SRC-VRA H.B. 3087 78(R)   BILL ANALYSIS


Senate Research Center   H.B. 3087
By: Hodge (Carona)
Finance
5/12/2003
Engrossed

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Presently, child support obligors,  many of whom fall below the federal
poverty line, owe the state of Texas approximately three billion dollars
in assigned arrears.  Moreover, the Title IV-D agency (Office of the
Attorney General) retains a portion of collected child support to
reimburse the state for public assistance expenditures. Administering this
practice requires the Office of the Attorney General to execute different
strategies of compromise to collect arrearages owed by certain obligors.   

Following the recommendations of the Federal Commissioner of the Office of
Child Support Enforcement, H.B. 3087 would codify this practice into state
law, by allowing the Office of the Attorney General greater flexibility in
collecting child-support debt owed by low-income obligors.   

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to
a state officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 231.002, Family Code, by adding Subsection (i),
as follows: 
 
(i)  Authorizes the Title IV-D agency to provide a release or satisfaction
of a judgment for all or part of the amount of the arrearages assigned to
the Title IV-D agency under Section 231.104(a). 
 
SECTION 2.  Effective date:  September 1, 2003.