HOUSE BILL REPORT

                  HB 1035

                       As Passed House

                      February 22, 1993

Title:  An act relating to correcting of double amendments relating to support obligations.

Brief Description:  Correcting double amendments relating to support obligations.

Sponsors:  Representatives Appelwick, Padden and Ludwig; by request of Law Revision Commission.

Brief History:

  Reported by House Committee on:

Judiciary, January 29, 1993, DP;

  Passed House, February 22, 1993, 96-0.

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY

Majority Report:  Do pass.  Signed by 15 members:  Representatives Appelwick, Chair; Ludwig, Vice Chair; Padden, Ranking Minority Member; Ballasiotes, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Campbell; Chappell; Forner; Johanson; Long; Mastin; H. Myers; Riley; Scott; Tate; and Wineberry.

Staff:  Patricia Shelledy (786-7149).

Background:  RCW 26.23.100 was amended twice during the 1989 legislative session, each without reference to the other.  The Law Revision Commission reviewed the bill to correct the double amendments and to clarify the statute as combined.  The statute concerns the collection procedure the Department of Social and Health Services must use when the child support order does not state the current or future support obligation as a fixed dollar amount.

One of the bills was a major rewrite of provisions that involved administrative procedure.  That bill updated references to the Administrative Procedures Act, Chapter 34.05 RCW, and corrected terminology to refer to "adjudicative proceedings" rather than "administrative hearings."

The other bill involved substantive changes to provisions governing child support enforcement and established rights and obligations of the department, the payee, and the responsible parent, when the department determines the amount of support owed when the support order does not state the current and future support obligation in a fixed dollar sum and the responsible parent contests the amount established by the department.

Summary of Bill:  The double amendments adopted to RCW 26.23.110 are corrected, and the two amendments are merged into one statute.  In addition, amendments are made to the merged statute to identify terms used in the statute more precisely and to improve the grammar in the statute.  No substantive changes are made.

Fiscal Note:  Not requested.

Effective Date:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For:  The bill corrects a double amendment and cleans up the Revised Code of Washington.

Testimony Against: None.

Witnesses:  Marjorie Rombauer, Washington Law Revision Commission (pro).