BILL ANALYSIS Ó SB 646 Page 1 SENATE THIRD READING SB 646 (Jackson) As Amended August 31, 2015 Majority vote SENATE VOTE: 40-0 ------------------------------------------------------------------ |Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------| |Judiciary |10-0 |Mark Stone, Wagner, | | | | |Alejo, Chau, Chiu, | | | | |Gallagher, Cristina | | | | |Garcia, Holden, | | | | |Maienschein, | | | | |O'Donnell | | | | | | | |----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------| |Appropriations |17-0 |Gomez, Bigelow, | | | | |Bloom, Bonta, | | | | |Calderon, Chang, | | | | |Nazarian, Eggman, | | | | |Gallagher, Eduardo | | | | |Garcia, Holden, | | | | |Jones, Quirk, Rendon, | | | | |Wagner, Weber, Wood | | | | | | | SB 646 Page 2 | | | | | ------------------------------------------------------------------ SUMMARY: Updates the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA). Specifically, this bill, among other things: 1)Clarifies that a state loses continuing, exclusive jurisdiction if the parties agree, in writing, for another state to assume jurisdiction. 2)Requires tribunals to permit a party or a witness residing in another state to participate in a proceeding telephonically, by audiovisual means, or any other electronic means designated by the tribunal. 3)Requires, upon the request of the appropriate agency, the issuing state agency to redirect payments to the agency in the obligee's state and issue an administrative notice of change to the obligor's employer that reflects the redirected payments. 4)Provides the framework for the exchange of cases between parties to the 2007 Hague Convention on the International Recovery of Child Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance. Specifically, this bill: a) Prescribes the role and responsibilities of central authorities in Hague Convention countries, which in the United States is the Secretary of the United States Department of Health & Human Services; and recognizes the Department of Child Support Services (DCSS) as the agency in California designated to perform specified child support functions under the Hague Convention; SB 646 Page 3 b) Expands the ability to challenge a Hague Convention support order upon registration in California; and c) Provides that a California court shall not recognize and enforce a registered Hague Convention order if, among other things, recognition and enforcement is manifestly incompatible with public policy, including failure by an issuing court to observe minimum due process standards, which include notice and an opportunity to be heard. Requires California to establish a new support order if the registration of a Hague Convention support order is denied, without further request from the other country. d) Clarifies effect of declarations of state reciprocity, as well as the roles of DCSS and the Attorney General with respect to those declarations. EXISTING LAW: 1)Mandates, under the federal Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act, that each state adopt UIFSA 2008, verbatim, by the end of the state's 2015 legislative session as a condition of continued federal child support program funding. 2)Establishes, through UIFSA, rules regarding the establishment and enforcement of child support orders across state lines, and provides that the issuing state shall exercise continuing, exclusive jurisdiction over the order as long as the obligor, obligee, or child remains a resident of the state. SB 646 Page 4 FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, requiring the state to enforce child support orders across state and national borders could result in increased workload for DCSS and local child support agencies. It is anticipated that the overall number of cases will increase should the bill be signed, but the extent of the increase is unknown. Likely fiscal impacts include: 1)Unknown, potentially significant increase in DCSS administrative costs (General Fund (GF)/Federal Fund) associated with payment redirect requests from interstate cases. 2)Unknown, potentially significant one-time automation costs (GF/Federal Fund) for necessary automation changes to the Child Support Enforcement (CSE) system to process international child support orders. 3)Unknown, likely minor state-reimbursable costs (GF) to local child support agencies for increased administrative workload. 4)Unknown, potentially significant increase in annual child support collections to the extent adoption of UIFSA 2008 results in a greater number of child support orders and/or increases in child support collection amounts. 5)Adoption of UIFSA 2008 would enable the State to retain continued receipt of approximately $680 million (Federal Fund) annually in federal child support payments. COMMENTS: UIFSA is a comprehensive model act focused on SB 646 Page 5 intergovernmental establishment, modification, and enforcement of child support obligations. It was first developed by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws in 1992, amended in 1996, 2001 and again in 2008. All states were required to enact the 1996 version of UIFSA in 1998 as a condition of receiving federal funds for child support enforcement. As a result, UIFSA, at least as amended in 1996, is currently state law in all 50 states and jurisdictions. California operates under the 1996 UIFSA, which is set out in Family Code Sections 4900-5005. However, as states have operated under the 1996 version of UIFSA, it became apparent that some sections needed clarification. UIFSA 2001 and 2008 addressed these issues by making a number of technical and clarifying changes. In addition, UIFSA 2008 allows states to redirect support payments to a new state when all parties have left the state that originally issued a support order; requires courts to permit out-of-state parties to appear telephonically in proceedings to establish, modify, or enforce a support order; allows states to provide child support services to residents of other countries pursuant to the Hague Convention. In September of 2014, Congress passed, and the President signed into law, the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act. That Act requires that all states adopt the 2008 updated version of UIFSA, verbatim, by the end of their 2015 legislative session as a condition of continued child support program funding. Accordingly, this bill would repeal California's existing version of UIFSA, and replace it verbatim with the 2008 version as required by federal law. Analysis Prepared by: Leora Gershenzon / JUD. / (916) 319-2334 FN: 0001624 SB 646 Page 6