HOUSE BILL REPORT

SHB 420

BYHouse Committee on Judiciary (originally sponsored by Representatives Appelwick, Armstrong, Valle, Brekke, Holm, Sutherland, Locke and Winsley; by request of Department of Social and Health Services)

Creating the Washington state support registry.

House Committe on Judiciary

Majority Report:     The substitute bill be substituted therefor and the substitute bill do pass.  (11)

     Signed by Representatives Armstrong, Chair; Crane, Vice Chair; Appelwick, Brough, Hargrove, Locke, Moyer, Niemi, Scott, Wang and Wineberry.

Minority Report:     Do not pass.  (4)

     Signed by Representatives Heavey, Padden, Patrick and Schmidt.

House Staff:Harry Reinert (786-7110)

AS PASSED HOUSE MARCH 19, 1987

BACKGROUND:

A parent who is entitled to receive payments for child support may seek the assistance of independent counsel or the office of support enforcement to collect the support obligation.  At the time of dissolution of marriage proceedings, the court may order support payments to be made directly to the other party, to the department of social and health services, or to the clerk of the court.  The court may also order an assignment of earnings.  Any court order establishing a duty of support must include notice to the obligated parent that a mandatory wage assignment may be ordered if the support obligation becomes past due by more than one full payment.

The Governor's Executive Task Force on Support Enforcement has recommended that a centralized registry be established to collect and disburse all support payments and centralize records relating to support obligations in the state.

SUMMARY:

The Washington State Support Registry is established within the Office of Support Enforcement.  The registry is responsible for collecting support payments and paying received funds to the parent entitled to them and maintaining records relating to support orders and debts.

An employer must notify the registry within five days of employment of a new employee's name, address, and social security number. The employer is required to notify the department of employees who are hired for more than twelve hours per week and forty-eight hours per month.  The notification may be made by sending a copy of the W-4 form, calling on a toll-free telephone line to be maintained by the registry, or by any other means approved by the department.  If the employee does not owe a support debt, the information will be destroyed.

Any superior court order and any administrative determination which establishes or modifies support obligations must include a notice that if one month's support payment is more than 15 days past due, payroll deduction may be initiated without further notice to the person obligated to pay support.  The court may order child support payments to be made to the registry or, if the court approves, in the manner the parties agree.  The court or administrative agency must send to the registry a copy of the order establishing or modifying the support obligation.  The clerk of court will be reimbursed for the costs of making the copies sent to the registry.

The department of social and health services may initiate payroll deduction of a parent obligated to pay child support if the support obligation is more than 15 days past due in one month's support amount.  The employer is liable to the registry for one hundred percent of the amount of support which could collected if the employer fails to make required payroll deductions or fails to respond to the notice of payroll deduction.  The employer may deduct ten dollars from the employee's pay to cover the cost of the first payroll deduction and then one dollar for each payroll deduction after the first.

A person obligated to pay support who is subject to a payroll deduction may petition the court to have the payroll deduction terminated if the person was not past due in support payments or if the payroll deduction causes extreme hardship or substantial injustice.  A person who has been subject to payroll deduction for one year may also petition to have the deduction stopped if there is no past due support.

The department must establish a procedure for establishing support obligations as a fixed dollar amount if the order establishing the support obligation does not do so.  The procedure must provide for notification to the party owing support.  The notice must contain an initial finding of a support amount and direct the responsible parent to appear at an administrative hearing on whether this amount should be set at the support obligation.

Records maintained by the support registry are confidential and may be released only when authorized by statute or when necessary for child support enforcement purposes.  The address of a party to a custody action may be released to the other party after the notice of the request for the information has been given.  If the party whose address has been requested shows that a court has limited the right of a party to contact the other party or has prohibited the disclosure, the department shall not release the information.  Disclosure of information in violation of the act is a gross misdemeanor.

If a party to a custody proceeding initiates a mandatory wage assignment, the employer shall pay the funds withheld to the support registry.

The act takes effect January 1, 1988.

EFFECT OF SENATE AMENDMENT(S):  The Senate amendment changes the definitions of employer and employee to make the act apply only to employees who are covered by workers' compensation.  The amendment deletes the employer reporting requirement and instead directs the departments of Social and Health Services and Employment Security to report to the legislature by November 1, 1987.  The report, to be developed in consultation with business and employer groups, should recommend a single reporting system that meets the needs of both departments.  The amendment also deletes a prohibition against an employer asking a prospective employee about any outstanding support obligation.

Fiscal Note:    Requested March 3, 1987.

Effective Date:The bill takes effect January 1, 1988.

House Committee ‑ Testified For:     Lucille Christenson, DSHS.

House Committee - Testified Against: Gary Smith, Independent Business Association.

House Committee - Testimony For:     There are substantial amounts of child support payments which are not collected.  Although the department currently receives information from the department of labor and industries on employees, this information is usually nine months out of date and not very helpful.  The support registry will enable the department to assist in the efficient collection of child support and will help to reduce public assistance payments for children who are not receiving support from an obligated parent.

House Committee - Testimony Against: Requiring employers to report anticipated salary, termination dates, and other information will be a severe hardship on small businesses, particularly since there is a substantial penalty for failure to report a new employee.

VOTE ON FINAL PASSAGE:

     Yeas 50; Nays 46; Excused 2

Voting Nay:     Representatives Amondson, Ballard, Barnes, Baugher, Beck, Betrozoff, Bristow, Brooks, Bumgarner, Chandler, Cooper, Crane, Day, Dellwo, Doty, Fuhrman, Grant, Hankins, Haugen, Heavey, Holland, Jesernig, P. King, Kremen, Lewis, May, McLean, Meyers, Nealey, Padden, Patrick, Prince, Rayburn, Sanders, Schmidt, Schoon, Silver, C. Smith, L. Smith, D. Sommers, Taylor, Walker, J. Williams, K. Wilson, S. Wilson and Zellinsky

Excused:   Representatives Moyer and Pruitt