By Thompson H.C.R. No. 34 77R2566 MTD-D HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 1-1 WHEREAS, In order to increase child support collections, 1-2 research is needed to examine current policies to identify factors 1-3 that impede or prevent responsible noncustodial parents from 1-4 meeting their financial obligations to their children and to 1-5 develop successful strategies to promote parental involvement; and 1-6 WHEREAS, During fiscal year 2000, the Texas attorney 1-7 general's office collected only 65 percent of all money owed by 1-8 noncustodial parents whose child support accounts are overseen by 1-9 the attorney general; and 1-10 WHEREAS, In Texas, two of the factors that contribute to the 1-11 problems encountered in the collection of child support are that 1-12 the average age of a noncustodial parent at the birth of the first 1-13 child is 23 years and that 62 percent of noncustodial parents earn 1-14 less than $20,000 per year; these circumstances result in many 1-15 noncustodial parents struggling financially while facing multiple 1-16 employment barriers that further limit their ability to pay child 1-17 support obligations; and 1-18 WHEREAS, Another factor that may prevent noncustodial parents 1-19 from paying a child support order is the policy of not modifying 1-20 the order when an obligated parent is incarcerated, is unemployed, 1-21 or has no resources from which to pay support; in Texas, arrearages 1-22 still accrue as courts have held that the incarceration of a 1-23 parent does not provide sufficient evidence, or establish a 1-24 presumption, of a lack of ability to pay a child support 2-1 obligation; in order to provide relief to responsible noncustodial 2-2 parents who do not currently have the resources to meet their 2-3 support obligations, the policy of holding arrears in abeyance and 2-4 limiting interest on arrearages by time or amount should be given 2-5 consideration; and 2-6 WHEREAS, An additional factor that may impede or prevent 2-7 responsible parents from meeting their financial obligations is the 2-8 policy of applying interest on unpaid retroactive child support 2-9 awards; in Texas, interest accrues on a money judgment for 2-10 retroactive support at the annual rate of 12 percent simple 2-11 interest, and research has shown that many parents faced with high 2-12 support payments, unmanageable arrears, and retroactive support 2-13 orders feel overwhelmed and simply give up because they view 2-14 repayment as an impossible accomplishment; in order to improve 2-15 child support collections and promote parental involvement, the 2-16 policy of applying interest to retroactive payments should be 2-17 reconsidered; and 2-18 WHEREAS, The equitable doctrine of laches as it relates to 2-19 child support obligations should also be studied to determine 2-20 whether it is an appropriate defense when the enforcement of a 2-21 child support judgment has been unreasonably delayed; now, 2-22 therefore, be it 2-23 RESOLVED, That the 77th Legislature of the State of Texas 2-24 hereby request the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house 2-25 of representatives to create an interim committee to conduct a 2-26 study on the nonpayment of child support; and, be it further 2-27 RESOLVED, That the study include the issues of holding 3-1 arrears in abeyance, limiting interest on arrearages by time or 3-2 amount, interest rates, incarceration, and the equitable doctrine 3-3 of laches; and, be it further 3-4 RESOLVED, That the committee's proceedings and operations be 3-5 governed by such general rules and policies for interim committees 3-6 as the 77th Legislature may adopt and that such rules and policies 3-7 supersede the provisions of this resolution to the extent of any 3-8 conflict; and, be it further 3-9 RESOLVED, That the committee submit a full report, including 3-10 findings and recommendations, to the 78th Texas Legislature when it 3-11 convenes in January 2003.