and audit of State programs governing paternity, child and spousal support, and parent location.

(Sec. 204) Revises the automated data processing requirements for State plans to mandate a single statewide automated data processing and information retrieval system which can perform specified tasks.

(Sec. 205) Mandates that: (1) a separate organizational unit within the Department of Health and Human Services which is charged with providing technical assistance to the States, develop a core curriculum, training standards, and a national training program for directors of State programs with respect to spousal and child support collection and paternity; and (2) State plans provide for the implementation of a training program compatible with the Federal training program. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (the Secretary) to conduct staffing studies of each State child support enforcement program and to report the results to the Congress.

(Sec. 206) Makes funds available to the Secretary for: (1) training of Federal and State staff, research and demonstration programs, and special projects of regional and national significance; and (2) operation of the Federal Parent Locator Service.

(Sec. 208) Mandates that a State agency administering a child support enforcement program make information in the central State case registry available to State agencies administering income and eligibility verification systems.

Title III: Locate and Case Tracking - Mandates that the single statewide automated data system function as a single central case registry of State-provided services and support orders. Delineates contents of case records and data matching activities, including data exchange with sister States.

(Sec. 302) Requires State plans to include a centralized, automated unit for the collection and disbursement of support payments.

(Sec. 303) Requires the States to have statutorily prescribed procedures: (1) for mandatory income withholding for support payments subject to enforcement; and (2) under which child support orders issued before October 1, 1996, shall become subject to withholding from wages if arrearages occur, without the need for a judicial or administrative hearing. Revises the procedural guidelines for income withholding for child support enforcement.

(Sec. 304) Requires the States to have statutorily prescribed procedures: (1) delimiting State use of locator information from interstate networks; and (2) under which labor unions, and hiring halls of labor unions, must furnish specified member information upon the request of a State child support enforcement agency.

(Sec. 305) Directs the Secretary to establish the National Child Support Information Clearinghouse, composed of the Federal Parent Locator Service following registries created by this Act: (1) the National Child Support Registry; and (2) the National Directory of New Hires.

(Sec. 306) Revises the Federal Parent Locator Service to add the kinds of information which may be transmitted to locate individuals and assets for purposes of establishing parentage and executing child support obligations.

(Sec. 307) Directs the Secretary to study and report to the Congress on the: (1) accessibility of Federal Parent Locator Service information to noncustodial parents; and (2) feasibility of establishing and operating electronic data interchanges between such Service and major consumer credit reporting bureaus.

Requires the Secretary to make demonstration grants to the States to test the utility of automated data exchanges with State data bases in order to facilitate paternity establishment and support obligation enforcement.

(Sec. 308) Requires State plans to include procedures for recording Social Security numbers on certain family legal documents and records.

Title IV: Streamlining and Uniformity of Procedures - Requires each State to have the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act in effect as of January 1, 1996. Makes conforming amendments to the Federal judicial code governing full faith and credit for child support orders.

(Sec. 403) Amends SSA title IV part D to revise State plan guidelines for mandatory expedited administrative and judicial procedures to include: (1) establishment and modification of support awards under all orders included in the central case registry; (2) authorized genetic testing to establish paternity; and (3) the securing of assets and increasing of monthly payments to satisfy a support arrearage.

Makes conforming amendments to the U.S. bankruptcy code.

Title V: Paternity Establishment - Revises the guidelines for statutorily prescribed procedures governing genetic testing and outreach for voluntary paternity acknowledgment (including proceedings to establish paternity before the birth of the child).

(Sec. 503) Prescribes percentage guidelines under which Federal matching payments to a State are reduced for failure to establish paternity promptly.

(Sec. 504) Permits Federal financial participation in approved State plans which provide incentive payments to families to encourage paternity establishment. Directs the Secretary to authorize three State demonstration projects providing such incentives.

Title VI: Establishment and Modification of Support Orders - Authorizes the Secretary to establish the National Commission on Child Support Guidelines to consider the advisability of national child support guidelines, and propose guidelines for consideration by the Congress. Authorizes appropriations.

(Sec. 602) Revises the requirements for State plan procedures for the review and adjustment of child support orders.

(Sec. 603) Requires the Secretary and the Secretary of the Treasury to conduct a study to determine how tax return information may be used to facilitate the process of determining the amount by which child support awards should be modified.

(Sec. 604) Requires State plans to include procedures to ensure that child support orders reflect annual cost-of-living adjustments.

Title VII: Enforcement of Support Orders - Authorizes the Secretary to establish a revolving loan fund for program improvements to increase child support collections. Authorizes appropriations.

(Sec. 702) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise the priority of refund distribution with respect to past-due support owed to individuals.

(Sec. 703) Requires the Comptroller General to report to the Congress on the efficacy of IRS assistance with State child support collection processes.

(Sec. 704) Amends SSA title IV part D to revise procedural guidelines for consent by the United States to income withholding, garnishment, and similar proceedings for enforcement of child support and alimony obligations of current and retired Federal employees.

(Sec. 705) Requires States to have statutorily prescribed procedures for: (1) placing liens for child support arrearages on motor vehicle titles of the debtor; (2) voiding fraudulent transfers by a child support debtor; (3) suspending any driver's, business, or occupational license issued to any person who owes past-due child support; (4) reporting to credit bureaus the name of the parent in arrears for child support; (5) extending the statute of limitations for collection on child support arrearages; (6) calculating interest or penalties on such arrearage; and (7) barring failure to pay child support as a defense to the denial of visitation rights, and denial of visitation rights as a defense to failure to pay child support.

(Sec. 712) Prescribes procedural guidelines for passport denial (including revocation) upon certification of nonpayment of child support.

(Sec. 713) Denies Federal benefits, loans, and guarantees to persons whose child support arrearages exceed $1,000 and who are not in compliance with an arrearages repayment plan.

(Sec. 714) Requires States to have statutorily prescribed procedures under which failure to pay child support arrearages results in seizure by a State agency of: (1) lottery winnings; (2) insurance settlements or payouts; (3) judicial awards; (4) sale of forfeited property; and (5) bequests.

Title VIII: Demonstrations - Authorizes the Secretary to make demonstration grants to three States to determine the efficacy of programs to provide assured levels of child support to custodial parents of children for whom paternity and support obligations have been established. Authorizes appropriations.

Title IX: Access and Visitation Programs - Authorizes grants to States to establish and administer programs to facilitate absent parents' access and visitation programs. Authorizes appropriations.

Title X: Effect of Enactment - Sets forth effective dates for this Act.