HBA-SEB H.B. 1327 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1327
By: Bosse
Juvenile Justice and Family Issues
3/3/1999
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, the Family Code requires an obligee of a child support payment
to notify the obligor of a change of address.  In this way, the obligor is
still able to make a child support payment.  If no notice of a change of
residence is given, however, the obligor remains responsible for paying
child support and any accruing interest on the child support payments.
H.B. 1327 authorizes a court to waive all or part of the accruing interest
on delinquent child support if the obligor has made a good faith effort to
pay the child support but is unable to locate the obligee or if the obligee
did not take any action to collect the child support. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Subchapter F, Chapter 157, Family Code, by adding
Section 157.2655, as follows: 

Sec. 157.2655.  WAIVER OF INTEREST ON CHILD SUPPORT.  Authorizes a court to
waive all or a portion of the interest that accrues on delinquent child
support if the court finds that the obligor has made a good faith effort to
pay the child support, but is unable to locate the obligee and cannot pay
the child support without locating the obligee, or the obligee did not take
any action to collect the child support from the obligor.  Provides that an
obligee is not required to bring an enforcement action under this chapter
(Enforcement) for the court to find that the obligee took action to collect
unpaid child support. 

SECTION 2.  (a)  Effective date: September 1, 1999.

(b)  Makes application of this Act prospective.

(c)  Provides that the enactment of this Act does not by itself constitute
a material and substantial change of circumstances sufficient to warrant
modification of an order that provides for the support of a child rendered
before the effective date of this Act. 

SECTION 3.  Emergency clause.