Administrative Rule Review Report  #AR07-047

Legislative Service Office

24-Sep-07

 

AGENCY:                                         Department of Family Services.

 

DATE SUBMITTED:                         September 7, 2007.

 

SUBJECT:                                         Chapters 1 through 15, Child Support Enforcement.

 

NATURE OF RULES:                       Legislative and procedural.

 

STATUTORY AUTHORITY:             W.S. 20-6-106(n)

 

DETERMINATION OF PROCEDURAL COMPLIANCE BASED UPON INFORMATION

SUBMITTED BY THE AGENCY TO LSO:  Apparently complete to date.  Notice of the proposed adoption of new rules was provided by the LSO as required by W.S. 28-9-103(d).  No comments have been received to date.

 

SUMMARY OF RULES:          The Wyoming Child Support Enforcement Act requires the Department of Family Services to administer a program, consistent with federal law and regulations, to enforce orders for child support and the provision of health insurance for children.  2007 Wyoming Laws, Chapter 189 (HB01212/HEA128) amended the Act to authorize a federally mandated fee for child support collection services.

 

According to the Department's Child Support Enforcement Division, these rules are new rules because the last proposed revision to child support enforcement rules in 2002 were never finally adopted.  These rules provide:

·      Applicable definitions;

·      Eligibility guidelines, application procedures and cooperation requirements for persons not receiving public assistance;

·      Available services and procedures regarding location of noncustodial parents, establishment of paternity, establishment and enforcement of support orders;

·      Identification of data maintained by the Division for purposes of the federally-required computerized support enforcement system;

·      Procedures for issuance of income withholding orders;

·      Procedures for Division compliance with federal programs to collect delinquencies by  offsetting federal income tax refunds, denying or revoking passports and conducting multistate financial institution data matches for seizure of obligors' assets;

·      Division reports of obligors' data to credit reporting agencies;

·      Procedures for suspension or revocation of a delinquent obligor's drivers license;

·      Division maintenance of registries for child support cases, new hires, putative fathers and interstate exchange of information;

·      Authority and procedures for the Division to recover and distribute child support on behalf of recipients of public assistance.


 

 

 

TECHNICAL COMMENTS:

·     Chapter 4, Section 1(d):  Citation should be W.S. 20-6-106;

·     Chapter 4, Section 4(b):  Does not track with the introductory clause;

·     Pages 4-5, 6-1, 7-2, 7-3, 7-4:  Line justification errors.

 

FINDINGS:      The rules appear to be within the scope of statutory authority and legislative intent.  The rules do not exceed statutory authority but in several instances merely paraphrase statutory authority.

 

STAFF RECOMMENDATION: That the rules be placed on the Consent List and be approved by the Council as submitted by the Agency, with corrections noted above.

 

 

 

 

                                                                        _______________________

                                                                        Gerald W. Laska

                                                                        Staff Attorney

 

 

 

                                                                        _______________________

                                                                        David K. Gruver

                                                                        Assistant Director

GWL/