BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 646
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SENATE THIRD READING
SB
646 (Jackson)
As Amended August 31, 2015
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE: 40-0
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|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 | |
| | | | |
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| | | | |
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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;
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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.
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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
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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
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