Enrolled Bill Summary

            House Bill 3281 amends provisions of the Family Code relating to child support enforcement and collection. The act makes numerous changes to the statutes relating to child support liens, including allowing a lien to be placed against real property as well as personal property and extending the duration of the lien until all current and past due child support, including interest, has been paid.

            The manager of the Title IV-D agency's child support enforcement duties is required by the act to report directly to the attorney general. The act requires the Title IV-D agency to establish a pilot program to improve the efficiency of court processing of family welfare cases, including child support, medical support, and foster care cases, and sets forth criteria for selecting counties to participate in the program. The act also requires the Title IV-D agency to place child support information on the Internet to assist the public in child support matters. It authorizes the attorney general's office to pay a contingency fee from funds recovered by a private agency or individual under a contract and directs the State Council on Competitive Government to provide for competitive bidding for child support collection and enforcement services. The act further directs the Title IV-D agency to develop a program to enlist the general public in an effort to identify delinquent obligors and authorizes the agency to offer rewards for information.

            The act provides that the Department of Public Safety be evaluated on its performance relating to complete and correct social security numbers on driver's licenses. It also requires the department to include in each notice sent to a driver's license holder a statement that the driver's license may be suspended if the driver is delinquent in the payment of child support.

            House Bill 3281 places the attorney general's office in matters related to the enforcement of child support under the Texas Sunset Act. It requires the Sunset Advisory Commission to select an independent firm to conduct a comprehensive analysis and to make recommendations concerning the structure, efficiency, and effectiveness of the agency. The analysis is to include whether programs related to the enforcement of child support should remain in the attorney general's office, be privatized, or be transferred to an independent state agency. The commission is directed to report its findings to the 76th Legislature in 1999.