South Carolina General Assembly
110th Session, 1993-1994

Bill 4836


                    Current Status
Introducing Body:               House
Bill Number:                    4836
Ratification Number:            612
Act Number:                     513
Primary Sponsor:                McElveen
Type of Legislation:            GB
Subject:                        Child Support Enforcement Act
                                of 1994 
Date Bill Passed both Bodies:   19940602
Computer Document Number:       CYY/15754AC.94
Governor's Action:              S
Date of Governor's Action:      19940831
Introduced Date:                19940301
Date of Last Amendment:         19940601
Last History Body:              ------
Last History Date:              19940831
Last History Type:              Act No. 513
Scope of Legislation:           Statewide
All Sponsors:                   McElveen
                                Neal
                                Shissias
                                Cobb-Hunter
                                Cromer
                                Mattos
                                Govan
                                Inabinett
                                Wofford
                                Hutson
                                Wells
                                Boan
                                Hodges
                                Waldrop
Type of Legislation:            General Bill

History

Bill   Body    Date          Action Description              CMN  Leg Involved
----   ------  ------------  ------------------------------  ---  ------------
4836   ------  19940831      Act No. 513
4836   ------  19940831      Signed by Governor
4836   ------  19940602      Ratified R 612
4836   House   19940602      Concurred in Senate
                             amendment, enrolled for
                             ratification
4836   Senate  19940601      Amended, read third time,
                             returned to House with
                             amendments
4836   Senate  19940531      Read second time, notice of
                             general amendments
4836   Senate  19940525      Submitted by Committee: no      08
                             report
4836   Senate  19940419      Introduced, read first time,    08
                             referred to Committee
4836   House   19940414      Read third time, sent to
                             Senate
4836   House   19940413      Amended, read second time
4836   House   19940412      Debate interrupted
4836   House   19940330      Committee Report: Favorable     25
                             with amendment
4836   House   19940301      Introduced, read first time,    25
                             referred to Committee
View additional legislative information at the LPITS web site.


(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

(A513, R612, H4836)

AN ACT TO ENACT THE OMNIBUS CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT ACT OF 1994 BY AMENDING THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976; TO AMEND

SECTION 20-7-955, RELATING TO SETTLEMENTS AND VOLUNTARY AGREEMENTS IN PATERNITY AND CHILD SUPPORT CASES, SO AS TO REQUIRE THE COURT TO APPROVE THESE AGREEMENTS UPON A FINDING OF FAIRNESS, TO REQUIRE THAT A SUMMONS AND COMPLAINT BE FILED WITH THESE AGREEMENTS, AND TO REVISE THE REQUIREMENTS FOR A SETTLEMENT AFFIDAVIT WHEN THE CHILD IS THE RECIPIENT OF PUBLIC ASSISTANCE; TO AMEND SECTION 20-7-956, RELATING TO ADMISSIBLE EVIDENCE AT A PATERNITY HEARING, SO AS TO INCLUDE VOLUNTARY ACKNOWLEDGMENTS OF PATERNITY, FOREIGN PATERNITY DETERMINATIONS, PATERNITY INDICATED ON BIRTH CERTIFICATES, AND TO CREATE CERTAIN PRESUMPTIONS AND REBUTTABLE PRESUMPTIONS WITH REGARD TO THIS EVIDENCE; TO AMEND SECTION 43-5-220, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO OBTAINING SUPPORT PAYMENTS FROM ABSENT PARENTS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT PAST DUE SUPPORT OWED THAT IS SUBJECT TO COLLECTION AND SETOFF BY THE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE AND TAXATION INCLUDES HEALTH CARE EXPENSES; TO ADD SECTION 44-7-77 SO AS TO REQUIRE THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL AND THE DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES TO DEVELOP A PROGRAM PROMOTING OBTAINING IN-HOSPITAL PATERNITY ACKNOWLEDGMENTS; AND TO ADD SECTION 44-63-75, SO AS TO REQUIRE SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS ON BIRTH CERTIFICATE FORMS.

Whereas, welfare is not a choice for most recipients. Most want to work and improve the lives of their families which is made evident by the fact that the average Aid to Families with Dependent Children recipient is on the public assistance system less than two years; and

Whereas, acknowledgment of paternity and payment of child support are basic parental responsibilities and improvement of child support collections is one of the most efficient strategies for preventing the need for public assistance for some families and for providing others the means to get off the welfare system. Now, therefore,

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

Voluntary agreements and settlements in child support and paternity actions

SECTION 1. Section 20-7-955 of the 1976 Code is amended to read: "Section 20-7-955. (A) The court must encourage settlements and voluntary agreements and must examine and approve them whenever they are warranted. Upon a finding of fairness the court shall approve, without a hearing, settlements and voluntary agreements which are reduced to writing, signed by the parties, and properly verified. The agreement must be accompanied by financial declarations and affidavits from the custodial and noncustodial parents stating that they have read, or have had read to them, and understand the agreement and that they have voluntarily executed the agreement or consent order. The parties may submit themselves to the jurisdiction of the court by a settlement or voluntary agreement which must be filed with the summons and complaint. A defendant's affidavit must state that the defendant is capable of fulfilling any financial requirements of the agreement or consent order applicable to the defendant. Upon the court's approval, the settlement or voluntary agreement becomes an order of the court.

(B) In actions commenced by the Department of Social Services or any other authorized agency, an employee of the department or the agency who is familiar with the action may make, on behalf of the custodial parent, the required affidavit accompanying a settlement, voluntary agreement, or consent order. In cases where the child is the recipient of public assistance, the affidavit must state that the employee has reviewed the case and that the child involved is receiving public assistance due in part to inadequate support from the noncustodial parent."

Admissibility of evidence at paternity hearings; paternity presumptions created

SECTION 2. Section 20-7-956 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"Section 20-7-956. (A) The following evidence is admissible at a hearing to determine paternity:

(1) Results of genetic tests as described in Section 20-7-954 from physicians, agencies, hospitals, laboratories, or other qualified testing facilities, properly verified to show the chain of custody of blood samples. This evidence, must be introduced and admitted without the foundation testimony or other proof of authenticity or accuracy unless a challenge has been asserted by motion at least twenty days before the date of trial. Any party to the action, absent stipulations to the contrary, may demand the right to have additional testing conducted at the expense of the party who demands the additional testing.

(2) The refusal of a party to submit to a genetic or other ordered test as to the credibility of a party.

(3) Test results which show a statistical probability of paternity. A statistical probability of paternity of ninety-five percent or higher creates a rebuttable presumption of the putative father's paternity.

(4) A verified voluntary acknowledgement of paternity. This acknowledgment creates a rebuttable presumption of the putative father's paternity.

(5) A foreign paternity determination whether established through administrative or judicial process. This determination creates a conclusive presumption of paternity.

(6) A birth certificate containing the signature of the mother and the putative father. This evidence creates a rebuttable presumption of paternity.

(7) An expert's opinion concerning the time of conception. This evidence is admissible in the same manner as other expert testimony. The court may take judicial notice of the normal period of gestation.

(8) The testimony of a husband and wife as to any relevant matter, including marriage and parentage.

(9) Any other relevant and competent evidence deemed admissible in the discretion of the court.

(B) Upon the motion of any party to the action or upon its own motion, the court may view a child for the purpose of examining the presence or the absence of physical characteristics and similarities between the child and the putative father.

(C) If a male witness offers testimony indicating that his act of intercourse with the natural mother may have resulted in the conception of the child, the court may require the witness to submit to genetic or other tests to determine whether he is the child's father. If the results of the tests exclude or tend to exclude the witness as the father of the child, the witness's testimony must be stricken from the record and disregarded."

Past due support includes health care expenses owed and are collectible

SECTION 3. Section 43-5-220(i) of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 181 of 1993, Section 1012, is further amended to read:

"(i) The department may submit to the Department of Revenue and Taxation for collection and setoff any debt for past-due support, including health care expenses, owed to the department or owed to an individual not otherwise eligible for collection services who has made application to the department. The debt for past-due support must be at least sixty days in arrears and is in excess of twenty-five dollars as provided in Section 12-7-2240. At the time of the submission, the department shall notify the debtor that his state tax refund will be subject to a debt for past-due support. The notice shall set forth the name of the debtor, the amount of the claimed debt, the intention to set off the refund against the debt, the taxpayer's opportunity to give written notice to contest the setoff within thirty days of the date of mailing of the notice, the appropriate office of the department to which the application for a hearing must be sent, and the fact that failure to apply for a hearing in writing within the thirty-day period will be considered a waiver of the opportunity to contest the setoff. If the debtor makes written application to contest the setoff within thirty days of notification, the department shall provide an opportunity for a hearing and is responsible for refunding any monies wrongfully collected. If no application is made, the debtor's refund must be used to set off the amount owed. From the amount transferred from the Department of Revenue and Taxation, the department shall reimburse the Department of Revenue and Taxation for expenses incurred in administering this program. In the case of an individual not otherwise eligible for collection services, a fee must be imposed by the department to cover all costs. The department shall request that the Department of Revenue and Taxation send to the department notice of the home address, corrected social security number, or additional social security numbers, if more than one is used, of any taxpayer whose name is submitted to the Department of Revenue and Taxation under this subsection."

Program to promote in-hospital paternity acknowledgments

SECTION 4. The 1976 Code is amended by adding:

"Section 44-7-77. The Department of Health and Environmental Control, and the Department of Social Services, in conjunction with the South Carolina Hospital Association, shall develop and implement a program to promote obtaining the voluntary acknowledgments of paternity before a newborn is released from the hospital."

Social Security numbers must be on birth certificate forms

SECTION 5. The 1976 Code is amended by adding:

"Section 44-63-75. Social Security numbers must be included in the forms prescribed by the state registrar for birth certificates."

Time effective

SECTION 6. This act takes effect July 1, 1994.

Approved the 31st day of August, 1994.