BILL NUMBER: SB 501	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  APRIL 28, 2015
	AMENDED IN SENATE  APRIL 6, 2015

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Wieckowski

                        FEBRUARY 26, 2015

   An act to amend  Sections   Section 
706.050  and 706.121 of, and to add Sections 706.053 and
706.130 to,   of  the Code of Civil Procedure,
relating to wage garnishment.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 501, as amended, Wieckowski. Wage garnishment 
restrictions: student loans.   restrictions. 
   The Wage Garnishment Law prescribes the procedure for withholding
an employee's earnings for purposes of paying a debt. The law
requires that a levy of execution upon the earnings of an employee be
made by service of an earnings withholding order upon the employer.
An earnings withholding order is issued by a levying officer upon
receiving an application submitted by a judgment creditor, as
specified. Existing law prohibits the amount of an individual
judgment debtor's weekly disposable earnings subject to levy under an
earnings withholding order from exceeding the lesser of 25% of the
individual's weekly disposable earnings or the amount by which the
individual's disposable earnings for the week exceed 40 times the
state minimum hourly  wage, or applicable local minimum
hourly rate, if higher,   wage  in effect at the
time the earnings are payable, as specified, unless an exception
applies. An employer is required, except as otherwise provided by
statute, to withhold the amounts required by an earnings withholding
order from all earnings of the employee payable for any pay period of
the employee which ends during the withholding period.
   This bill would  provide that an earnings withholding
order shall not be used for purposes of enforcing a judgment for the
collection of debt that is from a student loan that is not made,
insured, or guaranteed by the United States government pursuant to
the Federal Family Education Loan Program or the William D. Ford
Federal Direct Loan Program. The bill would also  reduce the
prohibited amount of an individual judgment debtor's weekly
disposable earnings subject to levy under an earnings withholding
order from exceeding the lesser of 10% of the individual's weekly
disposable earnings or 1/3 of the amount by which the individual's
disposable earnings for the week exceed 40 times the state minimum
hourly wage  , or applicable local minimum hourly wage, if
higher,  in effect at the time the earnings are payable.
 The bill would further require a court to terminate or
modify an earnings withholding order issued on or after July 1, 2016,
if the court determines, upon a request by the judgment debtor
pursuant to specified requirements and procedures, that the
withholding order enforces a judgment in violation of these
provisions. The bill would provide that a judgment creditor is liable
to the judgment debtor for all amounts collected by the judgment
creditor in violation of these provisions. The bill also would make
conforming changes. 
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 706.050 of the Code of Civil Procedure is
amended to read:
   706.050.  (a) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, the
maximum amount of disposable earnings of an individual judgment
debtor for any workweek that is subject to levy under an earnings
withholding order shall not exceed the lesser of the following:
   (1) Ten percent of the individual's disposable earnings for that
week.
   (2) One-third of the amount by which the individual's disposable
earnings for that week exceed 40 times the state minimum hourly wage
in effect at the time the earnings are payable. If a judgment debtor
works in a location where the local minimum hourly wage is greater
than the state minimum hourly wage, the local minimum hourly wage in
effect at the time the earnings are payable shall be used for the
calculation made pursuant to this paragraph.
   (b) For any pay period other than weekly, the following
multipliers shall be used to determine the maximum amount of
disposable earnings subject to levy under an earnings withholding
order that is proportional in effect to the calculation described in
paragraph (2) of subdivision (a), except as specified in paragraph
(1):
   (1) For a daily pay period, the amounts shall be identical to the
amounts described in subdivision (a).
   (2) For a biweekly pay period, multiply the applicable hourly
minimum wage by 80 work hours.
   (3) For a semimonthly pay period, multiply the applicable hourly
minimum wage by 862/3 work hours.
   (4) For a monthly pay period, multiply the applicable hourly
minimum wage by 1731/3 work hours. All matter omitted in this version
of the bill appears in the bill as amended in the Senate, April 6,
2015. (JR11)