Amended in Senate June 15, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1519

Introduced by Committee on Judiciary (Assembly Members Mark Stone (Chair), Alejo, Chau, Chiu, Cristina Garcia, Holden, and O'Donnell)

March 10, 2015

An act to amend Sections begin delete 2104 and end delete begin insert 2104, end insert 17325 begin insert , and 17400 end insert of the Family Code, and to add Section 69619 to the Government Code, relating to family law.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1519, as amended, Committee on Judiciary. Judiciary omnibus: family support.

(1) Existing law obligates a parent to support his or her child. Existing law establishes the Department of Child Support Services within the California Health and Human Services Agency, which administers all services and performs all functions necessary to establish, collect, and distribute child support. Existing law requires, if child support payments are directly deposited to an account of the recipient’s choice, that the payments only be deposited to a qualifying account, as defined, and prohibits a person or entity that issues a prepaid card or maintains or manages a prepaid card account from accepting or facilitating the direct deposit of child support payments to a prepaid card account that does not meet the requirements of a qualifying account. Existing law prohibits the Department of Child Support Services from being held liable for authorizing a direct deposit of child support payments into a prepaid card account designated by the recipient that does not meet the requirements of a qualifying account.

This bill would specify that the Department of Child Support Services has no obligation to determine whether an account at the financial institution of the recipient’s choice is a qualifying account.

(2) Existing law requires each party to a proceeding for dissolution of marriage or legal separation of the parties to serve on the other party a preliminary declaration of disclosure of assets, as specified, either concurrently with the petition for dissolution, or within 60 days of filing the petition.

This bill would clarify that the petitioner is required to serve the preliminary declaration of disclosure either concurrently with the petition for dissolution or legal separation or within 60 days of filing the petition.

begin insert

(3) Existing law requires each county to maintain a local child support agency that has the responsibility, among other things, to promptly and effectively establish, modify, and enforce child support obligations. Existing law authorizes attorneys employed within the local child support agency to direct, control, and prosecute civil actions and proceedings in the name of the county in support of the child support activities of the Department of Child Support Services and the local child support agency.

end insert begin insert

This bill, effective July 1, 2016, would authorize a local child support agency to electronically file pleadings signed by an agent of the local child support agency under penalty of perjury. The bill would require the Judicial Council to develop rules to implement this provision.

end insert begin delete

(3)

end delete

begin insert (4) end insert  Existing law specifies the number of judges of the superior court for each county, and allocates additional judgeships to the various counties in accordance with uniform standards for factually determining additional need in each county, as approved by the Judicial Council, and other specified criteria. Existing law provides for the conversion of 146 subordinate judicial officer positions in eligible superior courts upon the occurrence of specified conditions, including that the proposed action is ratified by the Legislature, except that no more than 16 positions may be converted to judgeships in any fiscal year. Notwithstanding this provision, existing law authorizes up to 10 additional subordinate judicial officer positions to be converted to judgeships in any fiscal year if the conversions will result in a judge being assigned to a family law or juvenile law assignment previously presided over by a subordinate judicial officer and the proposed action is ratified by the Legislature.

This bill would ratify the authority of the Judicial Council to convert 10 subordinate judicial officer positions to judgeships in the 2015-16 fiscal year when the conversion will result in a judge being assigned to a family law or juvenile law assignment previously presided over by a subordinate judicial officer.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 2104 of the Family Code is amended to
read:

2104.  

(a) Except by court order for good cause, as provided
in Section 2107, in the time period set forth in subdivision (f), each
party shall serve on the other party a preliminary declaration of
disclosure, executed under penalty of perjury on a form prescribed
by the Judicial Council. The commission of perjury on the
preliminary declaration of disclosure may be grounds for setting
aside the judgment, or any part or parts thereof, pursuant to Chapter
10 (commencing with Section 2120), in addition to any and all
other remedies, civil or criminal, that otherwise are available under
law for the commission of perjury. The preliminary declaration of
disclosure shall include all tax returns filed by the declarant within
the two years prior to the date that the party served the declaration.

(b) The preliminary declaration of disclosure shall not be filed
with the court, except on court order. However, the parties shall
file proof of service of the preliminary declaration of disclosure
with the court.

(c) The preliminary declaration of disclosure shall set forth with
sufficient particularity, that a person of reasonable and ordinary
intelligence can ascertain, all of the following:

(1) The identity of all assets in which the declarant has or may
have an interest and all liabilities for which the declarant is or may
be liable, regardless of the characterization of the asset or liability
as community, quasi-community, or separate.

(2) The declarant’s percentage of ownership in each asset and
percentage of obligation for each liability where property is not
solely owned by one or both of the parties. The preliminary
declaration may also set forth the declarant’s characterization of
each asset or liability.

(d) A declarant may amend his or her preliminary declaration
of disclosure without leave of the court. Proof of service of any
amendment shall be filed with the court.

(e) Along with the preliminary declaration of disclosure, each
party shall provide the other party with a completed income and
expense declaration unless an income and expense declaration has
already been provided and is current and valid.

(f) The petitioner shall serve the other party with the preliminary
declaration of disclosure either concurrently with the petition for
dissolution or legal separation, or within 60 days of filing the
petition. The respondent shall serve the other party with the
preliminary declaration of disclosure either concurrently with the
response to the petition, or within 60 days of filing the response.
The time periods specified in this subdivision may be extended by
written agreement of the parties or by court order.

SEC. 2.  

Section 17325 of the Family Code is amended to read:

17325.  

(a) (1) Notwithstanding any other law, if child support
payments are directly deposited to an account of the recipient’s
choice, as authorized under the federal Electronic Fund Transfer
Act (EFTA) (15 U.S.C. Sec. 1693 et seq.), the payments may only
be deposited to an account that meets the requirements of a
qualifying account, as defined in paragraph (2), for deposit of child
support payments.

(2) For purposes of this section, a “qualifying account” is one
of the following:

(A) A demand deposit or savings account at an insured financial
institution in the name of the person entitled to the receipt of child
support payments.

(B) A prepaid card account that meets all of the following:

(i) The account is held at an insured financial institution.

(ii) The account is set up to meet the requirements for
passthrough deposit or share insurance so that the funds accessible
through the account are eligible for insurance for the benefit of
the person entitled to the receipt of child support payments by the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in accordance with Part
330 of Title 12 of the Code of Federal Regulations, or the National
Credit Union Share Insurance Fund in accordance with Part 745
of Title 12 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

(iii) The account is not attached to any credit or overdraft feature
that is automatically repaid from the account after delivery of the
payment.

(iv) The issuer of the card complies with all of the requirements,
and provides the holder of the card with all of the consumer
protections, that apply to a payroll card account under the rules
implementing the EFTA or other rules subsequently adopted under
the EFTA that apply to prepaid card accounts.

(3) A person or entity that issues a prepaid card or maintains or
manages a prepaid card account that does not comply with
paragraph (2) shall not accept or facilitate the direct deposit of
child support payments to the prepaid card account.

(b) For purposes of this section, the department shall not be held
liable for authorizing a direct deposit of child support payments
into a prepaid card account designated by the recipient that does
not comply with paragraph (2) of subdivision (a). The department
has no obligation to determine whether an account at the financial
institution of the recipient’s choice is a qualifying account as
described in subdivision (a).

(c) For the purposes of this section, the following definitions
shall apply:

(1) “Financial institution” means a state or national bank, a state
or federal savings and loan association, a mutual savings bank, or
a state or federal credit union.

(2) “Issuer” means a person or entity that issues a prepaid card.

(3) “Payroll card account” shall have the same meaning as that
term is defined in the regulations implementing the EFTA.

(4) “Prepaid card” or “prepaid card account” means either of
the following:

(A) A card, code, or other means of access to funds of a recipient
that is usable at multiple, unaffiliated merchants for goods or
services, or usable at automated teller machines.

(B) The same as those terms or related terms are defined in the
regulations adopted under the EFTA regarding general use
reloadable cards.

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 3. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 17400 of the end insert begin insert Family Code end insert begin insert is amended to read: end insert

17400.  

(a) Each county shall maintain a local child support
agency, as specified in Section 17304, that shall have the
responsibility for promptly and effectively establishing, modifying,
and enforcing child support obligations, including medical support,
enforcing spousal support orders established by a court of
competent jurisdiction, and determining paternity in the case of a
child born out of wedlock. The local child support agency shall
take appropriate action, including criminal action in cooperation
with the district attorneys, to establish, modify, and enforce child
support and, if appropriate, enforce spousal support orders if the
child is receiving public assistance, including Medi-Cal, and, if
requested, shall take the same actions on behalf of a child who is
not receiving public assistance, including Medi-Cal.

(b) (1) Notwithstanding Sections 25203 and 26529 of the
Government Code, attorneys employed within the local child
support agency may direct, control, and prosecute civil actions
and proceedings in the name of the county in support of child
support activities of the Department of Child Support Services and
the local child support agency.

(2) Notwithstanding any other law, and except for pleadings or
documents required to be signed under penalty of perjury, a local
child support agency may substitute original signatures with any
form of electronic signatures, including, but not limited to, typed,
digital, or facsimile images of signatures, digital signatures, or
other computer-generated signatures, on pleadings filed for the
purpose of establishing, modifying, or enforcing paternity, child
support, or medical support. Any substituted signature used by a
local child support agency shall have the same effect as an original
signature, including, but not limited to, the requirements of Section
128.7 of the Code of Civil Procedure.

begin insert

(3) Notwithstanding any other law, effective July 1, 2016, a
local child support agency may electronically file pleadings signed
by an agent of the local child support agency under penalty of
perjury. An original signed pleading shall be executed prior to,
or on the same day as, the day of electronic filing. Original signed
pleadings shall be maintained by the local child support agency
for the period of time proscribed by subdivision (a) of Section
68152 of the Government Code. A local child support agency may
maintain the original signed pleading by way of an electronic copy
in the Statewide Automated Child Support System. The Judicial
Council, by July 1, 2016, shall develop rules to implement this
subdivision.

end insert

(c) Actions brought by the local child support agency to establish
paternity or child support or to enforce child support obligations
shall be completed within the time limits set forth by federal law.
The local child support agency’s responsibility applies to spousal
support only if the spousal support obligation has been reduced to
an order of a court of competent jurisdiction. In any action brought
for modification or revocation of an order that is being enforced
under Title IV-D of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 651
et seq.), the effective date of the modification or revocation shall
be as prescribed by federal law (42 U.S.C. Sec. 666(a)(9)), or any
subsequent date.

(d) (1) The Judicial Council, in consultation with the department
and representatives of the California Family Support Council, the
Senate Committee on Judiciary, the Assembly Committee on
Judiciary, and a legal services organization providing representation
on child support matters, shall develop simplified summons,
complaint, and answer forms for any action for support brought
pursuant to this section or Section 17404. The Judicial Council
may combine the summons and complaint in a single form.

(2) The simplified complaint form shall provide notice of the
amount of child support that is sought pursuant to the guidelines
set forth in Article 2 (commencing with Section 4050) of Chapter
2 of Part 2 of Division 9 based upon the income or income history
of the support obligor as known to the local child support agency.
If the support obligor’s income or income history is unknown to
the local child support agency, the complaint shall inform the
support obligor that income shall be presumed to be the amount
of the minimum wage, at 40 hours per week, established by the
Industrial Welfare Commission pursuant to Section 1182.11 of
the Labor Code unless information concerning the support obligor’s
income is provided to the court. The complaint form shall be
accompanied by a proposed judgment. The complaint form shall
include a notice to the support obligor that the proposed judgment
will become effective if he or she fails to file an answer with the
court within 30 days of service. Except as provided in paragraph
(2) of subdivision (a) of Section 17402, if the proposed judgment
is entered by the court, the support order in the proposed judgment
shall be effective as of the first day of the month following the
filing of the complaint.

(3) (A) The simplified answer form shall be written in simple
English and shall permit a defendant to answer and raise defenses
by checking applicable boxes. The answer form shall include
instructions for completion of the form and instructions for proper
filing of the answer.

(B) The answer form shall be accompanied by a blank income
and expense declaration or simplified financial statement and
instructions on how to complete the financial forms. The answer
form shall direct the defendant to file the completed income and
expense declaration or simplified financial statement with the
answer, but shall state that the answer will be accepted by a court
without the income and expense declaration or simplified financial
statement.

(C) The clerk of the court shall accept and file answers, income
and expense declarations, and simplified financial statements that
are completed by hand provided they are legible.

(4) (A) The simplified complaint form prepared pursuant to
this subdivision shall be used by the local child support agency or
the Attorney General in all cases brought under this section or
Section 17404.

(B) The simplified answer form prepared pursuant to this
subdivision shall be served on all defendants with the simplified
complaint. Failure to serve the simplified answer form on all
defendants shall not invalidate any judgment obtained. However,
failure to serve the answer form may be used as evidence in any
proceeding under Section 17432 of this code or Section 473 of the
Code of Civil Procedure.

(C) The Judicial Council shall add language to the governmental
summons, for use by the local child support agency with the
governmental complaint to establish parental relationship and child
support, informing defendants that a blank answer form should
have been received with the summons and additional copies may
be obtained from either the local child support agency or the
superior court clerk.

(e) In any action brought or enforcement proceedings instituted
by the local child support agency pursuant to this section for
payment of child or spousal support, an action to recover an
arrearage in support payments may be maintained by the local
child support agency at any time within the period otherwise
specified for the enforcement of a support judgment,
notwithstanding the fact that the child has attained the age of
majority.

(f) The county shall undertake an outreach program to inform
the public that the services described in subdivisions (a) to (c),
inclusive, are available to persons not receiving public assistance.
There shall be prominently displayed in every public area of every
office of the agencies established by this section a notice, in clear
and simple language prescribed by the Director of Child Support
Services, that the services provided in subdivisions (a) to (c),
inclusive, are provided to all individuals, whether or not they are
recipients of public assistance.

(g) (1) In any action to establish a child support order brought
by the local child support agency in the performance of duties
under this section, the local child support agency may make a
motion for an order effective during the pendency of that action,
for the support, maintenance, and education of the child or children
that are the subject of the action. This order shall be referred to as
an order for temporary support. This order has the same force and
effect as a like or similar order under this code.

(2) The local child support agency shall file a motion for an
order for temporary support within the following time limits:

(A) If the defendant is the mother, a presumed father under
Section 7611, or any father if the child is at least six months old
when the defendant files his or her answer, the time limit is 90
days after the defendant files an answer.

(B) In any other case in which the defendant has filed an answer
prior to the birth of the child or not more than six months after the
birth of the child, then the time limit is nine months after the birth
of the child.

(3) If more than one child is the subject of the action, the
limitation on reimbursement shall apply only as to those children
whose parental relationship and age would bar recovery were a
separate action brought for support of that child or those children.

(4) If the local child support agency fails to file a motion for an
order for temporary support within the time limits specified in this
section, the local child support agency shall be barred from
obtaining a judgment of reimbursement for any support provided
for that child during the period between the date the time limit
expired and the date the motion was filed, or, if no motion is filed,
when a final judgment is entered.

(5) Except as provided in Section 17304, nothing in this section
prohibits the local child support agency from entering into
cooperative arrangements with other county departments as
necessary to carry out the responsibilities imposed by this section
pursuant to plans of cooperation with the departments approved
by the Department of Child Support Services.

(6) Nothing in this section otherwise limits the ability of the
local child support agency from securing and enforcing orders for
support of a spouse or former spouse as authorized under any other
law.

(h) As used in this article, “enforcing obligations” includes, but
is not limited to, all of the following:

(1) The use of all interception and notification systems operated
by the department for the purpose of aiding in the enforcement of
support obligations.

(2) The obtaining by the local child support agency of an initial
order for child support that may include medical support or that
is for medical support only, by civil or criminal process.

(3) The initiation of a motion or order to show cause to increase
an existing child support order, and the response to a motion or
order to show cause brought by an obligor parent to decrease an
existing child support order, or the initiation of a motion or order
to show cause to obtain an order for medical support, and the
response to a motion or order to show cause brought by an obligor
parent to decrease or terminate an existing medical support order,
without regard to whether the child is receiving public assistance.

(4) The response to a notice of motion or order to show cause
brought by an obligor parent to decrease an existing spousal support
order if the child or children are residing with the obligee parent
and the local child support agency is also enforcing a related child
support obligation owed to the obligee parent by the same obligor.

(5) The referral of child support delinquencies to the Franchise
Tax Board under subdivision (c) of Section 17500 in support of
the local child support agency.

(i) As used in this section, “out of wedlock” means that the
biological parents of the child were not married to each other at
the time of the child’s conception.

(j) (1) The local child support agency is the public agency
responsible for administering wage withholding for current support
for the purposes of Title IV-D of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
Sec. 651 et seq.).

(2) Nothing in this section limits the authority of the local child
support agency granted by other sections of this code or otherwise
granted by law.

(k) In the exercise of the authority granted under this article,
the local child support agency may intervene, pursuant to
subdivision (b) of Section 387 of the Code of Civil Procedure, by
ex parte application, in any action under this code, or other
proceeding in which child support is an issue or a reduction in
spousal support is sought. By notice of motion, order to show
cause, or responsive pleading served upon all parties to the action,
the local child support agency may request any relief that is
appropriate that the local child support agency is authorized to
seek.

(l) The local child support agency shall comply with all
regulations and directives established by the department that set
time standards for responding to requests for assistance in locating
noncustodial parents, establishing paternity, establishing child
support awards, and collecting child support payments.

(m) As used in this article, medical support activities that the
local child support agency is authorized to perform are limited to
the following:

(1) The obtaining and enforcing of court orders for health
insurance coverage.

(2) Any other medical support activity mandated by federal law
or regulation.

(n) (1) Notwithstanding any other law, venue for an action or
proceeding under this division shall be determined as follows:

(A) Venue shall be in the superior court in the county that is
currently expending public assistance.

(B) If public assistance is not currently being expended, venue
shall be in the superior court in the county where the child who is
entitled to current support resides or is domiciled.

(C) If current support is no longer payable through, or
enforceable by, the local child support agency, venue shall be in
the superior court in the county that last provided public assistance
for actions to enforce arrearages assigned pursuant to Section
11477 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

(D) If subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) do not apply, venue shall
be in the superior court in the county of residence of the support
obligee.

(E) If the support obligee does not reside in California, and
subparagraphs (A), (B), (C), and (D) do not apply, venue shall be
in the superior court of the county of residence of the obligor.

(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), if the child becomes a
resident of another county after an action under this part has been
filed, venue may remain in the county where the action was filed
until the action is completed.

(o) The local child support agency of one county may appear
on behalf of the local child support agency of any other county in
an action or proceeding under this part.

begin delete SEC. 3. end delete
begin insert SEC. 4. end insert   

Section 69619 is added to the Government Code, to
read:

69619.  

(a) The Legislature hereby ratifies the authority of the
Judicial Council to convert 10 subordinate judicial officer positions
to judgeships in the 2015-16 fiscal year when the conversion will
result in a judge being assigned to a family law or juvenile law
assignment previously presided over by a subordinate judicial
officer, pursuant to subparagraph (C) of paragraph (1) of
subdivision (c) of Section 69615.

(b) The action described in subdivision (a) shall be in addition
to any action that may be taken pursuant to the authority described
in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) of Section
69615 to convert up to 16 subordinate judicial officer positions to
judgeships.