SENATE BILL REPORT

SB 6380

As Reported By Senate Committee On:

Children & Family Services & Corrections, February 6, 2004

Title: An act relating to the distribution of child support amongst multiple cases.

Brief Description: Revising the distribution of child support amongst multiple cases.

Sponsors: Senators McCaslin, Kline, Thibaudeau and Prentice; by request of Department of Social and Health Services.

Brief History:

Committee Activity: Children & Family Services & Corrections: 1/27/04, 2/6/04 [DPS-WM].

SENATE COMMITTEE ON CHILDREN & FAMILY SERVICES & CORRECTIONS

Majority Report: That Substitute Senate Bill No. 6380 be substituted therefor, and the substitute bill do pass and be referred to Committee on Ways & Means.

      Signed by Senators Stevens, Chair; Carlson, Hargrove, McAuliffe and Regala.

Staff: Lilah Amos (786-7429)

Background: The Department of Social and Health Services' (DSHS) Division of Child Support currently distributes any child support collected, in excess of current support obligations, to accrued support debt based upon the proportionate amount owed, regardless of the state in which the custodial parent lives.

Summary of Substitute Bill: The DSHS Division of Child Support is authorized to first distribute past-due child support payments which it collects to all child support arrears owned on Washington cases before transferring arrears payments to other states or jurisdictions. This procedure is currently followed in some other states.

Substitute Bill Compared to Original Bill: Child support arrears due to a custodial parent in another state will be paid before TANF arrears are paid to the state of Washington, so long as the other state's policy is to transmit that payment to the custodial parent before paying the other state's TANF arrears.

Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Available.

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

Testimony For: When a non-custodial parent owes past-due support payments for a child in Washington and for a child in another state, Washington would like to be able to satisfy any debt owed on the Washington case before distributing payments to debts owed in other states. This bill would allow Washington to keep more of the payments collected for arrears, which is the practice followed by several other states.

Testimony Against: None.

Testified: PRO: David Stillman, DSHS Division of Child Support.