SF 2369

as introduced - 83rd Legislature (2003 - 2004) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to child support; authorizing certain 
  1.3             administrative procedures for redirecting child 
  1.4             support in limited cases; amending Minnesota Statutes 
  1.5             2002, section 518.5513, subdivision 5. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 518.5513, 
  1.8   subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
  1.9      Subd. 5.  [ADMINISTRATIVE AUTHORITY.] (a) The public 
  1.10  authority may take the following actions relating to 
  1.11  establishment of paternity or to establishment, modification, or 
  1.12  enforcement of support orders, without the necessity of 
  1.13  obtaining an order from any judicial or administrative tribunal: 
  1.14     (1) recognize and enforce orders of child support agencies 
  1.15  of other states; 
  1.16     (2) upon request for genetic testing by a child, parent, or 
  1.17  any alleged parent, and using the procedure in paragraph (b), 
  1.18  order the child, parent, or alleged parent to submit to blood or 
  1.19  genetic testing for the purpose of establishing paternity; 
  1.20     (3) subpoena financial or other information needed to 
  1.21  establish, modify, or enforce a child support order and sanction 
  1.22  a party for failure to respond to a subpoena; 
  1.23     (4) upon notice to the obligor, obligee, and the 
  1.24  appropriate court, direct the obligor or other payor to change 
  1.25  the payee to the central collections unit under sections 
  2.1   518.5851 to 518.5853; 
  2.2      (5) order income withholding of child support under section 
  2.3   518.6111 and sanction an employer or payor of funds pursuant to 
  2.4   section 393.07, subdivision 9a, for failing to comply with an 
  2.5   income withholding notice; 
  2.6      (6) secure assets to satisfy the debt or arrearage in cases 
  2.7   in which there is a support debt or arrearage by: 
  2.8      (i) intercepting or seizing periodic or lump sum payments 
  2.9   from state or local agencies, including unemployment benefits, 
  2.10  workers' compensation payments, judgments, settlements, 
  2.11  lotteries, and other lump sum payments; 
  2.12     (ii) attaching and seizing assets of the obligor held in 
  2.13  financial institutions or public or private retirement funds; 
  2.14  and 
  2.15     (iii) imposing liens in accordance with section 548.091 
  2.16  and, in appropriate cases, forcing the sale of property and the 
  2.17  distribution of proceeds; 
  2.18     (7) for the purpose of securing overdue support, increase 
  2.19  the amount of the monthly support payments by an additional 
  2.20  amount equal to 20 percent of the monthly support payment to 
  2.21  include amounts for debts or arrearages; and 
  2.22     (8) subpoena an employer or payor of funds to provide 
  2.23  promptly information on the employment, compensation, and 
  2.24  benefits of an individual employed by that employer as an 
  2.25  employee or contractor, and sanction an employer or payor of 
  2.26  funds pursuant to section 393.07, subdivision 9a, for failure to 
  2.27  respond to the subpoena; and 
  2.28     (9) change the payee to the appropriate person, 
  2.29  organization, or agency authorized to receive or collect child 
  2.30  support or any other person or agency designated as the 
  2.31  caretaker of the child by agreement of the legal custodian or by 
  2.32  court order. 
  2.33     (b) A request for genetic testing by a child, parent, or 
  2.34  alleged parent must be supported by a sworn statement by the 
  2.35  person requesting genetic testing alleging paternity, which sets 
  2.36  forth facts establishing a reasonable possibility of the 
  3.1   requisite sexual contact between the parties, or denying 
  3.2   paternity, and setting forth facts establishing a reasonable 
  3.3   possibility of the nonexistence of sexual contact between the 
  3.4   alleged parties.  The order for genetic tests may be served 
  3.5   anywhere within the state and served outside the state in the 
  3.6   same manner as prescribed by law for service of subpoenas issued 
  3.7   by the district court of this state.  If the child, parent, or 
  3.8   alleged parent fails to comply with the genetic testing order, 
  3.9   the public authority may seek to enforce that order in district 
  3.10  court through a motion to compel testing.  No results obtained 
  3.11  through genetic testing done in response to an order issued 
  3.12  under this section may be used in any criminal proceeding. 
  3.13     (c) Subpoenas may be served anywhere within the state and 
  3.14  served outside the state in the same manner as prescribed by law 
  3.15  for service of process of subpoenas issued by the district court 
  3.16  of this state.  When a subpoena under this subdivision is served 
  3.17  on a third-party recordkeeper, written notice of the subpoena 
  3.18  shall be mailed to the person who is the subject of the 
  3.19  subpoenaed material at the person's last known address within 
  3.20  three days of the day the subpoena is served.  This notice 
  3.21  provision does not apply if there is reasonable cause to believe 
  3.22  the giving of the notice may lead to interference with the 
  3.23  production of the subpoenaed documents. 
  3.24     (d) A person served with a subpoena may make a written 
  3.25  objection to the public authority or court before the time 
  3.26  specified in the subpoena for compliance.  The public authority 
  3.27  or the court shall cancel or modify the subpoena, if 
  3.28  appropriate.  The public authority shall pay the reasonable 
  3.29  costs of producing the documents, if requested. 
  3.30     (e) Subpoenas are enforceable in the same manner as 
  3.31  subpoenas of the district court.  Upon motion of the county 
  3.32  attorney, the court may issue an order directing the production 
  3.33  of the records.  Failure to comply with the court order may 
  3.34  subject the person who fails to comply to civil or criminal 
  3.35  contempt of court. 
  3.36     (f) The administrative actions under this subdivision are 
  4.1   subject to due process safeguards, including requirements for 
  4.2   notice, opportunity to contest the action, and opportunity to 
  4.3   appeal the order to the judge, judicial officer, or child 
  4.4   support magistrate.