When the IV-D agency in the custodial parent's old State of residence is notified by the IV-D agency in the custodial parent's new State of residence that IV-D services are being provided by the IV-D agency in the custodial parent's new State of residence, the IV-D agency in the custodial parent's old State of residence may close the IV-D case. 7. Federal law requires that all states have a child support program and the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA) governs interstate and international child support cases. Response: These comments will not be incorporated because we believe that the term "recipient of services'' best describes the individual at issue. Note: Child support payments awarded by the courts but not received can be excluded only when the applicant/resident certifies that payments are not being made and further documents that all reasonable legal actions to collect amounts due, including filing with the appropriate courts or agencies responsible for enforcing payment, have been . Comment: One commenter objected to paragraph (b)(4) on the basis that it assumes a level of State automation which does not currently exist. The reason for this is to allow the recipient of services, who may have just moved, sufficient time to contact the IV-D agency to provide his/her new address. 303.11. 303.11(b), cannot be closed pursuant to paragraph (b)(1) simply because it has been deemed a low collection potential case. Person Paying Support (PPS): Parent who the child does not live with most of the time. * * * * *, h. Paragraph (b)(12) is added to read as follows: There are several ways to enroll. 2. (10) In a non-IV-A case receiving services under Sec. Child Support Case Managers establish, modify, enforce child support orders and maintain all financial aspects of a child support case by determining and deciding needed action, initiating and authorizing administrative and judicial legal action and preparing cases for hearing. 12.1 Preparing for Termination of Services. The responding State's transferral and subsequent closure of an interstate case, due to inability to locate the obligor or assets in the responding State, does not affect the open case status of the IV-D case in the initiating State in which the services are being provided to the family. One example which would not meet the condition for case closure under section 303.11(b)(12) involves direct withholding under the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act. ATTACHMENT: Attached is a final ruleVisit disclaimer page(PDF), published in the Federal Register March 10, 1999 (64 FR 11810) revising Federal regulations outlining criteria for closing child support enforcement cases, in response to the Presidents Memorandum of March 4, 1995, to reduce or eliminate mandated burdens on States, other governmental agencies or the private section. (B) In addition to the general responsibilities described in rule 5101:12-70-05.1 of the Administrative Code, the initiating CSEA has the following responsibilities: (1) Determine whether a child support order(s) exists in a case using the . Additionally, the IV-D agency is not required to suspend action or change its procedures to accommodate the private action. However, in interstate location requests, responding States are not required to conduct the quarterly repeat location attempts as specified in 303.3(b)(5). Find a Local Office. Closing a case in which the enrolleerequests case closure , or the custodial party (CP) is deceased, is a manual closure process, which means the statewide child support system does not automatically recognize the case closure criteria, but the Title IV-D Prosecutor's Office knows certain facts that make the case eligible for case closure. Step 1: Open the Case Either parent can open a child support case, as can a child's legal guardian. IX.This section describes cases where the noncustodial parent applies for IV-D services. Nevertheless, notice to both parents is not precluded. In 303.11(b)(9) then, the State IV-D agency may close a case if requested by the individual who applied for IV-D services under 302.33, and there is no assignment to the State of medical support under 42 CFR 433.146 or of arrearages which accrued under a support order. If the term "recipient of services'' more accurately reflects the individual at issue, then the States should consider making a change in this terminology at that time. The final rule clarifies the situations in which States may close child support cases and makes other technical changes. NRPS: A document that tells the Person Paying Support that support payments must be made to the State Disbursement Unit. 3. Response: OCSE has decided not to adopt this suggestion. Redesignated paragraph (b)(10) allows a nonassistance case to be closed when the State IV-D agency is unable to contact the service recipient within a 60 calendar day period despite an attempt by at least one letter, sent by first class, to the service recipient's last known address. The primary impact is on State governments. The case must be kept open if the recipient of services or the initiating State supplies information in response to the notice which could lead to the establishment of paternity or a support order or enforcement of an order, or, in the instance of paragraph (b)(10) of this section, if contact is reestablished with the recipient of services. . Federal guidelines require a local child support agency to take action in cases when a payer is more than one month behind in making payments. Because of this directive OCSE is unable to adopt the suggestion of this commenter. 2. Comment: One commenter asked if a State could retain a requirement that one attempt to contact the service recipient be by certified mail? II. Response: As we stated in response to similar questions in OCSE-PIQ-91-02 and OCSE-PIQ-90-05, Federal policy distinguishes between cases in which the incoming locate request is made directly to a State's parent locator service by another State (i.e., "quick locate," as described in OCSE-AT-91-09) from those cases in which the request is received through the responding State's central registry as an interstate referral. 1. Response: As stated in the preamble to the NPRM, one of the objectives of this revision to the case closure regulation was to provide the States with additional flexibility to manage their IV-D caseloads in an efficient manner. PRWORA has greatly expanded the pool of locate resources which, when all States are automated, will have a significant impact upon this universe of cases. In addition, the references to "custodial parent'' are revised to read "recipient of services,'' for the reasons explained above. Question 6: What should a responding State do if the noncustodial parent is found to be living in another State? Question 26: If the custodial parent and child(ren) do not receive public assistance and are unwilling to cooperate in the establishment of paternity and a support obligation based on the request of the non-custodial individual, must the IV-D agency continue to assist with the establishment process? If arrears are owed in the case, the obligor's duty to repay these arrears will survive the death of a child. May the State close the IV-D case of the former AFDC family for failure to return the misdirected child support collection, even though the State failed to notify the family, when they began receiving continued IV-D services, of their rights and responsibilities under the IV-D program? This does not mean that, at some time in the future, the Department of Revenue might not come after you again for child support. of Revenue. Another reason why it would be imprudent to adopt this recommendation is that the interstate request for services may be based solely upon an arrearage owed to the initiating State, and the whereabouts of the custodial parent may be unknown to both States. . If you have not consulted with an experienced family law attorney, you should do so. The fact that a case is closed has noimpact on the underlying orders for support. CASE CLOSURE OF TITLE IV-E FOSTER CARE CASES. Response: Yes. However, families needing child support enforcement services should not be punished for the possible threats or actions of obligors. Paragraph (c) was also revised to clarify that the responding State, upon deciding to close a case pursuant to the authority of paragraph (b)(12) must send a notice of case closure to the initiating State. Administration for Children and Families TO: STATE AGENCIES ADMINISTERING CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT PLANS UNDER TITLE IV-D OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY ACT AND OTHER INTERESTED INDIVIDUALS, SUBJECT: Case Closure Criteria Final Rule, 45 CFR Part 303. For cases needing enforcement action, 303.6(c)(4) specifies that the IV-D agency must examine the reasons the enforcement attempt failed and determine when it would be appropriate to take an enforcement action in the future, and to do so at that time. Since the criteria is the same for both subsections, the distinction is unnecessary. For example, when the custodial parent and the child(ren) are terminated from AFDC, the IV-D agency would, for purposes of the OCSE-156 and OCSE-158, close the case in AFDC status and re-open the case in non-AFDC status and/or AFDC arrears only status. Comment: Nine commenters asked for clarification of the nature of the interview of the recipient of IV-D. services. It is not appropriate for a State to close a case upon the occurrence of the criterion set forth in paragraph (b)(10) without fully complying with the requirements of paragraph (c). Therefore, the IV-D interview of the recipient of services need not be a face-to-face interview, but may be conducted via the telephone, when appropriate. OCSE believes that this final rule is successful in striking a good balance between these two factors and, as a result, we expect that the public will receive improved services from the IV-D program. Also, since States must meet Federal location requirements set forth in 45 CFR 303.3, diligent efforts to obtain the data elements critical for an automated search must occur and be unsuccessful before a State may consider closing the case using criteria in paragraph (b)(4). Comment: Two commenters objected to what they perceived to be a subjective standard in paragraph (b)(12) under which the responding State is authorized to close an interstate case when it documents a failure on the part of the initiating State to take an action which is essential for the next step in providing services. If your child is an emancipated minor and you are required by law to pay the child support then those responsibilities to pay the child support do not just go away. * * * * *, (b) * * * Response: Under sections 408(a)(2) and 454(29)(A) of the Act, the State's IV-D agency is responsible for making the determination as to whether or not a TANF recipient is cooperating with the IV-D agency. An Office of the Administration for Children & Families, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Native Americans (ANA), Administration on Children, Youth, and Families (ACYF), Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE), Office of Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response (OHSEPR), Office of Legislative Affairs and Budget (OLAB), Office of Planning, Research & Evaluation (OPRE), Public Assistance Reporting Information System (PARIS), Sign Up for, Pay, or Change Your Child Support. Section 303.11 is amended as follows: Comment: One commenter suggested the addition of a new criterion for case closure. Question 27: If States have to send the notice of intent to close the case to the custodial parent's last known address, what should be done if the family is homeless, and the only address on record with the IV-A and the IV-D agency is the address of the IV-A agency? Executive Order 12866 requires that regulations be reviewed to ensure that they are consistent with the priorities and principles set forth in the Executive Order. 2. Ohio Administrative Code 5101:12-10-03 specifies when a CSEA may transfer a case to a CSEA in another county. In addition to what has already been stated in this response, OCSE believes that it is important for the IV-D agency to notify the recipient of services of its intention to close a case based upon the criteria identified in paragraph (c). If the recipient of services fails to keep the IV-D program apprised of his/her mailing address, child support cannot be distributed. R. Jason de Groot. Response: As we stated in OCSE-PIQ-92-09, the final regulations published in the Federal Register on August 4, 1989 (54 FR 32284 at 32306) state that we received many comments by States and other organizations who requested that non-cooperation by the custodial parent (failure to attend hearings, refusal to sign forms, etc.) A summary of the comments received and our responses follows: 1. Serve: Deliver legal paperwork to a party. Federal regulations, under 302.33(a)(4), require that whenever a family is no longer eligible for assistance under the State's AFDC, IV-E foster care, and Medicaid programs, the IV-D agency must notify the family, within five working days of the notification of ineligibility, that IV-D services will be continued unless the IV-D agency is notified to the contrary by the family. The protection of IV-D staff is the responsibility of the State, and States should develop procedures to deal with such situations. Answer: A legal document that responds to a Complaint and must be filed with the court by the Person Paying Support. Three other commenters offered related recommendations that the final rule clarify that the interstate program standards in 45 CFR 303.7 apply to the application of paragraph (b)(12). Although it is true that PRWORA provides expansive new locate resources to the IV-D community, the fact remains that you must have sufficient identifying information concerning the individual you are trying to locate in order to take advantage of these new locate tools. 2. When opening the .pdf form from a web-browser such as Firefox, Microsoft Edge, or Chrome: download the form - right click on the link and select save link as and save it to your computer; open the file - right click on the file and choose open with Adobe . For more information on Process Of Initiating Child Support, an initial consultation is your next best step. The circumstances under which a case could be closed include, for example, instances in which legitimate and repeated efforts over time to locate putative fathers or obligors are unsuccessful because of inadequate identifying or location information, or in interstate cases in which the responding State lacks jurisdiction to work a case and the initiating State has not responded to a request for additional information or case closure. Traditionally, interstate case processing goes from a IV-AD agency in one State to a IV-AD agency in another State, which then forwards a withholding order to an employer in its State. Until the IV-D agency in the custodial parent's new State of residence notifies the IV-D agency in the custodial parent's old State of residence that IV-D services are being provided by the IV-D agency in the custodial parent's new State of residence, the IV-D agency in custodial parent's old State of residence would continue to distribute child support collections received from the non-custodial patent's State of residence to the custodial parent at the custodial parent's new address in the new State of residence. INQUIRIES TO: OCSE Regional Representatives, ___________________________David Gray Ross These changes will clarify the situations in which States may close cases and make it easier for States to close unworkable cases, thereby reducing the number of unworkable cases within the system and the amount of time that they must remain in the system. QUICK (Query Interstate Cases for Kids) is an interface between the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) and the child support computer systems of participating states including Oklahoma. Local child support agency (LCSA): The agency in each county that is responsible for managing the child support program. Donna E. Shalala, Case closure is one of eight required categories States must assess. In addition, Sec. As previously stated in the preamble to the NPRM for this rule, the trend is moving toward a reduction in the mailing standard. Both commenters recommended that a reference to "other exceptions'' be included in paragraph (b)(9) when the final rule was issued. Response: No. 5.Comment: One commenter suggested that, in light of PRWORA, a reduction in the time required for automated searches was unreasonable. OCSE Central Office coordinates the EVS program with the Social Security Administration. Garnishing earnings is a simple approach to carry out child support orders while one parent is out of the country. Response: As we stated in the preamble to the final rule, published on February 26, 1991 (56 FR 7988), for the implementation of P.L. Regulations at 42 CFR 433.147 and 433.148 require the Medicaid agency to determine whether the non-AFDC Medicaid recipient had good cause for failure to cooperate and whether the IV-D agency may continue to attempt to establish paternity and secure support without the cooperation of the non-AFDC Medicaid recipient, under 302.31(b) and (c). AT-98-30 Publication Date: December 28, 1998 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children & Families Office of Child Support Enforcement The Child Support Process Open A Case Parentage Establishment Court Payments Enforcement Modify Your Case Close Your Case Important: All printed applications must be signed in blue or black ink. 1. establishment of child and spousal support orders, 2. enforcement of support and income withholding orders from other states without registration, 3. registration of support orders for enforcement, 4. modification of support orders issued by a Connecticut tribunal, 5. registration of a child support order from another state for modification . 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