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AB-973 Child support enforcement: release of information.(1991-1992)

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Assembly Bill No. 973
CHAPTER 1192

An act to amend Sections 11478, 11478.1, and 11478.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to aid to families with dependent children, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.

[ Filed with Secretary of State  September 30, 1992. Approved by Governor  September 29, 1992. ]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 973, Cannella. Child support enforcement: release of information.
(1)  Existing law provides for a state plan for child support enforcement administered by the State Department of Social Services. Existing law further provides for the California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry within the Department of Justice which cooperates in the enforcement of child support orders by collecting and disseminating information about parents who have deserted or abandoned a child, and that are liable for child support.
Existing law requires that the information released by the Parent Locator Service and Central Registry be disseminated only to specified persons or entities, including, among others, probation departments, the county department administering aid to families with dependent children, and courts or local agencies having jurisdiction in support, adoption, dependency, or abandonment proceedings or actions, or reimbursement proceedings for the support of juveniles who are in out-of-home placement.
This bill would delete the references to those entities.
This bill would also authorize the Parent Locator Service and Central Registry to charge a fee of not more than $18 for costs, except in administering services pursuant to, or funded pursuant to, a specified federal law.
(2)  Existing law requires all state, county, and local agencies to cooperate in the enforcement of any child support obligation pursuant to specified provisions of law, and in the location of parents who have abandoned or deserted children, and to supply certain information in that regard to the county department, the Department of Justice, and any county probation officer.
This bill would also require the agencies to cooperate with the district attorney in carrying out specified duties concerning the location, seizure, and recovery of abducted, concealed, or detained minor children. It would delete the reference to parents who have abandoned or deserted children, and instead require cooperation in the location of parents and putative parents. It would delete the references to the county department, the Department of Justice, and any county probation officer. By requiring a higher level of service of local agencies implementing these provisions, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(3)  Existing law requires that all files, applications, papers, documents, and records established or maintained by any public entity for purposes of the child support enforcement program shall be confidential, and specifies the conditions under which this information may be released.
This bill would also require that all files, applications, papers, documents, and records established or maintained by any public entity for the purpose of locating an abducted, concealed, or detained child, locating a person who has abducted, concealed, or detained a child, or prosecution of a person who has abducted, concealed, or detained a child shall be confidential, and would specify the conditions under which this information may be released. By requiring a higher level of service of local agencies implementing these provisions, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (4)  The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement, including the creation of a State Mandates Claims Fund to pay the costs of mandates which do not exceed $1,000,000 statewide and other procedures for claims whose statewide costs exceed $1,000,000.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that this bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to those statutory procedures and, if the statewide cost does not exceed $1,000,000, shall be made from the State Mandates Claims Fund. (5)  This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Section 11478 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read:

11478.
 All state, county, and local agencies shall cooperate with the district attorney in carrying out Sections 4604 and 4605 of the Civil Code and Section 270 of the Penal Code concerning the location, seizure, and recovery of abducted, concealed, or detained minor children, and in the enforcement of any child support obligation or to the extent required under the state plan under Section 11475.2 and Section 1650 of the Code of Civil Procedure, spousal support orders and in the location of parents or putative parents, irrespective of whether the children are or are not receiving aid to families with dependent children, and shall, on request, supply the district attorney of any county in this state or the California Parent Locator Service with all information on hand relative to the location, income, or property of any parents, putative parents, spouses, or former spouses, notwithstanding any other provision of law making the information confidential, and with all information on hand relative to the location and prosecution of any person who has, by means of false statement or representation or by impersonation or other fraudulent device, obtained aid for a child under this chapter.

SEC. 2.

 Section 11478.1 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read:

11478.1.
 (a)  It is the intent of the Legislature to protect individual rights of privacy, and to facilitate and enhance the effectiveness of the child and spousal support enforcement and child abduction and recovery programs, by ensuring the confidentiality of support enforcement and child abduction records, and to thereby encourage the full and frank disclosure of information relevant to all of the following:
(1)  The establishment or maintenance of parent and child relationships and support obligations.
(2)  The enforcement of the child support liability of absent parents.
(3)  The enforcement of spousal support liability of the spouse or former spouse to the extent required by the state plan under Section 11475.2 and Section 1650 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
(4)  The location of absent parents.
(5)  The location of parents and children abducted, concealed, or detained by them.
(b)  Except as provided in subdivision (c), all files, applications, papers, documents, and records established or maintained by any public entity pursuant to the administration and implementation of the child and spousal support enforcement program established pursuant to Part D (commencing with Section 651) of Subchapter IV of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States Code and this article, shall be confidential, and shall not be open to examination or released for disclosure for any purpose not directly connected with the administration of the child and spousal support enforcement program. No public entity shall disclose any file, application, paper, document, or record, or the information contained therein, except as expressly authorized by this section.
(c)  Disclosure of the information described in subdivision (b) is authorized as follows:
(1)  All files, applications, papers, documents and records as described in subdivision (b) shall be available and may be used by a public entity for all administrative, civil, or criminal investigations, actions, proceedings, or prosecutions conducted in connection with the administration of the child and spousal support enforcement program approved under Part D (commencing with Section 651) of Subchapter IV of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States Code, and any other plan or program described in Section 303.21 of Title 45 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
(2)  A document requested by a person who wrote, prepared, or furnished the document may be examined by or disclosed to that person or his or her designee.
(3)  The payment history of an obligor pursuant to a support order may be examined by or released to the court, the obligor, or the person on whose behalf enforcement actions are being taken or that person’s designee.
(4)  Public records subject to disclosure under the Public Records Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 6250) of Division 7 of the Government Code) may be released.
(5)  After a noticed motion and a finding by the court, in a case in which enforcement actions are being taken, that release or disclosure to the obligor is required by due process of law, the court may order a public entity, which possesses an application, paper, document, or record as described in subdivision (b) to make that item available to the obligor for examination or copying, or to disclose to the obligor the contents of that item. Article 9 (commencing with Section 1040) of Chapter 4 of Division 3 of the Evidence Code shall not be applicable to proceedings under this part.
(6)  To the extent not prohibited by federal law or regulation, information indicating the existence or imminent threat of a crime against a minor child, or location of a concealed, detained, or abducted child or the location of the concealing, detaining, or abducting person, may be disclosed to any district attorney, any appropriate law enforcement agency, or to any state or county child protective agency, or may be used in any judicial proceedings to prosecute that crime or to protect the child.
(7)  The social security number, most recent address, and the place of employment of the absent parent may be released to an authorized person as defined in Section 653(c) of Title 42 of the United States Code, only if the authorized person has filed a request for the information, and only if the information has been provided to the California Parent Locator Service by the federal Parent Locator Service pursuant to Section 653 of Title 42 of the United States Code.
(d)  (1)  “Administration and implementation of the child and spousal support enforcement program,” as used in this section, means the carrying out of the state and local plans for establishing, modifying, and enforcing child support obligations, enforcing spousal support orders, and determining paternity pursuant to Part D (commencing with Section 651) of Subchapter IV of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States Code and this article.
(2)  For purposes of this section, “obligor” means any person owing a duty of support.
(3)  As used in this chapter, “putative parent” shall refer to any person reasonably believed to be the parent of a child for whom the district attorney is attempting to establish paternity or establish, modify, or enforce support pursuant to Section 11475.1.
(e)  Any person who willfully, knowingly, and intentionally violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor.
(f)  Nothing in this section shall be construed to compel the disclosure of information relating to a deserting parent who is a recipient of aid under a public assistance program for which federal aid is paid to this state, if that information is required to be kept confidential by the federal law or regulations relating to the program.
(g)  Except as provided in this subdivision, all files, applications, papers, documents, and records, established or maintained by any public entity for the purpose of locating an abducted child, locating a person who has abducted a child, or prosecution of a person who has abducted a child shall be confidential, and shall not be open to examination or released for disclosure for any purpose not directly connected with locating the abducted child or abducting person or prosecution of the abducting person. No public entity shall disclose any file, application, paper, document, or record described in this section, or the information contained therein, except as as follows:
(1)  All files, applications, papers, documents, and records as described in subdivision (b) shall be available and may be used by a public entity for all administrative, civil, or criminal investigations, actions, proceedings, or prosecution conducted in connection with the child abduction or prosecution of the abducting person.
(2)  A document requested by a person who wrote, prepared, or furnished the document may be examined by or disclosed to that person or his or her designee.
(3)  Public records subject to disclosure under the Public Records Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 6250) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code) may be released.
(4)  After a noticed motion and a finding by the court, in a case in which enforcement actions are being taken, that release or disclosure is required by due process of law, the court may order a public entity that possesses an application, paper, document, or record described in this subdivision to make that item available to the obligor for examination or copying, or to disclose to an appropriate person the contents of that item. Article 9 (commencing with Section 1040) of Chapter 4 of Division 8 of the Evidence Code shall not be applicable to proceedings under this part.
(5)  To the extent not prohibited by federal law or regulation, information indicating the existence or imminent threat of a crime against a minor child, or location of a concealed or abducted child or the location of the concealing or abducting person, may be disclosed to any appropriate law enforcement agency, or to any state or county child protective agency, or may be used in any judicial proceedings to prosecute that crime or to protect the child.

SEC. 3.

 Section 11478.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read:

11478.5.
 (a)  There is in the Department of Justice the California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry which shall collect and disseminate all of the following, with respect to any parent, putative parent, spouse, or former spouse:
(1)  The full and true name of the parent together with any known aliases.
(2)  Date and place of birth.
(3)  Physical description.
(4)  Social security number.
(5)  Employment history and earnings.
(6)  Military status and Veterans Administration or military service serial number.
(7)  Last known address, telephone number, and date thereof.
(8)  Driver’s license number, driving record, and vehicle registration information.
(9)  Criminal, licensing, and applicant records and information.
(10)  (A)  Any additional location, asset, and income information, including income tax return information obtained pursuant to Section 19285.1 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, and the address, telephone number, and social security information obtained from a public utility that may be of assistance in locating the parent, putative parent, abducting, concealing, or detaining parent, spouse, or former spouse, in establishing a parent and child relationship, in enforcing the child support liability of the absent parent, or enforcing the spousal support liability of the spouse or former spouse to the extent required by the state plan pursuant to Section 11475.2.
(B)  For purposes of this subdivision “income tax return information” means all of the following regarding the taxpayer:
(i)  Assets.
(ii)  Credits.
(iii)  Deductions.
(iv)  Exemptions.
(v)  Identity.
(vi)  Liabilities.
(vii)  Nature, source, and amount of income.
(viii)  Net worth.
(ix)  Payments.
(x)  Receipts.
(xi)  Address.
(xii)  Social security number.
(b)  To effectuate the purposes of this section, the California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry shall, to the extent necessary, utilize the federal Parent Locator Service, and may request and shall receive, from all departments, boards, bureaus, or other agencies of the state, or any of its political subdivisions, and those entities shall provide, that assistance and data which will enable the Department of Justice and public agencies to carry out their powers and duties to locate the parents, spouses, and former spouses, and to identify their assets, to establish a parent and child relationship, and to enforce their liability for child or spousal support, and for any other obligations incurred on behalf of their children, and to any district attorney in fulfilling the duties prescribed in Sections 4604 and 4605 of the Civil Code and Section 270 of the Penal Code, relating to abducted, concealed, or detained children.
(c)  (1)  To effectuate the purposes of this section, and notwithstanding any other provision of California law, regulation, or tariff, and to the extent permitted by federal law, the California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry may request and shall receive from public utilities, as defined in Section 216 of the Public Utilities Code, customer service information, including the full name, address, telephone number, date of birth, and social security number of customers of the public utility, to the extent that this information is stored within the computer data base of the public utility.
(2)  In order to protect the privacy of utility customers, a request to a public utility for customer service information pursuant to this section shall meet the following requirements:
(A)  Be submitted to the public utility in writing, on a transmittal document prepared by the California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry and approved by all of the public utilities.
(B)  Have the signature of a representative authorized by the California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry.
(C)  Contain at least three of the following data elements regarding the person sought:
(i)  First and last name, and middle initial, if known.
(ii)  Social security number.
(iii)  Driver’s license number.
(iv)  Birth date.
(v)  Last known address.
(vi)  Spouse’s name.
(D)  The California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry shall ensure that each public utility has at all times a current list of the names of persons authorized to request customer service information.
(E)  The California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry shall ensure that customer service information supplied by a public utility is applicable to the person who is being sought before releasing the information pursuant to subdivision (d).
(3)  The public utility may charge a fee to the California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry for each search performed pursuant to this subdivision to cover the actual costs to the public utility for providing this information.
(4)  No public utility, or official or employee thereof, shall be subject to criminal or civil liability for the release of customer service information as authorized by this subdivision.
(d)  Notwithstanding Section 14202 of the Penal Code, any records established pursuant to this section shall be disseminated only to the Department of Justice, the Central Registry of this state and other states as defined by federal law and regulations, a district attorney of any county in this state, locator services of other states as defined by federal law and regulations, and the federal Parent Locator Service and official child support enforcement agencies.
(e)  (1)  At no time shall any information received by the California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry be disclosed to any person, agency, or other entity, other than those persons, agencies, and entities specified pursuant to Section 11478, this section, or any other provision of law.
(2)  This subdivision shall not otherwise affect discovery between parties in any action to establish, modify, or enforce child, family, or spousal support, that relates to custody or visitation.
(f)  (1)  The Department of Justice, in consultation with the State Department of Social Services, shall promulgate rules and regulations to facilitate maximum and efficient use of the California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry.
(2)  The Department of Justice, in consultation with the State Department of Social Services and the Public Utilities Commission, shall develop procedures for obtaining the information described in subdivision (c) from public utilities, and for compensating the public utilities for providing that information.
(g)  The State Department of Social Services and the Department of Justice shall implement the provisions of this section regarding public utilities, as defined by Section 216 of the Public Utilities Code, only where there is a reasonable likelihood that the cost of obtaining customer service information from public utilities pursuant to this section would be less than the additional collections obtained through use of that information.
(h)  The California Parent Locator Service and Central Registry may charge a fee not to exceed eighteen dollars ($18) for any service it provides pursuant to this section that is not performed or funded pursuant to Part D (commencing with Section 651) of Subchapter IV of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States Code.
(i)  This section shall be construed in a manner consistent with the other provisions of this article.

SEC. 4.

 Notwithstanding Section 17610 of the Government Code, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code. If the statewide cost of the claim for reimbursement does not exceed one million dollars ($1,000,000), reimbursement shall be made from the State Mandates Claims Fund. Notwithstanding Section 17580 of the Government Code, unless otherwise specified in this act, the provisions of this act shall become operative on the same date that the act takes effect pursuant to the California Constitution.

SEC. 5.

 This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
In order to ensure that abducted and concealed children are located and reunited with their custodial parents as soon as possible, it is necessary for this act to take effect immediately.