Printable Format39-754. Support rights assigned to secretary; secretary's rights; court record of support collected by secretary. (a) If an assignment of support rights is deemed to have been made pursuant to K.S.A. 39-709 or 39-756, and amendments thereto, support payments shall be made to the Kansas department for children and families.
(b) If a court has ordered support payments to be made to an applicant for or recipient of financial assistance or other person whose support rights are assigned, the secretary for children and families shall file a notice of the assignment with the court ordering the payments without the requirement that a copy of the notice be provided to the obligee or obligor. The notice shall not require the signature of the applicant, recipient or obligee on any accompanying assignment document. The notice shall include:
(1) A statement that the assignment is in effect;
(2) the name of any child and the caretaker or other adult for whom support has been ordered by the court;
(3) the number of the case in which support was ordered; and
(4) a request that the payments ordered be made to the secretary for children and families.
(c) Upon receipt of the notice and without the requirement of a hearing or order, the court shall forward all support payments, including those made as a result of any garnishment, contempt, attachment, income withholding, income assignment or release of lien process, to the secretary for children and families until the court receives notification of the termination of the assignment.
(d) If the claim of the secretary for repayment of the unreimbursed portion of aid to families with dependent children, medical assistance or the child's share of the costs of care and custody of a child under K.S.A. 38-2201 et seq. or 38-2301 et seq., and amendments thereto, is not satisfied when such aid is discontinued, the secretary shall file a notice of partial termination of assignment of support rights with the court which will preserve the assignment in regard to unpaid support rights which were due and owing at the time of the discontinuance of such aid. A copy of the notice of the partial termination of the assignment need not be provided to the obligee or obligor. The notice shall include:
(1) A statement that the assignment has been partially terminated;
(2) the name of any child and the caretaker or other adult for whom support has been ordered by the court;
(3) the number of the case in which support was ordered; and
(4) the date the assignment was partially terminated.
(e) Upon receipt of the notice and without the requirement of a hearing or order, the court shall forward all payments made to satisfy support arrearages due and owing as of the date the assignment of support rights was partially terminated to the secretary for children and families until the court receives notification of the termination of the assignment.
(f) If the secretary for children and families or the secretary's designee has on file with the court ordering support payments, a notice of assignment of support rights pursuant to subsection (b) or a notice of partial termination of assignment of support rights pursuant to subsection (d), the secretary shall be considered a necessary party in interest concerning any legal action to enforce, modify, settle, satisfy or discharge an assigned support obligation and, as such, shall be given notice by the party filing such action in accordance with the rules of civil procedure.
(g) Upon written notification by the secretary's designee that assigned support has been collected pursuant to K.S.A. 44-718 or 75-6201 et seq., and amendments thereto, or section 464 of title IV, part D, of the federal social security act, or any other method of direct payment to the secretary, the clerk of the court or other record keeper where the support order was established, shall enter the amounts collected by the secretary for children and families in the court's payment ledger or other record to insure that the obligor is credited for the amounts collected.
History: L. 1976, ch. 210, § 3; L. 1980, ch. 125, § 2; L. 1982, ch. 186, § 1; L. 1985, ch. 115, § 45; L. 2006, ch. 169, § 109; L. 2007, ch. 195, § 21; L. 2014, ch. 115, § 86; July 1.
Law Review and Bar Journal References:
"Survey of Kansas Law: Family Law," Nancy G. Maxwell, 37 K.L.R. 801, 814 (1989).
"Child Support and The New Federal Legislation," R. E. Schulman and Peter E. Rinn, 46 J.B.A.K. 105, 110, 111 (1977).
CASE ANNOTATIONS
1. Discussed; trial court erred in ordering certain back payments of child support be made to mother who was receiving ADC payments and in not serving notice of order to SRS. Grassi v. Grassi, 8 Kan. App. 2d 610, 611, 612, 614, 663 P.2d 312 (1983).
2. Recovery of support under K.S.A. 39-718a and 39-755 constitutional; absent parent may assert defenses before judgment. State ex rel. Secretary of SRS v. Castro, 235 Kan. 704, 709, 714, 684 P.2d 379 (1984).
3. Parent with duty to support not entitled to notice, prior to garnishment, of assignment of support payments to SRS. Whisler v. Whisler, 9 Kan. App. 2d 624, 627, 628, 684 P.2d 1025 (1984).
4. Close reading of statute reveals assignment of child support payments does not preclude assignor from enforcing obligations. Yoder v. Yoder, 11 Kan. App. 2d 330, 334, 721 P.2d 294 (1986).
5. Whether divorce decree obligations assigned to the state were dischargeable absent showing extent of assignment examined. In re Godden, 156 B.R. 36, 37 (1993).
6. Whether SRS may recoup assigned child support from husband who paid wife instead of trustee examined. In re Marriage of Walje, 19 Kan. App. 2d 809, 812, 877 P.2d 7 (1994).