Sec. 46b-213w. Duties of employer re income withholding order issued in another state. Notice and claim form distributed by Department of Social Services. Contents of form. Multiple income withholding
Sec. 46b-213w. Duties of employer re income withholding order issued in another state. Notice and claim form distributed by Department of Social Services.
Contents of form. Multiple income withholding orders. Penalty for noncompliance.
Contest by obligor. (a) An income withholding order issued in another state may be
sent by or on behalf of the obligee, or by the support enforcement agency, to the person
defined as the obligor's employer under section 52-362 without first filing a petition or
comparable pleading or registering the order in the registry of support orders of the
Family Support Magistrate Division.
(b) Upon receipt of an income withholding order issued in another state, the obligor's employer shall immediately provide to the obligor (1) a copy of the order, and (2)
a copy of the notice and claim form provided by the Department of Social Services
pursuant to subsection (c) of this section.
(c) The Department of Social Services shall distribute to all employers in this state
a standard notice and claim form, written in clear and simple language, which shall
include:
(1) Notice that money will be withheld from the employee's wages for child support
and health insurance;
(2) Notice of the amount of disposable earnings that are exempt from the income
withholding order;
(3) Notice that the amount of the income withholding order may not exceed the
maximum permitted by federal law under Section 1673 of Title 15 of the United States
Code, together with a statement of the obligor's right to claim any other applicable state
or federal exemptions;
(4) Notice of the right to object to the validity or enforcement of such income withholding order in a court in this state and of the right to seek modification of the underlying
support order in the court of continuing exclusive jurisdiction;
(5) Notice of the right to seek the assistance of the Bureau of Child Support Enforcement of the Department of Social Services and the toll-free telephone number at which
the bureau can be contacted;
(6) A claim form which shall include (A) a list of the most common defenses and
exemptions to such income withholding order in a manner which allows the obligor to
check any of the defenses and exemptions which apply; (B) a space where the obligor
may briefly explain the obligor's claim or defense; (C) a space where the obligor may
initiate a request for services to modify the support order; (D) a space for the obligor
to provide the obligor's address and the name of the town in which the obligor principally
conducts the obligor's work for the employer; (E) a space for the obligor to sign the
obligor's name; (F) the address of the Bureau of Child Support Enforcement of the
Department of Social Services to which the claim form is to be sent in order to contest
the validity or enforcement of the income withholding order or to initiate a request for
modification; and (G) space for the employer to state the date upon which the form was
actually delivered to the obligor.
(d) The employer shall treat an income withholding order issued in another state
which appears regular on its face if it had been issued by a tribunal of this state.
(e) Except as otherwise provided in subsections (f) and (g) of this section, the employer shall withhold and distribute the funds as directed in the withholding order by
complying with terms of the order which specify: (1) The duration and amount of periodic payments of current child support, stated as a sum certain; (2) the person designated
to receive payments and the address to which the payments are to be forwarded; (3)
medical support, whether in the form of periodic cash payment, stated as a sum certain,
or ordering the obligor to provide health insurance coverage for the child under a policy
available through the obligor's employment, subject to the provisions of subsection (e)
of section 38a-497a; (4) the amount of periodic payments of fees and costs for a support
enforcement agency, the issuing tribunal and the obligee's attorney, stated as sums
certain; and (5) the amount of periodic payments of arrearages and interest on arrearages,
stated as sums certain.
(f) The employer shall comply with the law of this state for withholding from income
with respect to: (1) The prohibition against an employer's fee for processing an income
withholding order; (2) the maximum amount permitted to be withheld from the obligor's
income; and (3) the time period within which the employer must implement the withholding order and forward the child support payment.
(g) If an employer receives two or more income withholding orders with respect to
the earnings of the same obligor, the employer satisfies the terms of such orders if the
employer complies with the law of this state to establish the priorities for withholding
and allocating income withheld for two or more child support obligees.
(h) An employer who complies with an income withholding order issued in another
state in accordance with this section shall be immune from civil liability with regard to
the employer's withholding of child support from the obligor's income.
(i) An employer who wilfully fails to comply with an income withholding order
issued by another state and received for enforcement is subject to the same penalties
that may be imposed for noncompliance with an order issued by a tribunal of this state.
(j) An obligor may contest the validity or enforcement of an income withholding
order issued in another state and received directly by an employer in this state by: (1)
Registering the order in accordance with section 46b-213h and filing a contest to that
order as provided in section 46b-213l notwithstanding the obligor is the registering
party; (2) otherwise contesting the order in the same manner as if the order had been
issued by a tribunal of this state; or (3) mailing to the Bureau of Child Support Enforcement of the Department of Social Services the claim form delivered to the obligor pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, signed by the obligor and containing his address
and a copy of the income withholding order. The obligor shall also deliver a copy of
such claim form to the employer.
(k) Upon receipt of a claim form contesting the validity or enforcement of an income
withholding order, the Bureau of Child Support Enforcement shall within seven days
notify the employer of the receipt of the claim form. The bureau shall also give notice
of the contest to (1) the support enforcement agency providing services to the obligee;
(2) each employer that has directly received an income withholding order relating to
the obligor; (3) the person designated to receive payments in the income withholding
order; and (4) if the obligee's address is known, the obligee. In addition, the bureau
shall immediately cause the income withholding order to be registered in this state in
accordance with section 46b-213h. The bureau shall also immediately file the claim
form on behalf of the obligor with Support Enforcement Services acting on behalf of
the Family Support Magistrate Division. The clerk shall promptly enter the appearance
of the obligor, schedule a hearing, and give notice of the hearing to the obligor, the
Bureau of Child Support Enforcement, the party initiating the income withholding order,
and, if the obligee's address is known, the obligee. The clerk shall proceed in accordance
with subsection (d) of section 52-362. The family support magistrate shall promptly
hear and determine the claim and enter its determination within forty-five days from
the date of the filing of the claim form. In addition to any notice given by the clerk,
upon entry of the decision of the family support magistrate on the claim, the bureau
shall give notice of the decision to each employer that has directly received an income
withholding order related to the obligor, the party initiating the income withholding
order, the obligor and, if the obligee's address is known, the obligee.
(l) If the claim form requests services to modify the support order, the Bureau of
Child Support Enforcement shall assist the obligor to file a motion for modification
with the appropriate tribunal of the state of continuing exclusive jurisdiction in accordance with the law of that jurisdiction. The receipt of the request for modification shall
constitute a request for Title IV-D services, but the bureau may require the making of
a formal application. Such assistance shall include, but is not limited to, providing the
obligor with information about how such a motion is filed, contacting the state of continuing exclusive jurisdiction on behalf of the obligor to obtain appropriate forms, and
transmitting such forms and applicable information to the appropriate tribunal in such
state.
(m) Venue for contested claims under this section shall be the family support magistrate division of the superior court in the judicial district in which the obligor resides,
provided (1) if the obligor does not reside in this state, venue shall be in the judicial
district in which the obligor principally conducts his work for the employer who is
subject to the income withholding order, and (2) if there is an existing action concerning
support of the child or children who are the subject of the income withholding order,
the claim shall be filed in that action.
(June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-1, S. 73, 75; P.A. 01-207, S. 8, 12; P.A. 07-247, S. 56.)
History: June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-1 effective January 1, 1998; P.A. 01-207 amended Subsec. (c)(2) to require department
to distribute notice of the amount of disposable earnings that are exempt from the income withholding order in lieu of
former notice that the first $145 per week of disposable earnings are exempt from such order and amended Subsec. (c)(6)
to make technical changes for purposes of gender neutrality, effective July 1, 2001; P.A. 07-247 amended Subsec. (a) by
providing that income withholding order may be sent "by or on behalf of the obligee, or by the support enforcement agency"
and deleting "or entity", amended Subsec. (c)(5) by making a technical change, amended Subsec. (d) by replacing "valid"
with "regular on its face", amended Subsec. (e) by making a technical change and, in Subdiv. (2), deleting "or agency",
amended Subsec. (g) by replacing "multiple" with "two or more" and making a technical change, amended Subsec. (j) by
adding Subdiv. designators (1) to (3) re contesting income withholding order issued in another state, by specifying that
obligor must register order and file a contest to that order in accordance with controlling statutes, and by deleting provision
re stay of imposition of income withholding order when obligor has filed a timely claim form contesting the validity of
such order, amended Subsec. (k) by deleting reference to stay of imposition of income withholding order, by specifying
in Subdiv. (2) that bureau shall give notice of contest to each employer "that has directly received an income withholding
order relating to the obligor", by deleting "or agency" in Subdiv. (3), by deleting provision that specified that income
withholding order was to be registered by bureau "with the appropriate clerk of the Family Support Magistrate Division",
by requiring bureau to file claim form with "Support Enforcement Services", by replacing reference to Sec. 52-361 with
reference to Sec. 52-362 and by requiring bureau to give notice of decision to each employer "that has directly received
an income withholding order related to the obligor", effective January 1, 2008.