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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the child support obligation of an obligor during the |
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obligor's confinement in jail or prison. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 157.162, Family Code, is amended by |
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adding Subsection (d) to read as follows: |
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(d) The court may not find a respondent in contempt of court |
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for failure to pay child support if: |
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(1) the respondent appears at the hearing and presents |
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credible evidence showing that the unpaid child support accrued |
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during the respondent's confinement in a local, state, or federal |
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jail or prison for a period of at least 90 consecutive days; or |
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(2) the respondent's attorney, if the respondent is |
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confined in jail or prison at the time of the hearing, appears at |
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the hearing and presents credible evidence showing that the unpaid |
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child support accrued during the respondent's confinement in a |
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local, state, or federal jail or prison for a period of at least 90 |
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consecutive days. |
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SECTION 2. Section 157.162(d), Family Code, as added by |
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this Act, applies to a hearing to enforce an order in a suit |
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affecting the parent-child relationship that commences on or after |
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the effective date of this Act. A hearing that commences before the |
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effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the |
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date the hearing commenced, and the former law is continued in |
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effect for that purpose. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |