Session of 1998
HOUSE BILL No. 2652
By Representative O'Neal
1-20
9
AN ACT concerning children; relating to
paternity and visitation rights;
10 amending K.S.A. 1997
Supp. 38-1121 and repealing the existing
11 section.
12
13 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the
State of Kansas:
14 New Section 1. (a) If the
secretary of social and rehabilitation serv-
15 ices provides title IV-D child support
enforcement services to assist in
16 the establishment of paternity pursuant to
K.S.A. 39-753, and amend-
17 ments thereto, and the Kansas parentage
act, and paternity is established,
18 the father may request visitation rights be
issued by the court pursuant
19 to K.S.A. 38-1121, and amendments
thereto.
20 (b) Except as provided is
subsection (b) of K.S.A. 39-759, and amend-
21 ments thereto, nothing in this section
shall prohibit the secretary of social
22 and rehabilitation services from releasing
or disclosing information to fa-
23 cilitate such visitation rights.
24 Sec. 2. K.S.A. 1997 Supp.
38-1121 is hereby amended to read as
25 follows: 38-1121. (a) The judgment or order
of the court determining the
26 existence or nonexistence of the parent and
child relationship is deter-
27 minative for all purposes, but if any
person necessary to determine the
28 existence of a father and child
relationship for all purposes has not been
29 joined as a party, a determination of the
paternity of the child shall have
30 only the force and effect of a finding of
fact necessary to determine a
31 duty of support.
32 (b) If the judgment or order
of the court is at variance with the child's
33 birth certificate, the court shall order
that a new birth certificate be is-
34 sued, but only if any man named as the
father on the birth certificate is
35 a party to the action.
36 (c) Upon adjudging that a
party is the parent of a minor child, the
37 court shall make provision for support and
education of the child includ-
38 ing the necessary medical expenses incident
to the birth of the child. The
39 court may order the support and education
expenses to be paid by either
40 or both parents for the minor child. When
the child reaches 18 years of
41 age, the support shall terminate unless:
(1) The parent or parents agree,
42 by written agreement approved by the court,
to pay support beyond that
43 time; (2) the child reaches 18 years of age
before completing the child's
HB 2652
2
1 high school education in which case
the support shall not automatically
2 terminate, unless otherwise ordered
by the court, until June 30 of the
3 school year during which the child
became 18 years of age if the child is
4 still attending high school; or (3)
the child is still a bona fide high school
5 student after June 30 of the school
year during which the child became
6 18 years of age, in which case the
court, on motion, may order support
7 to continue through the school year
during which the child becomes 19
8 years of age so long as the child is
a bona fide high school student and
9 the parents jointly participated or
knowingly acquiesced in the decision
10 which delayed the child's completion of
high school. The court, in ex-
11 tending support pursuant to subsection
(c)(3), may impose such condi-
12 tions as are appropriate and shall set the
child support utilizing the guide-
13 line table category for 16-year through
18-year old children. Provision for
14 payment of support and educational expenses
of a child after reaching 18
15 years of age if still attending high school
shall apply to any child subject
16 to the jurisdiction of the court, including
those whose support was or-
17 dered prior to July 1, 1992. If an
agreement approved by the court prior
18 to July 1, 1988, provides for termination
of support before the date pro-
19 vided by subsection (c)(2), the court may
review and modify such agree-
20 ment, and any order based on such
agreement, to extend the date for
21 termination of support to the date provided
by subsection (c)(2). If an
22 agreement approved by the court prior to
July 1, 1992, provides for ter-
23 mination of support before the date
provided by subsection (c)(3), the
24 court may review and modify such agreement,
and any order based on
25 such agreement, to extend the date for
termination of support to the date
26 provided by subsection (c)(3). For purposes
of this section, ``bona fide
27 high school student'' means a student who
is enrolled in full accordance
28 with the policy of the accredited high
school in which the student is
29 pursuing a high school diploma or a
graduate equivalency diploma
30 (GED). The judgment shall specify the terms
of payment and shall re-
31 quire payment to be made through the clerk
of the district court or the
32 court trustee except for good cause shown.
The judgment may require
33 the party to provide a bond with sureties
to secure payment. The court
34 may at any time during the minority of the
child modify or change the
35 order of support, including any order
issued in a title IV-D case, within
36 three years of the date of the original
order or a modification order, as
37 required by the best interest of the child.
If more than three years has
38 passed since the date of the original order
or modification order, a re-
39 quirement that such order is in the best
interest of the child need not be
40 shown. The court may make a modification of
support retroactive to a
41 date at least one month after the date that
the motion to modify was filed
42 with the court. Any increase in support
ordered effective prior to the date
43 the court's judgment is filed shall not
become a lien on real property
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3
1 pursuant to K.S.A. 60-2202, and
amendments thereto.
2 (d) If both parents are
parties to the action, the court shall enter such
3 orders regarding custody and
visitation as the court considers to be in the
4 best interest of the child.
5 (e) In entering an
original order for support of a child under this
6 section, the court may award an
additional judgment to reimburse the
7 expenses of support and education of
the child from the date of birth to
8 the date the order is entered. If the
determination of paternity is based
9 upon a presumption arising under
K.S.A. 38-1114 and amendments
10 thereto, the court shall award an
additional judgment to reimburse all or
11 part of the expenses of support and
education of the child from at least
12 the date the presumption first arose to the
date the order is entered,
13 except that no additional judgment need be
awarded for amounts accrued
14 under a previous order for the child's
support.
15 (f) In determining the amount
to be paid by a parent for support of
16 the child and the period during which the
duty of support is owed, a court
17 enforcing the obligation of support shall
consider all relevant facts in-
18 cluding, but not limited to, the
following:
19 (1) The needs of the
child.
20 (2) The standards of living
and circumstances of the parents.
21 (3) The relative financial
means of the parents.
22 (4) The earning ability of
the parents.
23 (5) The need and capacity of
the child for education.
24 (6) The age of the child.
25 (7) The financial resources
and the earning ability of the child.
26 (8) The responsibility of the
parents for the support of others.
27 (9) The value of services
contributed by the custodial parent.
28 (g) The provisions of K.S.A.
23-4,107, and amendments thereto, shall
29 apply to all orders of support issued under
this section.
30 (h) An order granting
visitation rights pursuant to this section may
31 be enforced in accordance with K.S.A.
23-701, and amendments thereto.
32 (i) The court may issue an
order granting visitation rights to a man
33 who has been established as the father
of a child pursuant to a title IV-D
34 child support enforcement case.
35 Sec. 3. K.S.A. 1997 Supp.
38-1121 is hereby repealed.
36 Sec. 4. This act shall take
effect and be in force from and after its
37 publication in the statute book.
38