Brief (1)
SB 329 requires the Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services (SRS), the state's Title IV-D agency, to establish a central unit for collection and disbursement of support payments, i.e., the Kansas Payment Center. SRS is required to collaborate with the Kansas Supreme Court in establishing the center.
The central unit shall commence operations with respect to support orders entered in each county as provided in a schedule adopted by the Kansas Supreme Court. Child support order includes any order for maintenance in conjunction with a child support order.
The bill provides that any provision in any child support order which requires remittance of support payments to the clerk of the district court or district court trustee shall be deemed to require remittance of support payments to the central unit regardless of the date the child support or income withholding order was entered.
Conforming amendments are made to the Income Withholding Act, the Kansas Parentage Act, the Kansas Divorce Code, and the Kansas Code of Civil Procedure.
The bill also amends the Divorce Code to permit for good cause shown orders of support to be paid other than to the central unit.
The bill also includes some technical amendments to the Kansas Income Withholding Act. One updates the definition of Title IV-D to include amendments enacted in recent years by the Congress. The other change clarifies that a copy of the income withholding order, rather than the original document, is served on the payor and triggers the payor's obligations under the withholding law.
The Senate Committee amended the bill by deleting the language about commencing operations; clarifies that maintenance payments will be handled in the same manner as support payments; and deletes the court's obligation to hold in trust undeliverable support payments as these payments are held by the central unit.
Background
The bill was supported by SRS and the Office of Judicial Administration. A spokesperson for SRS said this legislation codifies the authority of the Kansas Supreme Court to require that child support payments be sent to the Kansas Payment Center. In addition, the conferee pointed out the 2000 omnibus budget bill which authorized by proviso the Kansas Supreme Court to issue an administrative order directing child support payments to be made to the central unit instead of to the district courts.
The federal Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) required centralized processing of support payments as a key element for improving child support laws and procedures. PRWORA requires the state to establish a centralized unit for collection and disbursement of support payments in all IV-D cases and income withholding payments established after October 1997 in Non-IV-D (non-SRS) cases.
A spokesperson for the Office of Judicial Administration supported the bill but requested the three amendments authorized by the Senate Committee on Ways and Means to clarify intent and to remove unnecessary language as the payment center is in operation.
The fiscal note states that funding for operation of the Kansas Payment Center is included in the Governor's FY 2002 budget.
1. *Supplemental notes are prepared by the Legislative Research Department and do not express legislative intent. The supplemental note and fiscal note for this bill may be accessed on the Internet at http://www.ink.org/public/legislative/fulltext.cgi