BILL ANALYSIS
SB 1355
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 1355 (Wright)
As Amended August 12, 2010
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE :35-0
JUDICIARY 9-1 APPROPRIATIONS 13-1
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|Ayes:|Feuer, Tran, Brownley, |Ayes:|Fuentes, Bradford, |
| |Evans, Hagman, Jones, | |Charles Calderon, Coto, |
| |Monning, Nava, Huffman | |Davis, De Leon, Gatto, |
| | | |Hall, Miller, Skinner, |
| | | |Solorio, Torlakson, |
| | | |Torrico |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Knight |Nays:|Harkey |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Suspends, until July 1, 2015, the obligation to pay
child support under an order enforced by the state child support
program while the obligor is incarcerated or involuntarily
institutionalized, except as specified. Specifically, this bill :
1)Provides, effective July 1, 2011, that the obligation to pay
child support pursuant to an order that is being enforced under
Title IV-D of the Social Security Act is suspended for the
period of time in which the obligor is incarcerated or
involuntarily institutionalized for any period exceeding 90
consecutive days, unless the obligor has the means to pay
support while incarcerated or institutionalized.
2)Provides that the suspension only applies during the period of
incarceration or institutionalization and automatically resumes
to the original amount in the order upon release.
3)Allows the obligor, upon release from incarceration or
institutionalization, to petition the court to adjust arrears
pursuant to the suspension in 1) above. Requires the obligor to
show proof of dates of incarceration or involuntary
institutionalization, as well as proof that the obligor did not
have the means to pay support. Requires the obligor to serve
copies of the petition on the support obligee and the local
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child support agency, who may file objections to the petition.
Provides that arrears may not be adjusted until the court has
approved the petition.
4)Provides that, notwithstanding 1) above, the court may continue
the support obligation if the obligor is incarcerated or
involuntarily institutionalized for any domestic violence
offense against the custodial parent or the supported child, any
offense that could be enjoined by a domestic violence protective
order, or for failure to pay child support.
5)Defines "incarcerated or involuntarily institutionalized" as
including, but not limited to, involuntary confinement to a
state prison, county jail, or juvenile facility operated by the
Division of Juvenile Facilities in the Department of Corrections
and Rehabilitation, or a mental health facility.
6)Defines "suspend" as modifying the child support order to zero
for the period in which the obligor is incarcerated or
involuntarily institutionalized.
7)Applies to all child support orders issued or modified after
July 1, 2011.
8)Requires the Judicial Council, on or before July 1, 2011, to
develop the forms necessary to implement these provisions,
including a form to petition to adjust arrears.
9)Sunsets these provisions effective July 1, 2015.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Provides that a support order may be modified or terminated at
any time as the court determines necessary. Provides that such
support modification or termination may only be made pursuant to
the filing of a motion or an order to show cause.
2)Prohibits states from enacting laws providing for the
retroactive modification or termination of a support order,
except that an order modifying or terminating a support order
may be made retroactive to the date of the filing of a notice of
motion or order to show cause to modify or terminate the order.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations analysis:
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1)To the extent that suspending child support orders encourages
incarcerated noncustodial parents to resume paying child support
upon their release, it could result in an increase in the amount
of child support that is successfully collected.
2)The accumulation of past due child support, along with the
reduction in current support payments reduces the state's
performance on federal child support measures. This, in turn,
reduces the incentive funding California receives from the
federal government for its child support program. Therefore,
suspending child support orders and reducing the amount of past
due child support could increase the amount of federal funding
for the Department of Child Support Services (DCSS).
COMMENTS : There are approximately 2.3 million prisoners in the
United States. A majority of these inmates have children under 18
years of age. Between 1991 and 1997, the number of incarcerated
parent in state and federal prisons increased by 79%. For
incarcerated parents who are subject to child support orders,
arrears and interest will accrue during their period of
incarceration unless the parent petitions the court for a
modification of the support order. However, this is often not a
realistic alternative for incarcerated parents who are unlikely to
know about the modification process. Currently, there is no
uniform statewide approach being utilized to assist this
population of obligors, although DCSS has recently established a
workgroup to work towards this end. Lack of resources at the
local level has compounded this problem, as local child support
agencies do not have the means to implement outreach programs to
parents incarcerated within their jurisdiction.
In the meantime, the arrears balances for the state's incarcerated
parents continue to grow, but will remain largely uncollectible.
According to research, discussed below, this uncollectible support
negatively impacts not only the obligor, but also federal funding
of the child support program, future child support payments, as
well as the obligor's contact with the child, and even rates of
recidivism for the obligor. In order to address these issues,
this bill seeks to automatically suspend child support obligations
when a child support obligor is incarcerated or involuntarily
institutionalized for more than 90 days, unless the obligor
otherwise has the means to pay the support.
In 1999, as part of legislation creating DCSS, DCSS was mandated
to analyze the current amount of child support arrears statewide
and determine the amount that is realistically collectible. The
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study found that, although very few obligors were in state prison
at any point in time, their child support situations were, on
average, dismal. The median amount of child support orders for
incarcerated obligors was $291 per month, which was only slightly
lower than the median amount among all obligors. Their median
arrears were $14,564. As a result, the study recommended
suspending child support orders by operation of law while
noncustodial parents are incarcerated if they have no income or
assets.
Research strongly suggests that the build-up of uncollectible debt
has implications not just for the obligor, but also for the
family:
Most people agree that parents should support their
children to the best of their ability. However,
children receive the most benefit from reliable long-
term support from their parents, even if those
payments are modest. The key to regular child support
payments is steady employment. The reality is that
most parents coming home from prison have trouble
supporting themselves, let alone their children.
Those who cannot maintain steady employment and keep
up with their child support obligations fall deeply
into debt, and their children lose out. . . .
When researchers from the Urban Institute asked
recently released men what kept them from returning to
prison, the largest percentage singled out support
from their families and seeing their children as the
most important factors: ties with family and children
mattered even more than housing or employment. Strong
family relationships are positively correlated with
maintaining employment, staying away from drugs, and
rebuilding a social network after
incarceration-practices that also make society safer
and save taxpayers money. Yet, when parents walk away
from jobs, they often pull away from their children.
Parents who see no end in sight to their child support
debts are less likely to remain in low-wage jobs, to
comply with child support obligations in the future,
or to reunite with their children and reintegrate into
society.
(Kristen D. Levingston and Vicki Turetsky, Debtor's Prison -
Prisoners' Accumulation of Debt as a Barrier to Reentry (41
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Clearinghouse Review (July-August 2007) (footnotes omitted).)
Moreover, the accumulation of uncollectible debt, along with the
reduction in current support payments will reduce the state's
performance on federal child support measures. This, in turn,
will directly reduce the incentive funding California receives
from the federal government for its child support program.
Analysis Prepared by : Leora Gershenzon / JUD. / (916) 319-2334
FN: 0005878