§ 9-10-109 - Child support following finding of paternity.
9-10-109. Child support following finding of paternity.
(a) (1) (A) Subsequent to the execution of an acknowledgment of paternity by the father and mother of a child pursuant to 20-18-408 or 20-18-409, or a similar acknowledgment executed during the child's minority, or subsequent to a finding by the court that the putative father in a paternity action is the father of the child, the court shall follow the same guidelines, procedures, and requirements as set forth in the laws of this state applicable to child support orders and judgments entered by the circuit court as if it were a case involving a child born of a marriage in awarding custody, visitation, setting amounts of support, costs, and attorney's fees, and directing payments through the clerk of the court, or through the Arkansas child support clearinghouse if the case was brought pursuant to Title IV-D of the Social Security Act.
(B) All child support payments paid by income withholding shall be subject to the provisions set forth in 9-14-801 et seq.
(2) The court may provide for the payment of support beyond the eighteenth birthday of the child to address the educational needs of a child whose eighteenth birthday falls prior to graduation from high school so long as such support is conditional on the child's remaining in school.
(3) The court may also provide for the continuation of support for an individual with a disability that affects the ability of the individual to live independently from the custodial parent.
(b) (1) (A) All orders directing payments through the registry of the court or through the Arkansas child support clearinghouse shall set forth a fee to be paid by the noncustodial parent or obligated spouse in the amount of thirty-six dollars ($36.00) per year.
(B) The fee shall be collected from the noncustodial parent or obligated spouse at the time of the first support payment and during the anniversary month of the entry of the order each year thereafter, or nine dollars ($9.00) per quarter at the option of the obligated parent, until no children remain minor and the support obligation is extinguished and any arrears are completely satisfied.
(2) The clerk upon direction from the court and as an alternative to collecting the annual fee during the anniversary month each year after entry of the order may prorate the first fee collected at the time of the first payment of support under the order to the number of months remaining in the calendar year and thereafter collect all fees as provided in this subsection during the month of January of each year.
(3) (A) Payments made for this fee shall be made on an annual basis in the form of a check or money order payable to the clerk of the court or other such legal tender that the clerk may accept.
(B) This fee payment shall be separate and apart from the support payment, and under no circumstances shall the support payment be reduced to fulfill the payment of this fee.
(4) Upon the nonpayment of the annual fee by the noncustodial parent within ninety (90) days, the clerk may notify the payor under the order of income withholding for child support who shall withhold the fee in addition to any support and remit it to the clerk.
(5) (A) All moneys collected by the clerk as a fee as provided in this subsection shall be used by the clerk's office to offset administrative costs as a result of this subchapter.
(B) (i) Until all necessary data processing equipment has been acquired, at least twenty percent (20%) of the moneys collected annually shall be used to purchase, maintain, and operate an automated data system for use in administering the requirements of this subchapter.
(ii) The acquisition and update of software for the automated data system shall be a permitted use of these funds.
(C) (i) All fees collected under this subsection shall be paid into the county treasury to the credit of the fund to be known as the "support collection costs fund".
(ii) Moneys deposited into this fund shall be appropriated and expended for the uses designated in this subdivision (b)(5) by the quorum court at the direction of the clerk of the court.
(c) The clerk of the court shall maintain accurate records of all support orders and payments under this section.
(d) The clerk may accept the support payment in any form of cash or commercial paper, including personal checks, and may require that the custodial parent or nonobligated spouse be named as payee thereon.