Minnesota Legislature
Office of the Revisor of Statutes
Minnesota Session Laws - 1994, Regular Session
Key: (1) language to be deleted (2) new language
CHAPTER 630-S.F.No. 1662
An act relating to family; adopting the uniform
interstate family support act; repealing the revised
uniform reciprocal enforcement of support act;
establishing certain administrative procedures;
authorizing a public education campaign; changing
enforcement procedures; changing certain calculations;
establishing a child support assurance program;
requiring reports; prohibiting certain discriminatory
practices; authorizing temporary custody orders;
clarifying certain terms; imposing penalties;
appropriating money; amending Minnesota Statutes 1992,
sections 214.101, as amended; 518.11; 518.17,
subdivision 1; 518.18; 518B.01, subdivision 8;
548.091, subdivision 2a; and 609.375, by adding
subdivisions; Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement,
sections 13.46, subdivision 2; 256.87, subdivision 5;
363.03, subdivision 3; 518.14; 518.171, subdivisions 1
and 6; 518.551, subdivisions 5 and 12; 518.64,
subdivision 2; 518.68, subdivisions 1, 2, and 3; and
609.375, subdivision 2; proposing coding for new law
in Minnesota Statutes, chapters 8; 518; and 518C;
repealing Minnesota Statutes 1992, sections 518C.01;
518C.02; 518C.03; 518C.04; 518C.05; 518C.06; 518C.07;
518C.08; 518C.09; 518C.10; 518C.11; 518C.12; 518C.13;
518C.14; 518C.15; 518C.16; 518C.17; 518C.18; 518C.19;
518C.20; 518C.21; 518C.22; 518C.23; 518C.24; 518C.25;
518C.26; 518C.27; 518C.28; 518C.29; 518C.30; 518C.31;
518C.32; 518C.33; 518C.34; 518C.35; and 518C.36;
Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section 518.551,
subdivision 10.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
UNIFORM INTERSTATE FAMILY SUPPORT ACT
ARTICLE 1
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Section 1. [518C.101] [DEFINITIONS.]
In this chapter:
(a) "Child" means an individual, whether over or under the
age of majority, who is or is alleged to be owed a duty of
support by the individual's parent or who is or is alleged to be
the beneficiary of a support order directed to the parent.
(b) "Child support order" means a support order for a
child, including a child who has attained the age of majority
under the law of the issuing state.
(c) "Duty of support" means an obligation imposed or
imposable by law to provide support for a child, spouse, or
former spouse, including an unsatisfied obligation to provide
support.
(d) "Home state" means the state in which a child lived
with a parent or a person acting as parent for at least six
consecutive months immediately preceding the time of filing of a
petition or comparable pleading for support and, if a child is
less than six months old, the state in which the child lived
from birth with any of them. A period of temporary absence of
any of them is counted as part of the six-month or other period.
(e) "Income" includes earnings or other periodic
entitlements to money from any source and any other property
subject to withholding for support under the law of this state.
(f) "Income-withholding order" means an order or other
legal process directed to an obligor's employer or other debtor
under section 518.611 or 518.613, to withhold support from the
income of the obligor.
(g) "Initiating state" means a state in which a proceeding
under this chapter or a law substantially similar to this
chapter, the uniform reciprocal enforcement of support act, or
the revised uniform reciprocal enforcement of support act is
filed for forwarding to a responding state.
(h) "Initiating tribunal" means the authorized tribunal in
an initiating state.
(i) "Issuing state" means the state in which a tribunal
issues a support order or renders a judgment determining
parentage.
(j) "Issuing tribunal" means the tribunal that issues a
support order or renders a judgment determining parentage.
(k) "Law" includes decisional and statutory law and rules
and regulations having the force of law.
(l) "Obligee" means:
(1) an individual to whom a duty of support is or is
alleged to be owed or in whose favor a support order has been
issued or a judgment determining parentage has been rendered;
(2) a state or political subdivision to which the rights
under a duty of support or support order have been assigned or
which has independent claims based on financial assistance
provided to an individual obligee; or
(3) an individual seeking a judgment determining parentage
of the individual's child.
(m) "Obligor" means an individual, or the estate of a
decedent:
(1) who owes or is alleged to owe a duty of support;
(2) who is alleged but has not been adjudicated to be a
parent of a child; or
(3) who is liable under a support order.
(n) "Petition" means a petition or comparable pleading used
pursuant to section 518.551, subdivision 10.
(o) "Register" means to file a support order or judgment
determining parentage in the office of the court administrator.
(p) "Registering tribunal" means a tribunal in which a
support order is registered.
(q) "Responding state" means a state to which a proceeding
is forwarded under this chapter or a law substantially similar
to this chapter, the uniform reciprocal enforcement of support
act, or the revised uniform reciprocal enforcement of support
act.
(r) "Responding tribunal" means the authorized tribunal in
a responding state.
(s) "Spousal support order" means a support order for a
spouse or former spouse of the obligor.
(t) "State" means a state of the United States, the
District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any
territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of
the United States. "State" includes an Indian tribe and a
foreign jurisdiction that has established procedures for
issuance and enforcement of support orders that are
substantially similar to the procedures under this chapter.
(u) "Support enforcement agency" means a public official or
agency authorized to:
(1) seek enforcement of support orders or laws relating to
the duty of support;
(2) seek establishment or modification of child support;
(3) seek determination of parentage; or
(4) locate obligors or their assets.
(v) "Support order" means a judgment, decree, or order,
whether temporary, final, or subject to modification, for the
benefit of a child, spouse, or former spouse, which provides for
monetary support, health care, arrearages, or reimbursement, and
may include related costs and fees, interest, income
withholding, attorney's fees, and other relief.
(w) "Tribunal" means a court, administrative agency, or
quasi-judicial entity authorized to establish, enforce, or
modify support orders or to determine parentage.
Sec. 2. [518C.102] [TRIBUNAL OF THIS STATE.]
A court, administrative agency, or quasi-judicial entity
authorized to establish, enforce, or modify support orders or to
determine parentage are tribunals of this state.
Sec. 3. [518C.103] [REMEDIES CUMULATIVE.]
Remedies provided by this chapter are cumulative and do not
affect the availability of remedies under other law.
ARTICLE 2
JURISDICTION
PART A. EXTENDED PERSONAL JURISDICTION
Section 1. [518C.201] [BASES FOR JURISDICTION OVER
NONRESIDENT.]
In a proceeding to establish, enforce, or modify a support
order or to determine parentage, a tribunal of this state may
exercise personal jurisdiction over a nonresident individual or
the individual's guardian or conservator if:
(1) the individual is personally served with a summons or
comparable document within this state;
(2) the individual submits to the jurisdiction of this
state by consent, by entering a general appearance, or by filing
a responsive document having the effect of waiving any contest
to personal jurisdiction;
(3) the individual resided with the child in this state;
(4) the individual resided in this state and provided
prenatal expenses or support for the child;
(5) the child resides in this state as a result of the acts
or directives of the individual;
(6) the individual engaged in sexual intercourse in this
state and the child may have been conceived by that act of
intercourse;
(7) the individual asserted parentage under sections 257.51
to 257.75; or
(8) there is any other basis consistent with the
constitutions of this state and the United States for the
exercise of personal jurisdiction.
Sec. 2. [518C.202] [PROCEDURE WHEN EXERCISING JURISDICTION
OVER NONRESIDENT.]
A tribunal of this state exercising personal jurisdiction
over a nonresident under section 518C.201 may apply section
518C.316 to receive evidence from another state, and section
518C.318 to obtain discovery through a tribunal of another
state. In all other respects, articles 3 to 7 do not apply and
the tribunal shall apply the procedural and substantive law of
this state, including the rules on choice of law other than
those established by this chapter.
PART B. PROCEEDINGS INVOLVING TWO OR MORE STATES
Sec. 3. [518C.203] [INITIATING AND RESPONDING TRIBUNAL OF
THIS STATE.]
Under this chapter, a tribunal of this state may serve as
an initiating tribunal to forward proceedings to another state
and as a responding tribunal for proceedings initiated in
another state.
Sec. 4. [518C.204] [SIMULTANEOUS PROCEEDINGS IN ANOTHER
STATE.
(a) A tribunal of this state may exercise jurisdiction to
establish a support order if the petition or comparable pleading
is filed after a petition or comparable pleading is filed in
another state only if:
(1) the petition or comparable pleading in this state is
filed before the expiration of the time allowed in the other
state for filing a responsive pleading challenging the exercise
of jurisdiction by the other state;
(2) the contesting party timely challenges the exercise of
jurisdiction in the other state; and
(3) if relevant, this state is the home state of the child.
(b) A tribunal of this state may not exercise jurisdiction
to establish a support order if the petition or comparable
pleading is filed before a petition or comparable pleading is
filed in another state if:
(1) the petition or comparable pleading in the other state
is filed before the expiration of the time allowed in this state
for filing a responsive pleading challenging the exercise of
jurisdiction by this state;
(2) the contesting party timely challenges the exercise of
jurisdiction in this state; and
(3) if relevant, the other state is the home state of the
child.
Sec. 5. [518C.205] [CONTINUING, EXCLUSIVE JURISDICTION.]
(a) A tribunal of this state issuing a support order
consistent with the law of this state has continuing, exclusive
jurisdiction over a child support order:
(1) as long as this state remains the residence of the
obligor, the individual obligee, or the child for whose benefit
the support order is issued; or
(2) until each individual party has filed written consent
with the tribunal of this state for a tribunal of another state
to modify the order and assume continuing, exclusive
jurisdiction.
(b) A tribunal of this state issuing a child support order
consistent with the law of this state may not exercise its
continuing jurisdiction to modify the order if the order has
been modified by a tribunal of another state pursuant to a law
substantially similar to this chapter.
(c) If a child support order of this state is modified by a
tribunal of another state pursuant to a law substantially
similar to this chapter, a tribunal of this state loses its
continuing, exclusive jurisdiction with regard to prospective
enforcement of the order issued in this state, and may only:
(1) enforce the order that was modified as to amounts
accruing before the modification;
(2) enforce nonmodifiable aspects of that order; and
(3) provide other appropriate relief for violations of that
order which occurred before the effective date of the
modification.
(d) A tribunal of this state shall recognize the
continuing, exclusive jurisdiction of a tribunal of another
state which has issued a child support order pursuant to a law
substantially similar to this chapter.
(e) A temporary support order issued ex parte or pending
resolution of a jurisdictional conflict does not create
continuing, exclusive jurisdiction in the issuing tribunal.
(f) A tribunal of this state issuing a support order
consistent with the law of this state has continuing, exclusive
jurisdiction over a spousal support order throughout the
existence of the support obligation. A tribunal of this state
may not modify a spousal support order issued by a tribunal of
another state having continuing, exclusive jurisdiction over
that order under the law of that state.
Sec. 6. [518C.206] [ENFORCEMENT AND MODIFICATION OF
SUPPORT ORDER BY TRIBUNAL HAVING CONTINUING JURISDICTION.]
(a) A tribunal of this state may serve as an initiating
tribunal to request a tribunal of another state to enforce or
modify a support order issued in that state.
(b) A tribunal of this state having continuing, exclusive
jurisdiction over a support order may act as a responding
tribunal to enforce or modify the order. If a party subject to
the continuing, exclusive jurisdiction of the tribunal no longer
resides in the issuing state, in subsequent proceedings the
tribunal may apply section 518C.316 to receive evidence from
another state and section 518C.318 to obtain discovery through a
tribunal of another state.
(c) A tribunal of this state which lacks continuing,
exclusive jurisdiction over a spousal support order may not
serve as a responding tribunal to modify a spousal support order
of another state.
PART C. RECONCILIATION WITH ORDERS OF OTHER STATES
Sec. 7. [518C.207] [RECOGNITION OF CHILD SUPPORT ORDERS.]
(a) If a proceeding is brought under this chapter, and one
or more child support orders have been issued in this or another
state with regard to an obligor and a child, a tribunal of this
state shall apply the following rules in determining which order
to recognize for purposes of continuing, exclusive jurisdiction:
(1) If only one tribunal has issued a child support order,
the order of that tribunal must be recognized.
(2) If two or more tribunals have issued child support
orders for the same obligor and child, and only one of the
tribunals would have continuing, exclusive jurisdiction under
this chapter, the order of that tribunal must be recognized.
(3) If two or more tribunals have issued child support
orders for the same obligor and child, and more than one of the
tribunals would have continuing, exclusive jurisdiction under
this chapter, an order issued by a tribunal in the current home
state of the child must be recognized, but if an order has not
been issued in the current home state of the child, the order
most recently issued must be recognized.
(4) If two or more tribunals have issued child support
orders for the same obligor and child, and none of the tribunals
would have continuing, exclusive jurisdiction under this
chapter, the tribunal of this state may issue a child support
order, which must be recognized.
(b) The tribunal that has issued an order recognized under
paragraph (a) is the tribunal having continuing, exclusive
jurisdiction.
Sec. 8. [518C.208] [MULTIPLE CHILD SUPPORT ORDERS FOR TWO
OR MORE OBLIGEES.]
In responding to multiple registrations or petitions for
enforcement of two or more child support orders in effect at the
same time with regard to the same obligor and different
individual obligees, at least one of which was issued by a
tribunal of another state, a tribunal of this state shall
enforce those orders in the same manner as if the multiple
orders had been issued by a tribunal of this state.
Sec. 9. [518C.209] [CREDIT FOR PAYMENTS.]
Amounts collected and credited for a particular period
pursuant to a support order issued by a tribunal of another
state must be credited against the amounts accruing or accrued
for the same period under a support order issued by the tribunal
of this state.
ARTICLE 3
CIVIL PROVISIONS OF GENERAL APPLICATION
Section 1. [518C.301] [PROCEEDINGS UNDER THIS CHAPTER.]
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, this
article applies to all proceedings under this chapter.
(b) This chapter provides for the following proceedings:
(1) establishment of an order for spousal support or child
support pursuant to article 4;
(2) enforcement of a support order and income-withholding
order of another state without registration pursuant to article
5;
(3) registration of an order for spousal support or child
support of another state for enforcement pursuant to article 6;
(4) modification of an order for child support or spousal
support issued by a tribunal of this state pursuant to article
2, part B;
(5) registration of an order for child support of another
state for modification pursuant to article 6;
(6) determination of parentage pursuant to article 7; and
(7) assertion of jurisdiction over nonresidents pursuant to
article 2, part A.
(c) An individual petitioner or a support enforcement
agency may commence a proceeding authorized under this chapter
by filing a petition in an initiating tribunal for forwarding to
a responding tribunal or by filing a petition or a comparable
pleading directly in a tribunal of another state which has or
can obtain personal jurisdiction over the respondent.
Sec. 2. [518C.302] [ACTION BY MINOR PARENT.]
A minor parent, or a guardian or other legal representative
of a minor parent, may maintain a proceeding on behalf of or for
the benefit of the minor's child.
Sec. 3. [518C.303] [APPLICATION OF LAW OF THIS STATE.]
Except as otherwise provided by this chapter, a responding
tribunal of this state:
(1) shall apply the procedural and substantive law,
including the rules on choice of law, generally applicable to
similar proceedings originating in this state and may exercise
all powers and provide all remedies available in those
proceedings; and
(2) shall determine the duty of support and the amount
payable in accordance with the law and support guidelines of
this state.
Sec. 4. [518C.304] [DUTIES OF INITIATING TRIBUNAL.]
Upon the filing of a petition authorized by this chapter,
an initiating tribunal of this state shall forward three copies
of the petition and its accompanying documents:
(1) to the responding tribunal or appropriate support
enforcement agency in the responding state; or
(2) if the identity of the responding tribunal is unknown,
to the state information agency of the responding state with a
request that they be forwarded to the appropriate tribunal and
that receipt be acknowledged.
Sec. 5. [518C.305] [DUTIES AND POWERS OF RESPONDING
TRIBUNAL.]
(a) When a responding tribunal of this state receives a
petition or comparable pleading from an initiating tribunal or
directly pursuant to section 518C.301, paragraph (c), it shall
cause the petition or pleading to be filed and notify the
petitioner by first class mail where and when it was filed.
(b) A responding tribunal of this state, to the extent
otherwise authorized by law, may do one or more of the following:
(1) issue or enforce a support order, modify a child
support order, or render a judgment to determine parentage;
(2) order an obligor to comply with a support order,
specifying the amount and the manner of compliance;
(3) order income withholding;
(4) determine the amount of any arrearages, and specify a
method of payment;
(5) enforce orders by civil or criminal contempt, or both;
(6) set aside property for satisfaction of the support
order;
(7) place liens and order execution on the obligor's
property;
(8) order an obligor to keep the tribunal informed of the
obligor's current residential address, telephone number,
employer, address of employment, and telephone number at the
place of employment;
(9) issue a bench warrant for an obligor who has failed
after proper notice to appear at a hearing ordered by the
tribunal and enter the bench warrant in any local and state
computer systems for criminal warrants;
(10) order the obligor to seek appropriate employment by
specified methods;
(11) award reasonable attorney's fees and other fees and
costs; and
(12) grant any other available remedy.
(c) A responding tribunal of this state shall include in a
support order issued under this chapter, or in the documents
accompanying the order, the calculations on which the support
order is based.
(d) A responding tribunal of this state may not condition
the payment of a support order issued under this chapter upon
compliance by a party with provisions for visitation.
(e) If a responding tribunal of this state issues an order
under this chapter, the tribunal shall send a copy of the order
by first class mail to the petitioner and the respondent and to
the initiating tribunal, if any.
Sec. 6. [518C.306] [INAPPROPRIATE TRIBUNAL.]
If a petition or comparable pleading is received by an
inappropriate tribunal of this state, it shall forward the
pleading and accompanying documents to an appropriate tribunal
in this state or another state and notify the petitioner by
first class mail where and when the pleading was sent.
Sec. 7. [518C.307] [DUTIES OF SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT AGENCY.]
(a) A support enforcement agency of this state, upon
request, shall provide services to a petitioner in a proceeding
under this chapter.
(b) A support enforcement agency that is providing services
to the petitioner as appropriate shall:
(1) take all steps necessary to enable an appropriate
tribunal in this state or another state to obtain jurisdiction
over the respondent;
(2) request an appropriate tribunal to set a date, time,
and place for a hearing;
(3) make a reasonable effort to obtain all relevant
information, including information as to income and property of
the parties;
(4) within two days, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays, and
legal holidays, after receipt of a written notice from an
initiating, responding, or registering tribunal, send a copy of
the notice by first class mail to the petitioner;
(5) within two days, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays, and
legal holidays, after receipt of a written communication from
the respondent or the respondent's attorney, send a copy of the
communication by first class mail to the petitioner; and
(6) notify the petitioner if jurisdiction over the
respondent cannot be obtained.
(c) This chapter does not create or negate a relationship
of attorney and client or other fiduciary relationship between a
support enforcement agency or the attorney for the agency and
the individual being assisted by the agency.
Sec. 8. [518C.308] [DUTY OF ATTORNEY GENERAL.]
If the attorney general determines that the support
enforcement agency is neglecting or refusing to provide services
to an individual, the attorney general may order the agency to
perform its duties under this chapter or may provide those
services directly to the individual.
Sec. 9. [518C.309] [PRIVATE COUNSEL.]
An individual may employ private counsel to represent the
individual in proceedings authorized by this chapter.
Sec. 10. [518C.310] [DUTIES OF STATE INFORMATION AGENCY.]
(a) The unit within the department of human services that
receives and disseminates incoming interstate actions under
title IV-D of the Social Security Act from section 518C.02,
subdivision 1a, is the state information agency under this
chapter.
(b) The state information agency shall:
(1) compile and maintain a current list, including
addresses, of the tribunals in this state which have
jurisdiction under this chapter and any support enforcement
agencies in this state and transmit a copy to the state
information agency of every other state;
(2) maintain a register of tribunals and support
enforcement agencies received from other states;
(3) forward to the appropriate tribunal in the place in
this state in which the individual obligee or the obligor
resides, or in which the obligor's property is believed to be
located, all documents concerning a proceeding under this
chapter received from an initiating tribunal or the state
information agency of the initiating state; and
(4) obtain information concerning the location of the
obligor and the obligor's property within this state not exempt
from execution, by such means as postal verification and federal
or state locator services, examination of telephone directories,
requests for the obligor's address from employers, and
examination of governmental records, including, to the extent
not prohibited by other law, those relating to real property,
vital statistics, law enforcement, taxation, motor vehicles,
driver's licenses, and social security.
Sec. 11. [518C.311] [PLEADINGS AND ACCOMPANYING
DOCUMENTS.]
(a) A petitioner seeking to establish or modify a support
order or to determine parentage in a proceeding under this
chapter must verify the petition. Unless otherwise ordered
under section 518C.312, the petition or accompanying documents
must provide, so far as known, the name, residential address,
and social security numbers of the obligor and the obligee, and
the name, sex, residential address, social security number, and
date of birth of each child for whom support is sought. The
petition must be accompanied by a certified copy of any support
order in effect. The petition may include any other information
that may assist in locating or identifying the respondent.
(b) The petition must specify the relief sought. The
petition and accompanying documents must conform substantially
with the requirements imposed by the forms mandated by federal
law for use in cases filed by a support enforcement agency.
Sec. 12. [518C.312] [NONDISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION IN
EXCEPTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES.]
Upon a finding, which may be made ex parte, that the
health, safety, or liberty of a party or child would be
unreasonably put at risk by the disclosure of identifying
information, or if an existing order so provides, a tribunal
shall order that the address of the child or party or other
identifying information not be disclosed in a pleading or other
document filed in a proceeding under this chapter.
Sec. 13. [518C.313] [COSTS AND FEES.]
(a) The petitioner may not be required to pay a filing fee
or other costs.
(b) If an obligee prevails, a responding tribunal may
assess against an obligor filing fees, reasonable attorney's
fees, other costs, and necessary travel and other reasonable
expenses incurred by the obligee and the obligee's witnesses.
The tribunal may not assess fees, costs, or expenses against the
obligee or the support enforcement agency of either the
initiating or the responding state, except as provided by other
law. Attorney's fees may be taxed as costs, and may be ordered
paid directly to the attorney, who may enforce the order in the
attorney's own name. Payment of support owed to the obligee has
priority over fees, costs, and expenses.
(c) The tribunal shall order the payment of costs and
reasonable attorney's fees if it determines that a hearing was
requested primarily for delay. In a proceeding under article 6,
a hearing is presumed to have been requested primarily for delay
if a registered support order is confirmed or enforced without
change.
Sec. 14. [518C.314] [LIMITED IMMUNITY OF PETITIONER.]
(a) Participation by a petitioner in a proceeding before a
responding tribunal, whether in person, by private attorney, or
through services provided by the support enforcement agency,
does not confer personal jurisdiction over the petitioner in
another proceeding.
(b) A petitioner is not amenable to service of civil
process while physically present in this state to participate in
a proceeding under this chapter.
(c) The immunity granted by this section does not extend to
civil litigation based on acts unrelated to a proceeding under
this chapter committed by a party while present in this state to
participate in the proceeding.
Sec. 15. [518C.315] [NONPARENTAGE AS DEFENSE.]
A party whose parentage of a child has been previously
determined by or pursuant to law may not plead nonparentage as a
defense to a proceeding under this chapter.
Sec. 16. [518C.316] [SPECIAL RULES OF EVIDENCE AND
PROCEDURE.]
(a) The physical presence of the petitioner in a responding
tribunal of this state is not required for the establishment,
enforcement, or modification of a support order or the rendition
of a judgment determining parentage.
(b) A verified petition, affidavit, document substantially
complying with federally mandated forms, and a document
incorporated by reference in any of them, not excluded under the
hearsay rule if given in person, is admissible in evidence if
given under oath by a party or witness residing in another state.
(c) A copy of the record of child support payments
certified as a true copy of the original by the custodian of the
record may be forwarded to a responding tribunal. The copy is
evidence of facts asserted in it, and is admissible to show
whether payments were made.
(d) Copies of bills for testing for parentage, and for
prenatal and postnatal health care of the mother and child,
furnished to the adverse party at least ten days before trial,
are admissible in evidence to prove the amount of the charges
billed and that the charges were reasonable, necessary, and
customary.
(e) Documentary evidence transmitted from another state to
a tribunal of this state by telephone, telecopier, or other
means that do not provide an original writing may not be
excluded from evidence on an objection based on the means of
transmission.
(f) In a proceeding under this chapter, a tribunal of this
state may permit a party or witness residing in another state to
be deposed or to testify by telephone, audiovisual means, or
other electronic means at a designated tribunal or other
location in that state. A tribunal of this state shall
cooperate with tribunals of other states in designating an
appropriate location for the deposition or testimony.
(g) If a party called to testify at a civil hearing refuses
to answer on the ground that the testimony may be
self-incriminating, the trier of fact may draw an adverse
inference from the refusal.
(h) A privilege against disclosure of communications
between spouses does not apply in a proceeding under this
chapter.
(i) The defense of immunity based on the relationship of
husband and wife or parent and child does not apply in a
proceeding under this chapter.
Sec. 17. [518C.317] [COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN TRIBUNALS.]
A tribunal of this state may communicate with a tribunal of
another state in writing, or by telephone or other means, to
obtain information concerning the laws of that state, the legal
effect of a judgment, decree, or order of that tribunal, and the
status of a proceeding in the other state. A tribunal of this
state may furnish similar information by similar means to a
tribunal of another state.
Sec. 18. [518C.318] [ASSISTANCE WITH DISCOVERY.]
A tribunal of this state may:
(1) request a tribunal of another state to assist in
obtaining discovery; and
(2) upon request, compel a person over whom it has
jurisdiction to respond to a discovery order issued by a
tribunal of another state.
Sec. 19. [518C.319] [RECEIPT AND DISBURSEMENT OF
PAYMENTS.]
A support enforcement agency or tribunal of this state
shall disburse promptly any amounts received pursuant to a
support order, as directed by the order. The agency or tribunal
shall furnish to a requesting party or tribunal of another state
a certified statement by the custodian of the record of the
amounts and dates of all payments received.
ARTICLE 4
ESTABLISHMENT OF SUPPORT ORDER
Section 1. [518C.401] [PETITION TO ESTABLISH SUPPORT
ORDER.]
(a) If a support order entitled to recognition under this
chapter has not been issued, a responding tribunal of this state
may issue a support order if:
(1) the individual seeking the order resides in another
state; or
(2) the support enforcement agency seeking the order is
located in another state.
(b) The tribunal may issue a temporary child support order
if:
(1) the respondent has signed a verified statement
acknowledging parentage;
(2) the respondent has been determined by or pursuant to
law to be the parent; or
(3) there is other clear and convincing evidence that the
respondent is the child's parent.
(c) Upon finding, after notice and opportunity to be heard,
that an obligor owes a duty of support, the tribunal shall issue
a support order directed to the obligor and may issue other
orders pursuant to section 518C.305.
ARTICLE 5
DIRECT ENFORCEMENT OF ORDER
OF ANOTHER STATE WITHOUT REGISTRATION
Section 1. [518C.501] [RECOGNITION OF INCOME-WITHHOLDING
ORDER OF ANOTHER STATE.]
(a) An income-withholding order issued in another state may
be sent by first class mail to the person or entity defined as
the obligor's employer under section 518.611 or 518.613 without
first filing a petition or comparable pleading or registering
the order with a tribunal of this state. Upon receipt of the
order, the employer shall:
(1) treat an income-withholding order issued in another
state which appears regular on its face as if it had been issued
by a tribunal of this state;
(2) immediately provide a copy of the order to the obligor;
and
(3) distribute the funds as directed in the withholding
order.
(b) An obligor may contest the validity or enforcement of
an income-withholding order issued in another state in the same
manner as if the order had been issued by a tribunal of this
state. Section 518C.604 applies to the contest. The obligor
shall give notice of the contest to any support enforcement
agency providing services to the obligee and to:
(1) the person or agency designated to receive payments in
the income-withholding order; or
(2) if no person or agency is designated, the obligee.
Sec. 2. [518C.502] [ADMINISTRATIVE ENFORCEMENT OF ORDERS.]
(a) A party seeking to enforce a support order or an
income-withholding order, or both, issued by a tribunal of
another state may send the documents required for registering
the order to a support enforcement agency of this state.
(b) Upon receipt of the documents, the support enforcement
agency, without initially seeking to register the order, shall
consider and, if appropriate, use any administrative procedure
authorized by the law of this state to enforce a support order
or an income-withholding order, or both. If the obligor does
not contest administrative enforcement, the order need not be
registered. If the obligor contests the validity or
administrative enforcement of the order, the support enforcement
agency shall register the order pursuant to this chapter.
ARTICLE 6
ENFORCEMENT AND MODIFICATION
OF SUPPORT ORDER AFTER REGISTRATION
PART A. REGISTRATION AND ENFORCEMENT OF SUPPORT ORDER
Section 1. [518C.601] [REGISTRATION OF ORDER FOR
ENFORCEMENT.]
A support order or an income-withholding order issued by a
tribunal of another state may be registered in this state for
enforcement.
Sec. 2. [518C.602] [PROCEDURE TO REGISTER ORDER FOR
ENFORCEMENT.]
(a) A support order or income-withholding order of another
state may be registered in this state by sending the following
documents and information to the registering tribunal in this
state:
(1) a letter of transmittal to the tribunal requesting
registration and enforcement;
(2) two copies, including one certified copy, of all orders
to be registered, including any modification of an order;
(3) a sworn statement by the party seeking registration or
a certified statement by the custodian of the records showing
the amount of any arrearage;
(4) the name of the obligor and, if known:
(i) the obligor's address and social security number;
(ii) the name and address of the obligor's employer and any
other source of income of the obligor; and
(iii) a description and the location of property of the
obligor in this state not exempt from execution; and
(5) the name and address of the obligee and, if applicable,
the agency or person to whom support payments are to be remitted.
(b) On receipt of a request for registration, the
registering tribunal shall cause the order to be filed as a
foreign judgment, together with one copy of the documents and
information, regardless of their form.
(c) A petition or comparable pleading seeking a remedy that
must be affirmatively sought under other law of this state may
be filed at the same time as the request for registration or
later. The pleading must specify the grounds for the remedy
sought.
Sec. 3. [518C.603] [EFFECT OF REGISTRATION FOR
ENFORCEMENT.]
(a) A support order or income-withholding order issued in
another state is registered when the order is filed in the
registering tribunal of this state.
(b) A registered order issued in another state is
enforceable in the same manner and is subject to the same
procedures as an order issued by a tribunal of this state.
(c) Except as otherwise provided in this article, a
tribunal of this state shall recognize and enforce, but may not
modify, a registered order if the issuing tribunal had
jurisdiction.
Sec. 4. [518C.604] [CHOICE OF LAW.]
(a) The law of the issuing state governs the nature,
extent, amount, and duration of current payments and other
obligations of support and the payment of arrearages under the
order.
(b) In a proceeding for arrearages, the statute of
limitation under the laws of this state or of the issuing state,
whichever is longer, applies.
PART B. CONTEST OF VALIDITY OR ENFORCEMENT
Sec. 5. [518C.605] [NOTICE OF REGISTRATION OF ORDER.]
(a) When a support order or income-withholding order issued
in another state is registered, the registering tribunal shall
notify the nonregistering party. Notice must be given by
certified or registered mail or by any means of personal service
authorized by the law of this state. The notice must be
accompanied by a copy of the registered order and the documents
and relevant information accompanying the order.
(b) The notice must inform the nonregistering party:
(1) that a registered order is enforceable as of the date
of registration in the same manner as an order issued by a
tribunal of this state;
(2) that a hearing to contest the validity or enforcement
of the registered order must be requested within 20 days after
the date of mailing or personal service of the notice;
(3) that failure to contest the validity or enforcement of
the registered order in a timely manner will result in
confirmation of the order and enforcement of the order and the
alleged arrearages and precludes further contest of that order
with respect to any matter that could have been asserted; and
(4) of the amount of any alleged arrearages.
(c) Upon registration of an income-withholding order for
enforcement, the registering tribunal shall notify the obligor's
employer pursuant to section 518.611 or 518.613.
Sec. 6. [518C.606] [PROCEDURE TO CONTEST VALIDITY OR
ENFORCEMENT OF REGISTERED ORDER.]
(a) A nonregistering party seeking to contest the validity
or enforcement of a registered order in this state shall request
a hearing within 20 days after the date of mailing or personal
service of notice of the registration. The nonregistering party
may seek to vacate the registration, to assert any defense to an
allegation of noncompliance with the registered order, or to
contest the remedies being sought or the amount of any alleged
arrearages pursuant to section 518C.607.
(b) If the nonregistering party fails to contest the
validity or enforcement of the registered order in a timely
manner, the order is confirmed by operation of law.
(c) If a nonregistering party requests a hearing to contest
the validity or enforcement of the registered order, the
registering tribunal shall schedule the matter for hearing and
give notice to the parties by first class mail of the date,
time, and place of the hearing.
Sec. 7. [518C.607] [CONTEST OF REGISTRATION OR
ENFORCEMENT.]
(a) A party contesting the validity or enforcement of a
registered order or seeking to vacate the registration has the
burden of proving one or more of the following defenses:
(1) the issuing tribunal lacked personal jurisdiction over
the contesting party;
(2) the order was obtained by fraud;
(3) the order has been vacated, suspended, or modified by a
later order;
(4) the issuing tribunal has stayed the order pending
appeal;
(5) there is a defense under the law of this state to the
remedy sought;
(6) full or partial payment has been made; or
(7) the statute of limitation under section 518C.604
precludes enforcement of some or all of the arrearages.
(b) If a party presents evidence establishing a full or
partial defense under paragraph (a), a tribunal may stay
enforcement of the registered order, continue the proceeding to
permit production of additional relevant evidence, and issue
other appropriate orders. An uncontested portion of the
registered order may be enforced by all remedies available under
the law of this state.
(c) If the contesting party does not establish a defense
under paragraph (a) to the validity or enforcement of the order,
the registering tribunal shall issue an order confirming the
order.
Sec. 8. [518C.608] [CONFIRMED ORDER.]
If a contesting party has received notice of registration
under section 518C.605, confirmation of a registered order,
whether by operation of law or after notice and hearing,
precludes further contest of the order based upon facts that
were known by the contesting party at the time of registration
with respect to any matter that could have been asserted at the
time of registration.
PART C. REGISTRATION AND MODIFICATION
OF CHILD SUPPORT ORDER
Sec. 9. [518C.609] [PROCEDURE TO REGISTER CHILD SUPPORT
ORDER OF ANOTHER STATE FOR MODIFICATION.]
A party or support enforcement agency seeking to modify, or
to modify and enforce, a child support order issued in another
state shall register that order in this state in the same manner
provided in part A of this article if the order has not been
registered. A petition for modification may be filed at the
same time as a request for registration, or later. The pleading
must specify the grounds for modification.
Sec. 10. [518C.610] [EFFECT OF REGISTRATION FOR
MODIFICATION.]
A tribunal of this state may enforce a child support order
of another state registered for purposes of modification, in the
same manner as if the order had been issued by a tribunal of
this state, but the registered order may be modified only if the
requirements of section 518C.611 have been met.
Sec. 11. [518C.611] [MODIFICATION OF CHILD SUPPORT ORDER
OF ANOTHER STATE.]
(a) After a child support order issued in another state has
been registered in this state, the responding tribunal of this
state may modify that order only if, after notice and hearing,
it finds that:
(1) the following requirements are met:
(i) the child, the individual obligee, and the obligor do
not reside in the issuing state;
(ii) a petitioner who is a nonresident of this state seeks
modification; and
(iii) the respondent is subject to the personal
jurisdiction of the tribunal of this state; or
(2) an individual party or the child is subject to the
personal jurisdiction of the tribunal and all of the individual
parties have filed a written consent in the issuing tribunal
providing that a tribunal of this state may modify the support
order and assume continuing, exclusive jurisdiction over the
order.
(b) Modification of a registered child support order is
subject to the same requirements, procedures, and defenses that
apply to the modification of an order issued by a tribunal of
this state and the order may be enforced and satisfied in the
same manner.
(c) A tribunal of this state may not modify any aspect of a
child support order that may not be modified under the law of
the issuing state.
(d) On issuance of an order modifying a child support order
issued in another state, a tribunal of this state becomes the
tribunal of continuing, exclusive jurisdiction.
(e) Within 30 days after issuance of a modified child
support order, the party obtaining the modification shall file a
certified copy of the order with the issuing tribunal which had
continuing, exclusive jurisdiction over the earlier order, and
in each tribunal in which the party knows that earlier order has
been registered.
Sec. 12. [518C.612] [RECOGNITION OF ORDER MODIFIED IN
ANOTHER STATE.]
A tribunal of this state shall recognize a modification of
its earlier child support order by a tribunal of another state
which assumed jurisdiction pursuant to a law substantially
similar to this chapter and, upon request, except as otherwise
provided in this chapter, shall:
(1) enforce the order that was modified only as to amounts
accruing before the modification;
(2) enforce only nonmodifiable aspects of that order;
(3) provide other appropriate relief only for violations of
that order which occurred before the effective date of the
modification; and
(4) recognize the modifying order of the other state, upon
registration, for the purpose of enforcement.
ARTICLE 7
DETERMINATION OF PARENTAGE
Section 1. [518C.701] [PROCEEDING TO DETERMINE PARENTAGE.]
(a) A tribunal of this state may serve as an initiating or
responding tribunal in a proceeding brought under this chapter
or a law substantially similar to this chapter, the uniform
reciprocal enforcement of support act, or the revised uniform
reciprocal enforcement of support act to determine that the
petitioner is a parent of a particular child or to determine
that a respondent is a parent of that child.
(b) In a proceeding to determine parentage, a responding
tribunal of this state shall apply the parentage act, sections
257.51 to 257.74, and the rules of this state on choice of law.
ARTICLE 8
INTERSTATE RENDITION
Section 1. [518C.801] [GROUNDS FOR RENDITION.]
(a) For purposes of this article, "governor" includes an
individual performing the functions of governor or the executive
authority of a state covered by this chapter.
(b) The governor of this state may:
(1) demand that the governor of another state surrender an
individual found in the other state who is charged criminally in
this state with having failed to provide for the support of an
obligee; or
(2) on the demand by the governor of another state,
surrender an individual found in this state who is charged
criminally in the other state with having failed to provide for
the support of an obligee.
(c) A provision for extradition of individuals not
inconsistent with this chapter applies to the demand even if the
individual whose surrender is demanded was not in the demanding
state when the crime was allegedly committed and has not fled
therefrom.
Sec. 2. [518C.802] [CONDITIONS OF RENDITION.]
(a) Before making demand that the governor of another state
surrender an individual charged criminally in this state with
having failed to provide for the support of an obligee, the
governor of this state may require a prosecutor of this state to
demonstrate that at least 60 days previously the obligee had
initiated proceedings for support pursuant to this chapter or
that the proceeding would be of no avail.
(b) If, under this chapter or a law substantially similar
to this chapter, the uniform reciprocal enforcement of support
act, or the revised uniform reciprocal enforcement of support
act, the governor of another state makes a demand that the
governor of this state surrender an individual charged
criminally in that state with having failed to provide for the
support of a child or other individual to whom a duty of support
is owed, the governor may require a prosecutor to investigate
the demand and report whether a proceeding for support has been
initiated or would be effective. If it appears that a
proceeding would be effective but has not been initiated, the
governor may delay honoring the demand for a reasonable time to
permit the initiation of a proceeding.
(c) If a proceeding for support has been initiated and the
individual whose rendition is demanded prevails, the governor
may decline to honor the demand. If the petitioner prevails and
the individual whose rendition is demanded is subject to a
support order, the governor may decline to honor the demand if
the individual is complying with the support order.
ARTICLE 9
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Section 1. [518C.901] [UNIFORMITY OF APPLICATION AND
CONSTRUCTION.]
This chapter shall be applied and construed to effectuate
its general purpose to make uniform the law with respect to the
subject of this chapter among states enacting it.
Sec. 2. [518C.9011] [EXISTING REVISED UNIFORM RECIPROCAL
ENFORCEMENT OF SUPPORT ACT ACTIONS.]
Any action or proceeding under the Revised Uniform
Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act (RURESA) pending on the
effective date of this section shall continue under the
provisions of RURESA until the court makes a decision on the
action or proceeding.
Sec. 3. [518C.902] [SHORT TITLE.]
This chapter may be cited as the "uniform interstate family
support act."
Sec. 4. [REPEALER.]
Minnesota Statutes 1992, sections 518C.01; 518C.02;
518C.03; 518C.04; 518C.05; 518C.06; 518C.07; 518C.08; 518C.09;
518C.10; 518C.11; 518C.12; 518C.13; 518C.14; 518C.15; 518C.16;
518C.17; 518C.18; 518C.19; 518C.20; 518C.21; 518C.22; 518C.23;
518C.24; 518C.25; 518C.26; 518C.27; 518C.28; 518C.29; 518C.30;
518C.31; 518C.32; 518C.33; 518C.34; 518C.35; and 518C.36, are
repealed.
Sec. 5. [EFFECTIVE DATE.]
Articles 1 to 9 are effective January 1, 1995.
ARTICLE 10
ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESS
Section 1. [518.5511] [ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESS FOR CHILD
AND MEDICAL SUPPORT ORDERS.]
Subdivision 1. [GENERAL.] (a) An administrative process is
established to obtain, modify, and enforce child and medical
support orders and modify maintenance if combined with a child
support proceeding.
(b) All proceedings for obtaining, modifying, or enforcing
child and medical support orders and modifying maintenance
orders if combined with a child support proceeding, are required
to be conducted in the administrative process when the public
authority is a party or provides services to a party or parties
to the proceedings. At county option, the administrative
process may include contempt motions or actions to establish
parentage. Nothing contained herein shall prevent a party, upon
timely notice to the public authority, from commencing an action
or bringing a motion for the establishment, modification, or
enforcement of child support or modification of maintenance
orders if combined with a child support proceeding in district
court, if additional issues involving domestic abuse,
establishment or modification of custody or visitation, property
issues, or other issues outside the jurisdiction of the
administrative process, are part of the motion or action, or
from proceeding with a motion or action brought by another party
containing one or more of these issues if it is pending in
district court.
(c) A party may make a written request to the public
authority to initiate an uncontested administrative proceeding.
If the public authority denies the request, the public authority
shall issue a summary order which denies the request for relief,
states the reasons for the denial, and notifies the party of the
right to commence an action for relief. If the party commences
an action or serves and files a motion within 30 days after the
public authority's denial and the party's action results in a
modification of a child support order, the modification may be
retroactive to the date the written request was received by the
public authority.
(d) After August 1, 1994, all counties shall participate in
the administrative process established in this section in
accordance with a statewide implementation plan to be set forth
by the commissioner of human services. No county shall be
required to participate in the administrative process until
after the county has been trained. The implementation plan
shall include provisions for training the counties by region no
later than July 1, 1995.
Subd. 2. [UNCONTESTED ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEEDING.] (a) A
party may petition the chief administrative law judge, the chief
district court judge, or the chief family court referee to
proceed immediately to a contested hearing upon good cause shown.
(b) The public authority shall give the parties written
notice requesting the submission of information necessary for
the public authority to prepare a proposed child support order.
The written notice shall be sent by first-class mail to the
parties' last known addresses. The written notice shall
describe the information requested, state the purpose of the
request, state the date by which the information must be
postmarked or received (which shall be at least 30 days from the
date of the mailing of the written notice), state that if the
information is not postmarked or received by that date, the
public authority will prepare a proposed order on the basis of
the information available, and identify the type of information
which will be considered.
(c) Following the submission of information or following
the date when the information was due, the public authority
shall, on the basis of all information available, complete and
sign a proposed child support order and notice. In preparing
the proposed child support order, the public authority will
establish child support in the highest amount permitted under
section 518.551, subdivision 5. The proposed order shall
include written findings in accordance with section 518.551,
subdivision 5, clauses (i) and (j). The notice shall state that
the proposed child support order will be entered as a final and
binding default order unless one of the parties requests a
conference under subdivision 3 within 14 days following the date
of service of the proposed child support order. The method for
requesting the conference shall be stated in the notice. The
notice and proposed child support order shall be served under
the rules of civil procedure. For the purposes of the contested
hearing, and notwithstanding any law or rule to the contrary,
the service of the proposed order pursuant to this paragraph
shall be deemed to have commenced a proceeding and the judge,
including an administrative law judge or a referee, shall have
jurisdiction over the contested hearing.
(d) If a conference under subdivision 3 is not requested by
a party within 14 days after the date of service of the proposed
child support order, the public authority may enter the proposed
order as the default order. The default order becomes effective
30 days after the date of service of the notice in paragraph
(c). The public authority may also prepare and serve a new
notice and proposed child support order if new information is
subsequently obtained. The default child support order shall be
a final order, and shall be served under the rules of civil
procedure.
(e) The public authority shall file in the district court
copies of all notices served on the parties, proof of service,
and all orders.
Subd. 3. [ADMINISTRATIVE CONFERENCE.] (a) If a party
requests a conference within 14 days of the date of service of
the proposed order, the public authority shall schedule a
conference, and shall serve written notice of the date, time,
and place of the conference on the parties.
(b) The purpose of the conference is to review all
available information and seek an agreement to enter a consent
child support order. The notice shall state the purpose of the
conference, and that the proposed child support order will be
entered as a final and binding default order if the requesting
party fails to appear at the conference. The notice shall be
served on the parties by first-class mail at their last known
addresses, and the method of service shall be documented in the
public authority file.
(c) A party alleging domestic abuse by the other party
shall not be required to participate in a conference. In such a
case, the public authority shall meet separately with the
parties in order to determine whether an agreement can be
reached.
(d) If the party requesting the conference does not appear
and fails to provide a written excuse (with supporting
documentation if relevant) to the public authority within seven
days after the date of the conference which constitutes good
cause, the public authority may enter a default child support
order through the uncontested administrative process. The
public authority shall not enter the default order until at
least seven days after the date of the conference.
For purposes of this section, misrepresentation, excusable
neglect, or circumstances beyond the control of the person who
requested the conference which prevented the person's appearance
at the conference constitutes good cause for failure to appear.
If the public authority finds good cause, the conference shall
be rescheduled by the public authority and the public authority
shall send notice as required under this subdivision.
(e) If the parties appear at the conference, the public
authority shall seek agreement of the parties to the entry of a
consent child support order which establishes child support in
accordance with applicable law. The public authority shall
advise the parties that if a consent order is not entered, the
matter will be scheduled for a hearing before an administrative
law judge, or a district court judge or referee, and that the
public authority will seek the establishment of child support at
the hearing in accordance with the highest amount permitted
under section 518.551, subdivision 5. If an agreement to enter
the consent order is not reached at the conference, the public
authority shall schedule the matter before an administrative law
judge, district court judge, or referee.
(f) If an agreement is reached by the parties at the
conference, a consent child support order shall be prepared by
the public authority, and shall be signed by the parties. All
consent and default orders shall be signed by the nonattorney
employee of the public authority and shall be submitted to an
administrative law judge or the district court for
countersignature. The order is effective upon the signature by
the administrative law judge or the district court and is
retroactive to the date of signature by the nonattorney employee
of the public authority. The consent order shall be served on
the parties under the rules of civil procedure.
Subd. 4. [CONTESTED ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEEDING.] (a) The
commissioner of human services is authorized to designate
counties to use the contested administrative hearing process
based upon federal guidelines for county performance. The
contested administrative hearing process may also be initiated
upon request of a county board. The administrative hearing
process shall be implemented in counties designated by the
commissioner.
In counties designated by the commissioner, contested
hearings required under this section shall be scheduled before
administrative law judges, and shall be conducted in accordance
with the provisions under this section. In counties not
designated by the commissioner, contested hearings shall be
conducted in district court in accordance with the rules of
civil procedure and the rules of family court.
(b) An administrative law judge may approve a stipulation
reached on a contempt motion brought by the public authority.
Any stipulation that involves a finding of contempt and a jail
sentence, whether stayed or imposed, shall require the review
and signature of a district court judge.
(c) For the purpose of this process, all powers, duties,
and responsibilities conferred on judges of the district court
to obtain and enforce child and medical support and maintenance
obligations, subject to the limitation set forth herein, are
conferred on the administrative law judge conducting the
proceedings, including the power to issue subpoenas, to issue
orders to show cause, and to issue bench warrants for failure to
appear.
(d) Before implementing the process in a county, the chief
administrative law judge, the commissioner of human services,
the director of the county human services agency, the county
attorney, the county court administrator, and the county sheriff
shall jointly establish procedures, and the county shall provide
hearing facilities for implementing this process in the county.
A contested administrative hearing shall be conducted in a
courtroom, if one is available, or a conference or meeting room
with at least two exits and of sufficient size to permit
adequate physical separation of the parties. Security personnel
shall either be present during the administrative hearings, or
be available to respond to a request for emergency assistance.
(e) The contested administrative hearings shall be
conducted under the rules of the office of administrative
hearings, Minnesota Rules, parts 1400.7100 to 1400.7500,
1400.7700, and 1400.7800, as adopted by the chief administrative
law judge. Except as provided under this section, other aspects
of the case, including, but not limited to, pleadings,
discovery, and motions, shall be conducted under the rules of
family court, the rules of civil procedure, and chapter 518.
(f) Pursuant to a contested administrative hearing, the
administrative law judge shall make findings of fact,
conclusions, and a final decision and issue an order. Orders
issued by an administrative law judge may be enforceable by the
contempt powers of the district courts.
(g) At the time the matter is scheduled for a contested
hearing, the public authority shall file in the district court
copies of all relevant documents sent to or received from the
parties, in addition to the documents filed under subdivision 2,
paragraph (e).
(h) The decision and order of the administrative law judge
is appealable to the court of appeals in the same manner as a
decision of the district court.
Subd. 5. [NONATTORNEY AUTHORITY.] Nonattorney employees of
the public authority responsible for child support may prepare,
sign, serve, and file complaints, motions, notices, summary
orders, proposed orders, default orders, and consent orders for
obtaining, modifying, or enforcing child and medical support
orders, orders establishing paternity, and related documents,
and orders to modify maintenance if combined with a child
support order. The nonattorney may also conduct prehearing
conferences, and participate in proceedings before an
administrative law judge. This activity shall not be considered
to be the unauthorized practice of law. Nonattorney employees
may not represent the interests of any party other than the
public authority, and may not give legal advice to any party.
Subd. 6. [SUBPOENAS.] After the commencement of the
administrative process, any party or the public authority may
request a subpoena, and the administrative law judge shall have
the authority to issue subpoenas.
Subd. 7. [PUBLIC AUTHORITY LEGAL ADVISOR.] At all stages
of the administrative process prior to the contested hearing,
the county attorney, or other attorney under contract, shall act
as the legal advisor for the public authority, but shall not
play an active role in the review of information and the
preparation of default and consent orders.
Subd. 8. [COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE ADMINISTRATIVE
PROCESS.] The commissioner of human services shall distribute
money for this purpose to counties to cover the costs of the
administrative process, including the salaries of administrative
law judges. If available appropriations are insufficient to
cover the costs, the commissioner shall prorate the amount among
the counties.
Subd. 9. [TRAINING AND RESTRUCTURING.] The commissioner of
human services shall provide training to child support officers
and other employees of the public authority involved in the
administrative process. The commissioner of human services
shall prepare simple and easy to understand forms for all
notices and orders prescribed in this subdivision, and the
public authority shall use them.
Sec. 2. [INSTRUCTION TO REVISOR.]
In the next edition of Minnesota Statutes, the revisor of
statutes shall delete the term "518.551, subdivision 10" and
replace it with "518.5511" where it appears in Minnesota
Statutes, sections 357.021, subdivision 1a, and 518C.05.
Sec. 3. [REPEALER.]
Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section 518.551,
subdivision 10, is repealed.
Sec. 4. [EFFECTIVE DATE.]
This article is effective August 1, 1994.
ARTICLE 11
CHILD SUPPORT ADMINISTRATION AND ENFORCEMENT
Section 1. [8.35] [PUBLIC EDUCATION CAMPAIGN.]
The attorney general, in consultation with the commissioner
of human services, may establish a public service campaign
designed to educate the public about the necessity of the
payment of child support to the well-being of the state's
children and taxpayers. The commissioner shall enter into a
contract with the attorney general pursuant to section 24,
subdivision 2, for implementation of the campaign. The campaign
may include public service announcements for broadcast through
television, radio, and billboard media.
Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section 13.46,
subdivision 2, is amended to read:
Subd. 2. [GENERAL.] (a) Unless the data is summary data or
a statute specifically provides a different classification, data
on individuals collected, maintained, used, or disseminated by
the welfare system is private data on individuals, and shall not
be disclosed except:
(1) pursuant to section 13.05;
(2) pursuant to court order;
(3) pursuant to a statute specifically authorizing access
to the private data;
(4) to an agent of the welfare system, including a law
enforcement person, attorney, or investigator acting for it in
the investigation or prosecution of a criminal or civil
proceeding relating to the administration of a program;
(5) to personnel of the welfare system who require the data
to determine eligibility, amount of assistance, and the need to
provide services of additional programs to the individual;
(6) to administer federal funds or programs;
(7) between personnel of the welfare system working in the
same program;
(8) the amounts of cash public assistance and relief paid
to welfare recipients in this state, including their names and
social security numbers, upon request by the department of
revenue to administer the property tax refund law, supplemental
housing allowance, and the income tax;
(9) to the Minnesota department of jobs and training for
the purpose of monitoring the eligibility of the data subject
for unemployment compensation, for any employment or training
program administered, supervised, or certified by that agency,
or for the purpose of administering any rehabilitation program,
whether alone or in conjunction with the welfare system, and to
verify receipt of energy assistance for the telephone assistance
plan;
(10) to appropriate parties in connection with an emergency
if knowledge of the information is necessary to protect the
health or safety of the individual or other individuals or
persons;
(11) data maintained by residential facilities as defined
in section 245A.02 may be disclosed to the protection and
advocacy system established in this state pursuant to Part C of
Public Law Number 98-527 to protect the legal and human rights
of persons with mental retardation or other related conditions
who live in residential facilities for these persons if the
protection and advocacy system receives a complaint by or on
behalf of that person and the person does not have a legal
guardian or the state or a designee of the state is the legal
guardian of the person;
(12) to the county medical examiner or the county coroner
for identifying or locating relatives or friends of a deceased
person;
(13) data on a child support obligor who makes payments to
the public agency may be disclosed to the higher education
coordinating board to the extent necessary to determine
eligibility under section 136A.121, subdivision 2, clause (5);
(14) participant social security numbers and names
collected by the telephone assistance program may be disclosed
to the department of revenue to conduct an electronic data match
with the property tax refund database to determine eligibility
under section 237.70, subdivision 4a;
(15) the current address of a recipient of aid to families
with dependent children, medical assistance, general assistance,
work readiness, or general assistance medical care may be
disclosed to law enforcement officers who provide the name and
social security number of the recipient and satisfactorily
demonstrate that: (i) the recipient is a fugitive felon,
including the grounds for this determination; (ii) the location
or apprehension of the felon is within the law enforcement
officer's official duties; and (iii) the request is made in
writing and in the proper exercise of those duties; or
(16) information obtained from food stamp applicant or
recipient households may be disclosed to local, state, or
federal law enforcement officials, upon their written request,
for the purpose of investigating an alleged violation of the
food stamp act, in accordance with Code of Federal Regulations,
title 7, section 272.1(c); or
(17) data on a child support obligor who is in arrears may
be disclosed for purposes of publishing the data pursuant to
section 518.575.
(b) Information on persons who have been treated for drug
or alcohol abuse may only be disclosed in accordance with the
requirements of Code of Federal Regulations, title 42, sections
2.1 to 2.67.
(c) Data provided to law enforcement agencies under
paragraph (a), clause (15) or (16); or (b) are investigative
data and are confidential or protected nonpublic while the
investigation is active. The data are private after the
investigation becomes inactive under section 13.82, subdivision
5, paragraph (a) or (b).
(d) Mental health data shall be treated as provided in
subdivisions 7, 8, and 9, but is not subject to the access
provisions of subdivision 10, paragraph (b).
Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 214.101, as
amended by Laws 1993, chapters 322, sections 1 and 2, and 340,
section 2, is amended to read:
214.101 [CHILD SUPPORT; SUSPENSION OF LICENSE.]
Subdivision 1. [COURT ORDER; HEARING ON SUSPENSION.] (a)
For purposes of this section, "licensing board" means a
licensing board or other state agency that issues an
occupational license.
(b) If a licensing board receives an order from a court or
a notice from a public child support enforcement agency under
section 518.551, subdivision 12, dealing with suspension of a
license of a person found by the court or the public agency to
be in arrears in child support or maintenance payments, or both,
the board shall, within 30 days of receipt of the court order or
public agency notice, provide notice to the licensee and hold a
hearing. If the board finds that the person is licensed by the
board and evidence of full payment of arrearages found to be due
by the court or the public agency is not presented at the
hearing, the board shall suspend the license unless it
determines that probation is appropriate under subdivision 2.
The only issues to be determined by the board are whether the
person named in the court order or public agency notice is a
licensee, whether the arrearages have been paid, and whether
suspension or probation is appropriate. The board may not
consider evidence with respect to the appropriateness of
the court underlying child support order or the ability of the
person to comply with the order. The board may not lift the
suspension until the licensee files with the board proof showing
that the licensee is current in child support payments and
maintenance.
Subd. 2. [PROBATION.] If the board determines that the
suspension of the license would create an extreme hardship to
either the licensee or to persons whom the licensee serves, the
board may, in lieu of suspension, allow the licensee to continue
to practice the occupation on probation. Probation must be
conditioned upon full compliance with the court order or public
agency notice that referred the matter to the board. The
probation period may not exceed two years, and the terms of
probation must provide for automatic suspension of the license
if the licensee does not provide monthly proof to the board of
full compliance with the court order or public agency notice
that referred the matter to the board or a further court
order or public agency notice if the original order is modified
by the court or the public agency.
Subd. 3. [REVOCATION OR REINSTATEMENT OF PROBATION.] If
the licensee has a modification petition pending before the
court or the public agency, the board may, without a hearing,
defer a revocation of probation and institution of suspension
until receipt of the court's ruling on the modification order.
A licensee who was placed on probation and then automatically
suspended may be automatically reinstated upon providing proof
to the board that the licensee is currently in compliance with
the court order or public agency notice.
Subd. 4. [VERIFICATION OF PAYMENTS.] Before a board may
terminate probation, remove a suspension, issue, or renew a
license of a person who has been suspended or placed on
probation under this section, it shall contact the court or
public agency that referred the matter to the board to determine
that the applicant is not in arrears for child support or
maintenance or both. The board may not issue or renew a license
until the applicant proves to the board's satisfaction that the
applicant is current in support payments and maintenance.
Subd. 5. [APPLICATION.] This section applies to support
obligations ordered by any state, territory, or district of the
United States.
Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section
256.87, subdivision 5, is amended to read:
Subd. 5. [CHILD NOT RECEIVING ASSISTANCE.] A person or
entity having physical and legal custody of a dependent child
not receiving assistance under sections 256.72 to 256.87 has a
cause of action for child support against the child's absent
parents. Upon an order to show cause and a motion served on the
absent parent, the court shall order child support payments from
the absent parent under chapter 518. This subdivision applies
only if the person or entity has physical custody with the
consent of a custodial parent or approval of the court.
Sec. 5. Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section
518.14, is amended to read:
518.14 [COSTS AND DISBURSEMENTS AND; ATTORNEY FEES;
COLLECTION COSTS.]
Subdivision 1. [GENERAL.] Except as provided in
subdivision 2, in a proceeding under this chapter, the court
shall award attorney fees, costs, and disbursements in an amount
necessary to enable a party to carry on or contest the
proceeding, provided it finds:
(1) that the fees are necessary for the good-faith
assertion of the party's rights in the proceeding and will not
contribute unnecessarily to the length and expense of the
proceeding;
(2) that the party from whom fees, costs, and disbursements
are sought has the means to pay them; and
(3) that the party to whom fees, costs, and disbursements
are awarded does not have the means to pay them.
Nothing in this section precludes the court from awarding, in
its discretion, additional fees, costs, and disbursements
against a party who unreasonably contributes to the length or
expense of the proceeding. Fees, costs, and disbursements
provided for in this section may be awarded at any point in the
proceeding, including a modification proceeding under sections
518.18 and 518.64. The court may adjudge costs and
disbursements against either party. The court may authorize the
collection of money awarded by execution, or out of property
sequestered, or in any other manner within the power of the
court. An award of attorney's fees made by the court during the
pendency of the proceeding or in the final judgment survives the
proceeding and if not paid by the party directed to pay the same
may be enforced as above provided or by a separate civil action
brought in the attorney's own name. If the proceeding is
dismissed or abandoned prior to determination and award of
attorney's fees, the court may nevertheless award attorney's
fees upon the attorney's motion. The award shall also survive
the proceeding and may be enforced in the same manner as last
above provided.
Subd. 2. [ENFORCEMENT OF CHILD SUPPORT.] (a) A child
support obligee is entitled to recover from the obligor
reasonable attorney fees and other collection costs incurred to
enforce a child support judgment, as provided in this
subdivision. In order to recover collection costs under this
subdivision, the arrearages must be at least $500 and must be at
least 90 days past due. In addition, the arrearages must be a
docketed judgment under sections 548.09 and 548.091. If the
obligor pays in full the judgment rendered under section 548.091
within 20 days of receipt of notice of entry of judgment, the
obligee is not entitled to recover attorney fees or collection
costs under this subdivision.
(b) Written notice must be provided by any obligee
contracting with an attorney or collection entity to enforce a
child support judgment to the public authority responsible for
child support enforcement, if the public authority is a party or
provides services to a party, within five days of signing a
contract for services and within five days of receipting any
payments received on a child support judgment. Attorney fees
and collection costs obtained under this subdivision are
considered child support and entitled to the applicable remedies
for collection and enforcement of child support.
(c) The obligee shall serve notice of the obligee's intent
to recover attorney fees and collections costs by certified or
registered mail on the obligor at the obligor's last known
address. The notice must include an itemization of the attorney
fees and collection costs being sought by the obligee and inform
the obligor that the fees and costs will become an additional
judgment for child support unless the obligor requests a hearing
on the reasonableness of the fees and costs or to contest the
child support judgment on grounds limited to mistake of fact
within 20 days of mailing of the notice.
(d) If the obligor requests a hearing, the only issues to
be determined by the court are whether the attorney fees or
collection costs were reasonably incurred by the obligee for the
enforcement of a child support judgment against the obligor or
the validity of the child support judgment on grounds limited to
mistake of fact. The fees and costs may not exceed 30 percent
of the arrearages. The court may modify the amount of attorney
fees and costs as appropriate and shall enter judgment
accordingly.
(e) If the obligor fails to request a hearing within 20
days of mailing of the notice under paragraph (a), the amount of
the attorney fees or collection costs requested by the obligee
in the notice automatically becomes an additional judgment for
child support.
(f) The commissioner of human services shall prepare and
make available to the court and the parties forms for use in
providing for notice and requesting a hearing under this
subdivision. The rulemaking provisions of chapter 14 do not
apply to the forms.
Sec. 6. Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section
518.171, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. [ORDER.] (a) Every child support order must
expressly assign or reserve the responsibility for maintaining
medical insurance for the minor children and the division of
uninsured medical and dental costs. The court shall order the
party with the better group dependent health and dental
insurance coverage or health insurance plan to name the minor
child as beneficiary on any health and dental insurance plan
that is comparable to or better than a number two qualified plan
and available to the party on:
(i) a group basis; or
(ii) through an employer or union; or
(iii) through a group health plan governed under the ERISA
and included within the definitions relating to health plans
found in section 62A.011, 62A.048, or 62E.06, subdivision 2.
"Health insurance" or "health insurance coverage" as used in
this section means coverage that is comparable to or better than
a number two qualified plan as defined in section 62E.06,
subdivision 2. "Health insurance" or "health insurance
coverage" as used in this section does not include medical
assistance provided under chapter 256, 256B, or 256D.
(b) If the court finds that dependent health or dental
insurance is not available to the obligor or obligee on a group
basis or through an employer or union, or that the group insurer
insurance is not accessible to the obligee, the court may
require the obligor (1) to obtain other dependent health or
dental insurance, (2) to be liable for reasonable and necessary
medical or dental expenses of the child, or (3) to pay no less
than $50 per month to be applied to the medical and dental
expenses of the children or to the cost of health insurance
dependent coverage.
(c) If the court finds that the available dependent health
or dental insurance does not pay all the reasonable and
necessary medical or dental expenses of the child, including any
existing or anticipated extraordinary medical expenses, and the
court finds that the obligor has the financial ability to
contribute to the payment of these medical or dental expenses,
the court shall require the obligor to be liable for all or a
portion of the medical or dental expenses of the child not
covered by the required health or dental plan. Medical and
dental expenses include, but are not limited to, necessary
orthodontia and eye care, including prescription lenses.
(d) If the obligor is employed by a self-insured employer
subject only to the federal Employee Retirement Income Security
Act (ERISA) of 1974, and the insurance benefit plan meets the
above requirements, the court shall order the obligor to enroll
the dependents within 30 days of the court order effective date
or be liable for all medical and dental expenses occurring while
coverage is not in effect. If enrollment in the ERISA plan is
precluded by exclusionary clauses, the court shall order the
obligor to obtain other coverage or make payments as provided in
paragraph (b) or (c).
(e) Unless otherwise agreed by the parties and approved by
the court, if the court finds that the obligee is not receiving
public assistance for the child and has the financial ability to
contribute to the cost of medical and dental expenses for the
child, including the cost of insurance, the court shall order
the obligee and obligor to each assume a portion of these
expenses based on their proportionate share of their total net
income as defined in section 518.54, subdivision 6.
(f) (e) Payments ordered under this section are subject to
section 518.611. An obligee who fails to apply payments
received to the medical expenses of the dependents may be found
in contempt of this order.
Sec. 7. Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section
518.171, subdivision 6, is amended to read:
Subd. 6. [INSURER PLAN REIMBURSEMENT; CORRESPONDENCE AND
NOTICE.] (a) The signature of the custodial parent of the
insured dependent is a valid authorization to the insurer a
health or dental insurance plan for purposes of processing an
insurance reimbursement payment to the provider of the medical
services or to the custodial parent if medical services have
been prepaid by the custodial parent.
(b) The insurer health or dental insurance plan shall send
copies of all correspondence regarding the insurance coverage to
both parents. When an order for dependent insurance coverage is
in effect and the obligor's employment is terminated, or the
insurance coverage is terminated, the insurer health or dental
insurance plan shall notify the obligee within ten days of the
termination date with notice of conversion privileges.
Sec. 8. Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 518.18, is
amended to read:
518.18 [MODIFICATION OF ORDER.]
(a) Unless agreed to in writing by the parties, no motion
to modify a custody order may be made earlier than one year
after the date of the entry of a decree of dissolution or legal
separation containing a provision dealing with custody, except
in accordance with paragraph (c).
(b) If a motion for modification has been heard, whether or
not it was granted, unless agreed to in writing by the parties
no subsequent motion may be filed within two years after
disposition of the prior motion on its merits, except in
accordance with paragraph (c).
(c) The time limitations prescribed in paragraphs (a) and
(b) shall not prohibit a motion to modify a custody order if the
court finds that there is persistent and willful denial or
interference with visitation, or has reason to believe that the
child's present environment may endanger the child's physical or
emotional health or impair the child's emotional development.
(d) If the court has jurisdiction to determine child
custody matters, the court shall not modify a prior custody
order unless it finds, upon the basis of facts that have arisen
since the prior order or that were unknown to the court at the
time of the prior order, that a change has occurred in the
circumstances of the child or the parties and that the
modification is necessary to serve the best interests of the
child. In applying these standards the court shall retain the
custody arrangement established by the prior order unless:
(i) both parties agree to the modification;
(ii) the child has been integrated into the family of the
petitioner with the consent of the other party; or
(iii) the child's present environment endangers the child's
physical or emotional health or impairs the child's emotional
development and the harm likely to be caused by a change of
environment is outweighed by the advantage of a change to the
child.
In addition, a court may modify a custody order under
section 631.52.
(e) In deciding whether to modify a prior joint custody
order, the court shall apply the standards set forth in
paragraph (d) unless: (1) the parties agree in writing to the
application of a different standard, or (2) the party seeking
the modification is asking the court for permission to move the
residence of the child to another state.
(f) If a custodial parent has been granted sole physical
custody of a minor and the child subsequently lives with the
noncustodial parent, and temporary sole physical custody has
been approved by the court or by a court-appointed referee, the
court may suspend the noncustodial parent's child support
obligation pending the final custody determination. The court's
order denying the suspension of child support must include a
written explanation of the reasons why continuation of the child
support obligation would be in the best interests of the child.
Sec. 9. Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section
518.551, subdivision 5, is amended to read:
Subd. 5. [NOTICE TO PUBLIC AUTHORITY; GUIDELINES.] (a) The
petitioner shall notify the public authority of all proceedings
for dissolution, legal separation, determination of parentage or
for the custody of a child, if either party is receiving aid to
families with dependent children or applies for it subsequent to
the commencement of the proceeding. The notice must contain the
full names of the parties to the proceeding, their social
security account numbers, and their birth dates. After receipt
of the notice, the court shall set child support as provided in
this subdivision. The court may order either or both parents
owing a duty of support to a child of the marriage to pay an
amount reasonable or necessary for the child's support, without
regard to marital misconduct. The court shall approve a child
support stipulation of the parties if each party is represented
by independent counsel, unless the stipulation does not meet the
conditions of paragraph (i). In other cases the court shall
determine and order child support in a specific dollar amount in
accordance with the guidelines and the other factors set forth
in paragraph (b) and any departure therefrom. The court may
also order the obligor to pay child support in the form of a
percentage share of the obligor's net bonuses, commissions, or
other forms of compensation, in addition to, or if the obligor
receives no base pay, in lieu of, an order for a specific dollar
amount.
(b) The court shall derive a specific dollar amount for
child support by multiplying the obligor's net income by the
percentage indicated by the following guidelines:
Net Income Per Number of Children
Month of Obligor
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 or
more
$550 and Below Order based on the ability of the
obligor to provide support
at these income levels, or at higher
levels, if the obligor has
the earning ability.
$551 - 600 16% 19% 22% 25% 28% 30% 32%
$601 - 650 17% 21% 24% 27% 29% 32% 34%
$651 - 700 18% 22% 25% 28% 31% 34% 36%
$701 - 750 19% 23% 27% 30% 33% 36% 38%
$751 - 800 20% 24% 28% 31% 35% 38% 40%
$801 - 850 21% 25% 29% 33% 36% 40% 42%
$851 - 900 22% 27% 31% 34% 38% 41% 44%
$901 - 950 23% 28% 32% 36% 40% 43% 46%
$951 - 1000 24% 29% 34% 38% 41% 45% 48%
$1001- 5000 25% 30% 35% 39% 43% 47% 50%
or the amount
in effect under
paragraph (k)
Guidelines for support for an obligor with a monthly income
in excess of the income limit currently in effect under
paragraph (k) shall be the same dollar amounts as provided for
in the guidelines for an obligor with a monthly income equal to
the limit in effect.
Net Income defined as:
Total monthly
income less *(i) Federal Income Tax
*(ii) State Income Tax
(iii) Social Security
Deductions
(iv) Reasonable
Pension Deductions
*Standard
Deductions apply- (v) Union Dues
use of tax tables (vi) Cost of Dependent Health
recommended Insurance Coverage
(vii) Cost of Individual or Group
Health/Hospitalization
Coverage or an
Amount for Actual
Medical Expenses
(viii) A Child Support or
Maintenance Order that is
Currently Being Paid.
"Net income" does not include:
(1) the income of the obligor's spouse, but does include
in-kind payments received by the obligor in the course of
employment, self-employment, or operation of a business if the
payments reduce the obligor's living expenses; or
(2) compensation received by a party for employment in
excess of a 40-hour work week, provided that:
(i) support is nonetheless ordered in an amount at least
equal to the guidelines amount based on income not excluded
under this clause; and
(ii) the party demonstrates, and the court finds, that:
(A) the excess employment began after the filing of the
petition for dissolution;
(B) the excess employment reflects an increase in the work
schedule or hours worked over that of the two years immediately
preceding the filing of the petition;
(C) the excess employment is voluntary and not a condition
of employment;
(D) the excess employment is in the nature of additional,
part-time or overtime employment compensable by the hour or
fraction of an hour; and
(E) the party's compensation structure has not been changed
for the purpose of affecting a support or maintenance obligation.
The court shall review the work-related and
education-related child care costs of the custodial parent paid
and shall allocate the costs to each parent in proportion to
each parent's net income, as determined under this subdivision,
after the transfer of child support and spousal maintenance,
unless the allocation would be substantially unfair to either
parent. There is a presumption of substantial unfairness if
after the sum total of child support, spousal maintenance, and
child care costs is subtracted from the noncustodial parent's
income, the income is at or below 100 percent of the federal
poverty guidelines. The cost of child care for purposes of this
section paragraph is determined by subtracting the amount of any
federal and state income tax credits available to a parent
from 75 percent of the actual cost paid for child care, to
reflect the approximate value of state and federal tax credits
available to the custodial parent. The actual cost paid for
child care is the total amount received by the child care
provider for the child or children from the obligee or any
public agency. The amount allocated for child care expenses is
considered child support but is not subject to a cost-of-living
adjustment under section 518.641. The amount allocated for
child care expenses terminates when the child care costs end.
(c) In addition to the child support guidelines, the court
shall take into consideration the following factors in setting
or modifying child support or in determining whether to deviate
from the guidelines:
(1) all earnings, income, and resources of the parents,
including real and personal property, but excluding income from
excess employment of the obligor or obligee that meets the
criteria of paragraph (b), clause (2)(ii);
(2) the financial needs and resources, physical and
emotional condition, and educational needs of the child or
children to be supported;
(3) the standards of living the child would have enjoyed
had the marriage not been dissolved, but recognizing that the
parents now have separate households;
(4) which parent receives the income taxation dependency
exemption and what financial benefit the parent receives from
it;
(5) the parents' debts as provided in paragraph (d); and
(6) the obligor's receipt of assistance under sections
256.72 to 256.87 or 256B.01 to 256B.40.
(d) In establishing or modifying a support obligation, the
court may consider debts owed to private creditors, but only if:
(1) the right to support has not been assigned under
section 256.74;
(2) the court determines that the debt was reasonably
incurred for necessary support of the child or parent or for the
necessary generation of income. If the debt was incurred for
the necessary generation of income, the court shall consider
only the amount of debt that is essential to the continuing
generation of income; and
(3) the party requesting a departure produces a sworn
schedule of the debts, with supporting documentation, showing
goods or services purchased, the recipient of them, the amount
of the original debt, the outstanding balance, the monthly
payment, and the number of months until the debt will be fully
paid.
(e) Any schedule prepared under paragraph (d), clause (3),
shall contain a statement that the debt will be fully paid after
the number of months shown in the schedule, barring emergencies
beyond the party's control.
(f) Any further departure below the guidelines that is
based on a consideration of debts owed to private creditors
shall not exceed 18 months in duration, after which the support
shall increase automatically to the level ordered by the court.
Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit one or
more step increases in support to reflect debt retirement during
the 18-month period.
(g) If payment of debt is ordered pursuant to this section,
the payment shall be ordered to be in the nature of child
support.
(h) Nothing shall preclude the court from receiving
evidence on the above factors to determine if the guidelines
should be exceeded or modified in a particular case.
(i) The guidelines in this subdivision are a rebuttable
presumption and shall be used in all cases when establishing or
modifying child support. If the court does not deviate from the
guidelines, the court shall make written findings concerning the
amount of the obligor's income used as the basis for the
guidelines calculation and any other significant evidentiary
factors affecting the determination of child support. If the
court deviates from the guidelines, the court shall make written
findings giving the amount of support calculated under the
guidelines, the reasons for the deviation, and shall
specifically address the criteria in paragraph (b) and how the
deviation serves the best interest of the child. The provisions
of this paragraph apply whether or not the parties are each
represented by independent counsel and have entered into a
written agreement. The court shall review stipulations
presented to it for conformity to the guidelines and the court
is not required to conduct a hearing, but the parties shall
provide the documentation of earnings required under subdivision
5b.
(j) If the child support payments are assigned to the
public agency under section 256.74, the court may not deviate
downward from the child support guidelines unless the court
specifically finds that the failure to deviate downward would
impose an extreme hardship on the obligor.
(k) The dollar amount of the income limit for application
of the guidelines must be adjusted on July 1 of every
even-numbered year to reflect cost-of-living changes. The
supreme court shall select the index for the adjustment from the
indices listed in section 518.641. The state court
administrator shall make the changes in the dollar amount
required by this paragraph available to courts and the public on
or before April 30 of the year in which the amount is to change.
Sec. 10. Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section
518.551, subdivision 12, is amended to read:
Subd. 12. [OCCUPATIONAL LICENSE SUSPENSION.] (a) Upon
petition of an obligee or public agency responsible for child
support enforcement, if the court finds that the obligor is or
may be licensed by a licensing board listed in section 214.01 or
other state agency or board that issues an occupational license
and the obligor is in arrears in court-ordered child support or
maintenance payments or both, the court may direct the licensing
board or other licensing agency to conduct a hearing under
section 214.101 concerning suspension of the obligor's license.
If the obligor is a licensed attorney, the court may report the
matter to the lawyers professional responsibility board for
appropriate action in accordance with the rules of professional
conduct. The remedy under this subdivision is in addition to
any other enforcement remedy available to the court.
(b) If a public agency responsible for child support
enforcement finds that the obligor is or may be licensed by a
licensing board listed in section 214.01 or other state agency
or board that issues an occupational license and the obligor is
in arrears in court-ordered child support or maintenance
payments or both, the public agency may direct the licensing
board or other licensing agency to conduct a hearing under
section 214.101 concerning suspension of the obligor's license.
If the obligor is a licensed attorney, the public agency may
report the matter to the lawyers professional responsibility
board for appropriate action in accordance with the rules of
professional conduct. The remedy under this subdivision is in
addition to any other enforcement remedy available to the public
agency.
Sec. 11. [518.575] [PUBLICATION OF NAMES OF DELINQUENT
CHILD SUPPORT OBLIGORS.]
Every three months the department of human services shall
publish in the newspaper of widest circulation in each county a
list of the names and last known addresses of each person who
(1) is a child support obligor, (2) resides in the county, (3)
is at least $3,000 in arrears, and (4) has not made a child
support payment, or has made only partial child support payments
that total less than 25 percent of the amount of child support
owed, for the last 12 months including any payments made through
the interception of federal or state taxes. The rate charged
for publication shall be the newspaper's lowest classified
display rate, including all available discounts. An obligor's
name may not be published if the obligor claims in writing, and
the department of human services determines, there is good cause
for the nonpayment of child support. The list must be based on
the best information available to the state at the time of
publication.
Before publishing the name of the obligor, the department
of human services shall send a notice to the obligor's last
known address which states the department's intention to publish
the obligor's name and the amount of child support the obligor
owes. The notice must also provide an opportunity to have the
obligor's name removed from the list by paying the arrearage or
by entering into an agreement to pay the arrearage, and the
final date when the payment or agreement can be accepted.
The department of human services shall insert with the
notices sent to the obligee, a notice stating the intent to
publish the obligor's name, and the criteria used to determine
the publication of the obligor's name.
Sec. 12. Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section
518.64, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
Subd. 2. [MODIFICATION.] (a) The terms of an order
respecting maintenance or support may be modified upon a showing
of one or more of the following: (1) substantially increased or
decreased earnings of a party; (2) substantially increased or
decreased need of a party or the child or children that are the
subject of these proceedings; (3) receipt of assistance under
sections 256.72 to 256.87 or 256B.01 to 256B.40; (4) a change in
the cost of living for either party as measured by the federal
bureau of statistics, any of which makes the terms unreasonable
and unfair; (5) extraordinary medical expenses of the child not
provided for under section 518.171; or (6) the addition or
elimination of work-related or education-related child care
expenses of the obligee or a substantial increase or decrease in
existing work-related or education-related child care expenses.
It is presumed that there has been a substantial change in
circumstances under clause (1), (2), or (4) and the terms of a
current support order shall be rebuttably presumed to be
unreasonable and unfair if the application of the child support
guidelines in section 518.551, subdivision 5, to the current
circumstances of the parties results in a calculated court order
that is at least 20 percent and at least $50 per month higher or
lower than the current support order.
(b) On a motion for modification of maintenance, including
a motion for the extension of the duration of a maintenance
award, the court shall apply, in addition to all other relevant
factors, the factors for an award of maintenance under section
518.552 that exist at the time of the motion. On a motion for
modification of support, the court:
(1) shall apply section 518.551, subdivision 5, and shall
not consider the financial circumstances of each party's spouse,
if any; and
(2) shall not consider compensation received by a party for
employment in excess of a 40-hour work week, provided that the
party demonstrates, and the court finds, that:
(i) the excess employment began after entry of the existing
support order;
(ii) the excess employment is voluntary and not a condition
of employment;
(iii) the excess employment is in the nature of additional,
part-time employment, or overtime employment compensable by the
hour or fractions of an hour;
(iv) the party's compensation structure has not been
changed for the purpose of affecting a support or maintenance
obligation;
(v) in the case of an obligor, current child support
payments are at least equal to the guidelines amount based on
income not excluded under this clause; and
(vi) in the case of an obligor who is in arrears in child
support payments to the obligee, any net income from excess
employment must be used to pay the arrearages until the
arrearages are paid in full.
(c) A modification of support or maintenance may be made
retroactive only with respect to any period during which the
petitioning party has pending a motion for modification but only
from the date of service of notice of the motion on the
responding party and on the public authority if public
assistance is being furnished or the county attorney is the
attorney of record. However, modification may be applied to an
earlier period if the court makes express findings that the
party seeking modification was precluded from serving a motion
by reason of a significant physical or mental disability, a
material misrepresentation of another party, or fraud upon the
court and that the party seeking modification, when no longer
precluded, promptly served a motion.
(d) Except for an award of the right of occupancy of the
homestead, provided in section 518.63, all divisions of real and
personal property provided by section 518.58 shall be final, and
may be revoked or modified only where the court finds the
existence of conditions that justify reopening a judgment under
the laws of this state, including motions under section 518.145,
subdivision 2. The court may impose a lien or charge on the
divided property at any time while the property, or subsequently
acquired property, is owned by the parties or either of them,
for the payment of maintenance or support money, or may
sequester the property as is provided by section 518.24.
(e) The court need not hold an evidentiary hearing on a
motion for modification of maintenance or support.
(f) Section 518.14 shall govern the award of attorney fees
for motions brought under this subdivision.
Sec. 13. Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section
518.68, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. [REQUIREMENT.] Every court order for or
judgment and decree that provides for child support, spousal
maintenance, custody, or visitation must contain certain notices
as set out in subdivision 2. The information in the notices
must be concisely stated in plain language. The notices must be
in clearly legible print, but may not exceed two pages. An
order or judgment and decree without the notice remains subject
to all statutes. The court may waive all or part of the notice
required under subdivision 2 relating to parental rights under
section 518.17, subdivision 3, if it finds it is necessary to
protect the welfare of a party or child.
Sec. 14. Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section
518.68, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
Subd. 2. [CONTENTS.] The required notices must be
substantially as follows:
IMPORTANT NOTICE
1. PAYMENTS TO PUBLIC AGENCY
Pursuant to Minnesota Statutes, section 518.551,
subdivision 1, payments ordered for maintenance and support
must be paid to the public agency responsible for child
support enforcement as long as the person entitled to
receive the payments is receiving or has applied for public
assistance or has applied for support and maintenance
collection services. MAIL PAYMENTS TO:
2. DEPRIVING ANOTHER OF CUSTODIAL OR PARENTAL RIGHTS -- A
FELONY
A person may be charged with a felony who conceals a minor
child or takes, obtains, retains, or fails to return a
minor child from or to the child's parent (or person with
custodial or visitation rights), pursuant to Minnesota
Statutes, section 609.26. A copy of that section is
available from any district court clerk.
3. RULES OF SUPPORT, MAINTENANCE, VISITATION
(a) Payment of support or spousal maintenance is to be as
ordered, and the giving of gifts or making purchases of
food, clothing, and the like will not fulfill the
obligation.
(b) Payment of support must be made as it becomes due, and
failure to secure or denial of rights of visitation is NOT
an excuse for nonpayment, but the aggrieved party must seek
relief through a proper motion filed with the court.
(c) Nonpayment of support is not grounds to deny
visitation. The party entitled to receive support may
apply for support and collection services, file a contempt
motion, or obtain a judgment as provided in Minnesota
Statutes, section 548.091.
(d) The payment of support or spousal maintenance takes
priority over payment of debts and other obligations.
(d) (e) A party who remarries after dissolution and accepts
additional obligations of support does so with the full
knowledge of the party's prior obligation under this
proceeding.
(e) (f) Child support or maintenance is based on annual
income, and it is the responsibility of a person with
seasonal employment to budget income so that payments are
made throughout the year as ordered.
(g) If there is a layoff or a pay reduction, support may be
reduced as of the time of the layoff or pay reduction if a
motion to reduce the support is served and filed with the
court at that time, but any such reduction must be ordered
by the court. The court is not permitted to reduce support
retroactively, except as provided in Minnesota Statutes,
section 518.64, subdivision 2, paragraph (c).
4. PARENTAL RIGHTS FROM MINNESOTA STATUTES, SECTION 518.17,
SUBDIVISION 3
Unless otherwise provided by the Court:
(a) Each party has the right of access to, and to receive
copies of, school, medical, dental, religious training, and
other important records and information about the minor
children. Each party has the right of access to
information regarding health or dental insurance available
to the minor children. Presentation of a copy of this
order to the custodian of a record or other information
about the minor children constitutes sufficient
authorization for the release of the record or information
to the requesting party.
(b) Each party shall keep the other informed as to the name
and address of the school of attendance of the minor
children. Each party has the right to be informed by
school officials about the children's welfare, educational
progress and status, and to attend school and parent
teacher conferences. The school is not required to hold a
separate conference for each party.
(c) In case of an accident or serious illness of a minor
child, each party shall notify the other party of the
accident or illness, and the name of the health care
provider and the place of treatment.
(d) Each party has the right of reasonable access and
telephone contact with the minor children.
5. WAGE AND INCOME DEDUCTION OF SUPPORT AND MAINTENANCE
Child support and/or spousal maintenance may be withheld
from income, with or without notice to the person obligated
to pay, when the conditions of Minnesota Statutes, sections
518.611 and 518.613, have been met. A copy of those
sections is available from any district court clerk.
6. CHANGE OF ADDRESS OR RESIDENCE
Unless otherwise ordered, the person responsible to make
support or maintenance payments shall notify the person
entitled to receive the payment and the public authority
responsible for collection, if applicable, of a change of
address or residence within 60 days of the address or
residence change.
7. COST OF LIVING INCREASE OF SUPPORT AND MAINTENANCE
Child support and/or spousal maintenance may be adjusted
every two years based upon a change in the cost of living
(using Department of Labor Consumer Price Index ..........,
unless otherwise specified in this order) when the
conditions of Minnesota Statutes, section 518.641, are met.
Cost of living increases are compounded. A copy of
Minnesota Statutes, section 518.641, and forms necessary to
request or contest a cost of living increase are available
from any district court clerk.
8. JUDGMENTS FOR UNPAID SUPPORT
If a person fails to make a child support payment, the
payment owed becomes a judgment against the person
responsible to make the payment by operation of law on or
after the date the payment is due, and the person entitled
to receive the payment or the public agency may obtain
entry and docketing of the judgment WITHOUT NOTICE to the
person responsible to make the payment under Minnesota
Statutes, section 548.091. Interest begins to accrue on a
payment or installment of child support whenever the unpaid
amount due is greater than the current support due,
pursuant to Minnesota Statutes, section 548.091,
subdivision 1a.
9. JUDGMENTS FOR UNPAID MAINTENANCE
A judgment for unpaid spousal maintenance may be entered
when the conditions of Minnesota Statutes, section 548.091,
are met. A copy of that section is available from any
district court clerk.
10. MEDICAL INSURANCE AND EXPENSES
The person responsible to pay support and the person's
employer or union are ordered to provide medical and dental
insurance and pay for uncovered expenses under the
conditions of Minnesota Statutes, section 518.171, unless
otherwise provided in this order or the statute. A copy of
this statute is available from any district court clerk.
10. ATTORNEY FEES AND COLLECTION COSTS FOR ENFORCEMENT OF CHILD
SUPPORT
A judgment for attorney fees and other collection costs
incurred in enforcing a child support order will be entered
against the person responsible to pay support when the
conditions of section 518.14, subdivision 2, are met. A
copy of section 518.14 and forms necessary to request or
contest these attorney fees and collection costs are
available from any district court clerk.
Sec. 15. Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section
518.68, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
Subd. 3. [COPIES OF LAW AND FORMS.] The district court
administrator shall make available at no charge copies of
sections 518.14, 518.17, 518.611, 518.613, 518.641, 548.091, and
609.26, and shall provide forms to request or contest attorney
fees and collection costs or a cost-of-living increase under
section 518.14, subdivision 2, or 518.641.
Sec. 16. Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 548.091,
subdivision 2a, is amended to read:
Subd. 2a. [DOCKETING OF CHILD SUPPORT JUDGMENT.] On or
after the date an unpaid amount becomes a judgment by operation
of law under subdivision 1a, the obligee or the public authority
may file with the court administrator:
(1) a statement identifying, or a copy of, the judgment or
decree of dissolution or legal separation, determination of
parentage, order under chapter 518C, an order under section
256.87, or an order under section 260.251, which provides for
installment or periodic payments of child support, or a judgment
or notice of attorney fees and collection costs under section
518.14, subdivision 2;
(2) an affidavit of default. The affidavit of default must
state the full name, occupation, place of residence, and last
known post office address of the obligor, the name and post
office address of the obligee, the date or dates payment was due
and not received and judgment was obtained by operation of law,
and the total amount of the judgments; and
(3) an affidavit of service of a notice of entry of
judgment or notice of intent to recover attorney fees and
collection costs on the obligor, in person or by mail at the
obligor's last known post office address. Service is completed
upon mailing in the manner designated.
Sec. 17. Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section
609.375, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
Subd. 2. If the violation of subdivision 1 continues for a
period in excess of 90 days but not more than 180 days, the
person is guilty of a gross misdemeanor and may be sentenced to
imprisonment for not more than one year or to payment of a fine
of not more than $3,000, or both.
Sec. 18. Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 609.375, is
amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 2a. If the violation of subdivision 1 continues for
a period in excess of 180 days, the person is guilty of a felony
and upon conviction may be sentenced to imprisonment for not
more than two years or to payment of a fine of not more than
$5,000, or both.
Sec. 19. Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 609.375, is
amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 5. [VENUE.] A person who violates this section may
be prosecuted and tried in the county in which the support
obligor resides or in the county in which the obligee or the
child resides.
Sec. 20. Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 609.375, is
amended by adding a subdivision to read:
Subd. 6. [DISMISSAL OF CHARGE.] A felony charge brought
under subdivision 2a of this section shall be dismissed if:
(1) the support obligor provides the county child support
enforcement agency with an affidavit attesting the obligor's
present address, occupation, employer, and current income, and
consents to service of an order for automatic income
withholding; or
(2) the support obligor makes satisfactory arrangements for
payment with the county child support enforcement agency of all
accumulated arrearages and any ongoing support obligations. For
purposes of this section, satisfactory arrangements shall be
reasonably consistent with the obligor's ability to pay.
In any case for which dismissal is sought under this
subdivision, the felony charge shall be continued for dismissal
for a period of six months. If the obligor meets all
requirements of the payment plan within that six-month period,
the felony charge shall be dismissed.
Sec. 21. [INCOME SHARES MODEL CHILD SUPPORT GUIDELINE.]
The department of human services, in consultation with the
commissioner's advisory committee for child support enforcement,
shall develop an income shares model child support guideline and
present it to the legislature for consideration, in addition to
the plan for including contested hearings in the simple,
statewide administrative process no later than February 1, 1995.
Sec. 22. [MINNESOTA CHILD SUPPORT ASSURANCE PROGRAM.]
Subdivision 1. [AUTHORIZATION TO DESIGN
DEMONSTRATION.] The commissioner of human services, in
consultation with the commissioners of education, finance, jobs
and training, health, and planning, the director of the higher
education coordinating board, and the attorney general, is
authorized to proceed with planning and designing the Minnesota
child support assurance program. The commissioner shall not
proceed with the program plan if, at any point, the federal
government informs the state that the federal government will
not be seeking demonstration projects of child support assurance
or will not be providing enhanced federal funding. The plan and
design shall include an assessment of the feasibility of the
state guaranteeing a minimum level of support from a
noncustodial parent and shall further provide that the state
will provide that level of support to the child in instances
where it is not provided by the child's noncustodial parent.
The program plan shall specifically determine whether and the
extent to which benefits received by a family under the
Minnesota child support assurance program will reduce benefits
paid to the family through the aid to families with dependent
children program. The program plan shall also provide that the
receipt of child support assurance benefits does not negatively
affect any existing eligibility for child care assistance under
existing programs and shall consider how the receipt of child
support assurance benefits affects eligibility under other
government benefit programs, including housing assistance,
energy assistance, and food stamps.
Subd. 2. [GOALS OF THE MINNESOTA CHILD SUPPORT ASSURANCE
PROGRAM.] The commissioner shall design the program to meet the
following goals:
(1) to support parents in their efforts to provide
financial support for their children;
(2) to encourage parents to meet their legal obligations of
support;
(3) to prevent long-term dependence on public assistance;
and
(4) to allow the state to compare the cost-effectiveness
and the efficacy of child support assurance to the Minnesota
family investment program in attempting to restructure the
existing system of public assistance.
Subd. 3. [PROGRAM DATA.] As part of planning and designing
the Minnesota child support assurance program, the commissioner
shall study and make recommendations on:
(1) the amount of the guaranteed child support assurance
benefit;
(2) the anticipated reduction in the aid to families with
dependent children caseload which should result from the
implementation of a child support assurance program;
(3) the anticipated cost of the program on a demonstration
basis;
(4) the selection of counties to serve as field trial or
comparison sites based on criteria which will ensure reliable
evaluation of the program. This selection shall be made so that
an adverse impact on the Minnesota family investment program is
avoided; and
(5) the waivers of all applicable federal requirements
needed to implement the Minnesota child support assurance
program in a manner consistent with the goals of the program.
In order to make recommendations on the amount of the
guaranteed child support assurance benefit, the commissioner
shall conduct a study of and make detailed findings on the
actual cost in Minnesota of items necessary to adequately meet a
child's basic needs.
The commissioner shall report the findings and
recommendations to the legislature by January 15, 1995.
Sec. 23. [REPORT TO LEGISLATURE.]
The department of human services shall report to the
legislature by January 31, 1996, in the department of human
services annual report to the legislature, the fiscal
implications of the program, established in Minnesota Statutes,
section 518.575, which publishes the names of delinquent child
support obligors, including related costs and savings.
Sec. 24. [APPROPRIATION.]
Subdivision 1. $150,000 is appropriated from the general
fund to the commissioner of human services to plan and design
the child support assurance program provided for by section 22,
to be available until June 30, 1995.
Subd. 2. $75,000 is appropriated from the general fund to
the commissioner of human services for the child support public
education campaign provided for by section 1, to be available
until June 30, 1995. The commissioner shall enter into a
$75,000 contract with the attorney general for the
implementation of the campaign.
Subd. 3. The appropriations in this section must not be
included in the budget base for the 1996-1997 biennium.
Sec. 25. [EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICATION.]
Section 5 (518.14) is effective August 1, 1994, and applies
to attorney fees and collection costs incurred on and after that
date, regardless of when the arrearages accrued.
Section 7 (518.171, subdivision 6) is effective retroactive
to July 1, 1993.
Sections 17 to 20 (609.375) are effective the day following
final enactment and apply to crimes committed on and after that
date.
ARTICLE 12
MISCELLANEOUS FAMILY LAW
Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 1993 Supplement, section
363.03, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
Subd. 3. [PUBLIC ACCOMMODATIONS.] (a) It is an unfair
discriminatory practice:
(1) to deny any person the full and equal enjoyment of the
goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, and
accommodations of a place of public accommodation because of
race, color, creed, religion, disability, national
origin, marital status, sexual orientation, or sex, or for a
taxicab company to discriminate in the access to, full
utilization of, or benefit from service because of a person's
disability; or
(2) for a place of public accommodation not to make
reasonable accommodation to the known physical, sensory, or
mental disability of a disabled person. In determining whether
an accommodation is reasonable, the factors to be considered may
include:
(i) the frequency and predictability with which members of
the public will be served by the accommodation at that location;
(ii) the size of the business or organization at that
location with respect to physical size, annual gross revenues,
and the number of employees;
(iii) the extent to which disabled persons will be further
served from the accommodation;
(iv) the type of operation;
(v) the nature and amount of both direct costs and
legitimate indirect costs of making the accommodation and the
reasonableness for that location to finance the accommodation;
and
(vi) the extent to which any persons may be adversely
affected by the accommodation.
State or local building codes control where applicable.
Violations of state or local building codes are not violations
of this chapter and must be enforced under normal building code
procedures.
(b) This paragraph lists general prohibitions against
discrimination on the basis of disability. For purposes of this
paragraph "individual" or "class of individuals" refers to the
clients or customers of the covered public accommodation that
enter into the contractual, licensing, or other arrangement.
(1) It is discriminatory to:
(i) subject an individual or class of individuals on the
basis of a disability of that individual or class, directly or
through contractual, licensing, or other arrangements, to a
denial of the opportunity of the individual or class to
participate in or benefit from the goods, services, facilities,
privileges, advantages, or accommodations of an entity;
(ii) afford an individual or class of individuals on the
basis of the disability of that individual or class, directly or
through contractual, licensing, or other arrangements, with the
opportunity to participate in or benefit from the goods,
services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations
that are not equal to those afforded to other individuals; and
(iii) provide an individual or class of individuals, on the
basis of a disability of that individual or class, directly or
through contractual, licensing, or other arrangements, with
goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or
accommodations that are different or separate from those
provided to other individuals, unless the action is necessary to
provide the individual or class of individuals with goods,
services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations,
or other opportunities that are as effective as those provided
to others.
(2) Goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages,
and accommodations must be afforded to an individual with a
disability in the most integrated setting appropriate to the
needs of the individual.
(3) Notwithstanding the existence of separate or different
programs or activities provided in accordance with this section,
the individual with a disability may not be denied the
opportunity to participate in the programs or activities that
are not separate or different.
(4) An individual or entity may not, directly or through
contractual or other arrangements, use standards or criteria and
methods of administration:
(i) that have the effect of discriminating on the basis of
disability; or
(ii) that perpetuate the discrimination of others who are
subject to common administrative control.
(c) This paragraph lists specific prohibitions against
discrimination on the basis of disability. For purposes of this
paragraph, discrimination includes:
(1) the imposition or application of eligibility criteria
that screen out or tend to screen out an individual with a
disability or any class of individuals with disabilities from
fully and equally enjoying any goods, services, facilities,
privileges, advantages, or accommodations, unless the criteria
can be shown to be necessary for the provision of the goods,
services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations;
(2) failure to make reasonable modifications in policies,
practices, or procedures when the modifications are necessary to
afford the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages,
or accommodations to individuals with disabilities, unless the
entity can demonstrate that making the modifications would
fundamentally alter the nature of the goods, services,
facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations;
(3) failure to take all necessary steps to ensure that no
individual with a disability is excluded, denied services,
segregated, or otherwise treated differently than other
individuals because of the absence of auxiliary aids and
services, unless the entity can demonstrate that taking the
steps would fundamentally alter the nature of the goods,
services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations
being offered and would result in an undue burden;
(4) failure to remove architectural barriers, and
communication barriers that are structural in nature, in
existing facilities, and transportation barriers in existing
vehicles used by an establishment for transporting individuals,
not including barriers that can only be removed through the
retrofitting of vehicles by the installation of hydraulic or
other lifts, if the removal is readily achievable; and
(5) if an entity can demonstrate that the removal of a
barrier under clause (4) is not readily achievable or cannot be
considered a reasonable accommodation, a failure to make the
goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or
accommodations available through alternative means if the means
are readily achievable.
(d) Nothing in this chapter requires an entity to permit an
individual to participate in and benefit from the goods,
services, facilities, privileges, advantages, and accommodations
of the entity if the individual poses a direct threat to the
health or safety of others. "Direct threat" means a significant
risk to the health or safety of others that cannot be eliminated
by a modification of policies, practices, or procedures or by
the provision of auxiliary aids or services.
(e) No individual may be discriminated against on the basis
of disability in the full and equal enjoyment of specified
public transportation services provided by a private entity that
is primarily engaged in the business of transporting people and
whose operations affect commerce. For purposes of this
paragraph, it is an unfair discriminatory practice for a private
entity providing public transportation to engage in one or more
of the following practices:
(1) imposition or application of eligibility criteria that
screen out, or tend to screen out, an individual with a
disability or a class of individuals with disabilities from
fully enjoying the specified public transportation services
provided by the entity, unless the criteria can be shown to be
necessary for the provision of the services being offered;
(2) failure to make reasonable modifications, provide
auxiliary aids and services, and remove barriers, consistent
with section 363.03, subdivision 3, paragraph (c);
(3) the purchase or lease of a new vehicle, other than an
automobile or van with a seating capacity of fewer than eight
passengers, including the driver, or an over-the-road bus, that
is to be used to provide specified public transportation that is
not readily accessible to and usable by individuals with
disabilities, including individuals who use wheelchairs, except
that a new vehicle need not be readily accessible to and usable
by individuals with disabilities if the vehicle is to be used
solely in a demand responsive system and if the private entity
can demonstrate that the system, when viewed in its entirety,
provides a level of services to individuals with disabilities
equivalent to the level of service provided to the general
public;
(4) purchase or lease a new railroad passenger car that is
to be used to provide specified public transportation if the car
is not readily accessible to and usable by individuals with
disabilities, including individuals who use wheelchairs, or to
manufacture railroad passenger cars or purchase used cars that
have been remanufactured so as to extend their usable life by
ten years or more, unless the remanufactured car, to the maximum
extent feasible, is made readily accessible to and usable by
individuals with disabilities, including individuals who use
wheelchairs, except that compliance with this clause is not
required to the extent that compliance would significantly alter
the historic or antiquated character of historic or antiquated
railroad passenger cars or rail stations served exclusively by
those cars;
(5) purchase or lease a new, used, or remanufactured
vehicle with a seating capacity in excess of 16 passengers,
including the driver, for use on a fixed route public
transportation system, that is not readily accessible to and
usable by individuals with disabilities, including individuals
who use wheelchairs. If a private entity that operates a fixed
route public transportation system purchases or leases a new,
used, or remanufactured vehicle with a seating capacity of 16
passengers or fewer, including the driver, for use on the system
which is not readily accessible to and usable by individuals
with disabilities, it is an unfair discriminatory practice for
the entity to fail to operate the system so that, when viewed in
its entirety, the system ensures a level of service to
individuals with disabilities, including individuals who use
wheelchairs, equivalent to the level of service provided to
individuals without disabilities; or
(6) to fail to operate a demand responsive system so that,
when viewed in its entirety, the system ensures a level of
service to individuals with disabilities, including individuals
who use wheelchairs, equivalent to the level of service provided
to individuals without disabilities. It is an unfair
discriminatory practice for the entity to purchase or lease for
use on a demand responsive system a new, used, or remanufactured
vehicle with a seating capacity in excess of 16 passengers,
including the driver, that is not readily accessible to and
usable by individuals with disabilities, including individuals
who use wheelchairs, unless the entity can demonstrate that the
system, when viewed in its entirety, provides a level of service
to individuals with disabilities equivalent to that provided to
individuals without disabilities.
(f) It is an unfair discriminatory practice to construct a
new facility or station to be used in the provision of public
transportation services, unless the facilities or stations are
readily accessible to and usable by individuals with
disabilities, including individuals who use wheelchairs. It is
an unfair discriminatory practice for a facility or station
currently used for the provision of public transportation
services defined in this subdivision to fail to make alterations
necessary in order, to the maximum extent feasible, to make the
altered portions of facilities or stations readily accessible to
and usable by individuals with disabilities, including
individuals who use wheelchairs. If the private entity is
undertaking an alteration that affects or could affect the
usability of or access to an area of the facility containing a
primary function, the entity shall make the alterations so that,
to the maximum extent feasible, the path of travel to the
altered area, and the bathrooms, drinking fountains, and
telephones serving the altered area, are readily accessible to
and usable by individuals with disabilities if the alterations
to the path of travel or to the functions mentioned are not
disproportionate to the overall alterations in terms of cost and
scope. The entity raising this defense has the burden of proof,
and the department shall review these cases on a case-by-case
basis.
Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 518.11, is
amended to read:
518.11 [SERVICE; PUBLICATION.]
(a) Unless a proceeding is brought by both parties, copies
of the summons and petition shall be served on the respondent
personally.
(b) When service is made out of this state and within the
United States, it may be proved by the affidavit of the person
making the same. When service is made without the United States
it may be proved by the affidavit of the person making the same,
taken before and certified by any United States minister, charge
d'affaires, commissioner, consul or commercial agent, or other
consular or diplomatic officer of the United States appointed to
reside in such country, including all deputies or other
representatives of such officer authorized to perform their
duties; or before an officer authorized to administer an oath
with the certificate of an officer of a court of record of the
country wherein such affidavit is taken as to the identity and
authority of the officer taking the same. But,
(c) If personal service cannot be made, the court may order
service of the summons by publication, which publication shall
be made as in other actions. alternate means. The application
for alternate service must include the last known location of
the respondent; the petitioner's most recent contacts with the
respondent; the last known location of the respondent's
employment; the names and locations of the respondent's parents,
siblings, children, and other close relatives; the names and
locations of other persons who are likely to know the
respondent's whereabouts; and a description of efforts to locate
those persons.
The court shall consider the length of time the
respondent's location has been unknown, the likelihood that the
respondent's location will become known, the nature of the
relief sought, and the nature of efforts made to locate the
respondent. The court shall order service by first class mail,
forwarding address requested, to any addresses where there is a
reasonable possibility that mail or information will be
forwarded or communicated to the respondent.
The court may also order publication, within or without the
state, but only if it might reasonably succeed in notifying the
respondent of the proceeding. Also, the court may require the
petitioner to make efforts to locate the respondent by telephone
calls to appropriate persons. Service shall be deemed complete
21 days after mailing or 21 days after court-ordered publication.
Sec. 3. [518.158] [GRANDPARENT EX PARTE TEMPORARY CUSTODY
ORDER.]
Subdivision 1. [FACTORS.] It is presumed to be in the best
interests of the child for the court to grant temporary custody
to a grandparent under subdivision 2 if a minor child has
resided with the grandparent for a period of 12 months or more
and the following circumstances exist without good cause:
(1) the parent has had no contact with the child on a
regular basis and no demonstrated, consistent participation in
the child's well-being for six months; or
(2) the parent, during the time the child resided with the
grandparent, has refused or neglected to comply with the duties
imposed upon the parent by the parent and child relationship,
including but not limited to providing the child necessary food,
clothing, shelter, health care, education, and other care and
control necessary for the child's physical, mental, or emotional
health and development.
Subd. 2. [EMERGENCY CUSTODY HEARING.] If the parent seeks
to remove the child from the home of the grandparent and the
factors in subdivision 1 exist, the grandparent may apply for an
ex parte temporary order for custody of the child. The court
shall grant temporary custody if it finds, based on the
application, that the factors in subdivision 1 exist. If it
finds that the factors in subdivision 1 do not exist, the court
shall order that the child be returned to the parent. An ex
parte temporary custody order under this subdivision is good for
a fixed period not to exceed 14 days. A temporary custody
hearing under this chapter must be set for not later than seven
days after issuance of the ex parte temporary custody order.
The parent must be promptly served with a copy of the ex parte
order and the petition and notice of the date for the hearing.
Subd. 3. [FURTHER PROCEEDINGS.] If the court orders
temporary physical custody to the grandparent under subdivision
2 and the grandparent or parent seeks to pursue further
temporary or permanent custody of the child, the custody issues
must be determined pursuant to a petition under this chapter and
the other standards and procedures of this chapter apply. This
section does not affect any rights or remedies available under
other law.
Subd. 4. [RETURN TO PARENT.] If the court orders permanent
custody to a grandparent under this section, the court shall set
conditions the parent must meet in order to obtain custody. The
court may notify the parent that the parent may request
assistance from the local social service agency in order to meet
the conditions set by the court.
Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 518.17,
subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1. [THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE CHILD.] (a) "The
best interests of the child" means all relevant factors to be
considered and evaluated by the court including:
(1) the wishes of the child's parent or parents as to
custody;
(2) the reasonable preference of the child, if the court
deems the child to be of sufficient age to express preference;
(3) the child's primary caretaker;
(4) the intimacy of the relationship between each parent
and the child;
(5) the interaction and interrelationship of the child with
a parent or parents, siblings, and any other person who may
significantly affect the child's best interests;
(6) the child's adjustment to home, school, and community;
(7) the length of time the child has lived in a stable,
satisfactory environment and the desirability of maintaining
continuity;
(8) the permanence, as a family unit, of the existing or
proposed custodial home;
(9) the mental and physical health of all individuals
involved; except that a disability, as defined in section
363.01, of a proposed custodian or the child shall not be
determinative of the custody of the child, unless the proposed
custodial arrangement is not in the best interest of the child;
(10) the capacity and disposition of the parties to give
the child love, affection, and guidance, and to continue
educating and raising the child in the child's culture and
religion or creed, if any;
(11) the child's cultural background; and
(12) the effect on the child of the actions of an abuser,
if related to domestic abuse, as defined in section 518B.01,
that has occurred between the parents; and
(13) except in cases in which a finding of domestic abuse
as defined in section 518B.01 has been made, the disposition of
each parent to encourage and permit frequent and continuing
contact by the other parent with the child.
The court may not use one factor to the exclusion of all
others. The primary caretaker factor may not be used as a
presumption in determining the best interests of the child. The
court must make detailed findings on each of the factors and
explain how the factors led to its conclusions and to the
determination of the best interests of the child.
(b) The court shall not consider conduct of a proposed
custodian that does not affect the custodian's relationship to
the child.
Sec. 5. Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 518B.01,
subdivision 8, is amended to read:
Subd. 8. [SERVICE OF ORDER; ALTERNATE SERVICE;
PUBLICATION.] (a) The petition and any order issued under this
section shall be personally served upon on the respondent
personally.
(b) When service is made out of this state and in the
United States, it may be proved by the affidavit of the person
making the service. When service is made outside the United
States, it may be proved by the affidavit of the person making
the service, taken before and certified by any United States
minister, charge d'affaires, commissioner, consul, or commercial
agent, or other consular or diplomatic officer of the United
States appointed to reside in the other country, including all
deputies or other representatives of the officer authorized to
perform their duties; or before an office authorized to
administer an oath with the certificate of an officer of a court
of record of the country in which the affidavit is taken as to
the identity and authority of the officer taking the affidavit.
(c) If personal service cannot be made, the court may order
service of the petition and any order issued under this section
by alternate means, or by publication, which publication must be
made as in other actions. The application for alternate service
must include the last known location of the respondent; the
petitioner's most recent contacts with the respondent; the last
known location of the respondent's employment; the names and
locations of the respondent's parents, siblings, children, and
other close relatives; the names and locations of other persons
who are likely to know the respondent's whereabouts; and a
description of efforts to locate those persons.
The court shall consider the length of time the
respondent's location has been unknown, the likelihood that the
respondent's location will become known, the nature of the
relief sought, and the nature of efforts made to locate the
respondent. The court shall order service by first class mail,
forwarding address requested, to any addresses where there is a
reasonable possibility that mail or information will be
forwarded or communicated to the respondent.
The court may also order publication, within or without the
state, but only if it might reasonably succeed in notifying the
respondent of the proceeding. Also, the court may require the
petitioner to make efforts to locate the respondent by telephone
calls to appropriate persons. Service shall be deemed complete
21 days after mailing or 21 days after court-ordered publication.
Sec. 6. [STUDY OF WAYS TO NURTURE THE FAMILY.]
The children's cabinet shall study ways to promote,
support, protect, and nurture the family. They shall recommend
changes in government and nongovernment programs and Minnesota
Statutes that will encourage the preservation of the family.
The children's cabinet shall report the findings to the
legislature by February 1, 1995.
Sec. 7. [EFFECTIVE DATE.]
Section 3 (518.158) is effective the day after final
enactment.
Presented to the governor May 6, 1994
Signed by the governor May 10, 1994, 3:58 p.m.
Official Publication of the State of Minnesota
Revisor of Statutes