252D.17 - NOTICE TO PAYOR OF INCOME -- DUTIES AND LIABILITY -- CRIMINAL PENALTY.
252D.17 NOTICE TO PAYOR OF INCOME -- DUTIES AND
LIABILITY -- CRIMINAL PENALTY.
The district court shall provide notice by sending a copy of the
order for income withholding or a notice of the order for income
withholding to the obligor and the obligor's payor of income by
regular mail, with proof of service completed according to rule of
civil procedure 1.442. The child support recovery unit shall provide
notice of the income withholding order by sending a notice of the
order to the obligor's payor of income by regular mail or by
electronic means. Proof of service may be completed according to
rule of civil procedure 1.442. The child support recovery unit's
notice of the order may be sent to the payor of income on the same
date that the order is sent to the clerk of court for filing. In all
other instances, the income withholding order shall be filed with the
clerk of court prior to sending the notice of the order to the payor
of income. In addition to the amount to be withheld for payment of
support, the order or the notice of the order shall be in a standard
format as prescribed by the unit and shall include all of the
following information regarding the duties of the payor in
implementing the withholding order:
1. The withholding order or notice of the order for income
withholding for child support or child support and spousal support
has priority over a garnishment or an assignment for any other
purpose.
2. As reimbursement for the payor's processing costs, the payor
may deduct a fee of no more than two dollars for each payment in
addition to the amount withheld for support. The payor of income is
not required to vary the payroll cycle to comply with the frequency
of payment of a support order.
3. The amount withheld for support, including the processing fee,
shall not exceed the amounts specified in 15 U.S.C. § 1673(b).
4. The income withholding order is binding on an existing or
future payor of income ten days after receipt of the copy of the
order or the notice of the order, and is binding whether or not the
copy of the order received is file-stamped.
5. The payor shall send the amounts withheld to the collection
services center or the clerk of the district court pursuant to
section 252B.14 within seven business days of the date the obligor is
paid. "Business day" means a day on which state offices are open
for regular business.
6. The payor may combine amounts withheld from the obligors'
income in a single payment to the clerk of the district court or to
the collection services center, as appropriate. Whether combined or
separate, payments shall be identified by the name of the obligor,
account number, amount, and the date withheld. If payments for
multiple obligors are combined, the portion of the payment
attributable to each obligor shall be specifically identified.
7. The withholding is binding on the payor until further notice
by the court or the child support recovery unit.
8. If the payor, with actual knowledge and intent to avoid legal
obligation, fails to withhold income or to pay the amounts withheld
to the collection services center or the clerk of court in accordance
with the provisions of the order, the notice of the order, or the
notification of payors of income provisions established in section
252B.13A, the payor commits a simple misdemeanor for a first offense
and is liable for the accumulated amount which should have been
withheld, together with costs, interest, and reasonable attorney fees
related to the collection of the amounts due from the payor. For
each subsequent offense prescribed under this subsection, the payor
commits a serious misdemeanor and is liable for the accumulated
amount which should have been withheld, together with costs,
interest, and reasonable attorney fees related to the collection of
the amounts due from the payor.
9. The payor shall promptly notify the court or the child support
recovery unit when the obligor's employment or other income
terminates, and provide the obligor's last known address and the name
and address of the obligor's new employer, if known.
10. Any payor who discharges an obligor, refuses to employ an
obligor, or takes disciplinary action against an obligor based upon
income withholding is guilty of a simple misdemeanor. A withholding
order or the notice of the order for income withholding has the same
force and effect as any other district court order, including, but
not limited to, contempt of court proceedings for noncompliance.
11. a. Beginning July 1, 1997, if a payor of income does
business in another state through a registered agent and receives a
notice of income withholding issued by another state the payor shall,
and beginning January 1, 1998, any payor of income shall withhold
funds as directed in a notice issued by another state, except that a
payor of income shall follow the laws of the obligor's principal
place of employment when determining all of the following:
(1) The payor's fee for processing an income withholding payment.
(2) The maximum amount permitted to be withheld from the
obligor's income.
(3) The time periods for implementing the income withholding
order and forwarding the support payments.
(4) The priorities for withholding and allocating income withheld
for multiple child support obligees.
(5) Any withholding terms or conditions not specified in the
order.
b. A payor of income who complies with an income withholding
notice that is regular on its face shall not be subject to any civil
liability to any individual or agency for conduct in compliance with
the notice.
12. The payor of income shall comply with chapter 252K when
receiving a notice of income withholding from another state. Section History: Recent Form
93 Acts, ch 78, §12; 95 Acts, ch 52, § 5, 6; 96 Acts, ch 1141, §
10, 11; 97 Acts, ch 175, § 61, 70, 72; 98 Acts, ch 1170, §8; 2000
Acts, ch 1125, §2, 4; 2006 Acts, ch 1119, §4
Referred to in § 252D.1, 252D.16A, 252D.18, 252D.18A