New Jersey Administrative Code
Title 10 - HUMAN SERVICES
Chapter 110 - CHILD SUPPORT PROGRAM
Subchapter 1A - DEFINITIONS
Section 10:110-1A.1 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 18, September 16, 2024

The following words and terms, as used within this chapter, shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Account" means a demand deposit account, checking or negotiable order of withdrawal account, savings account, time deposit account, equity securities account or money market mutual fund account, or other deposit account as identified by Federal Law as subject to Financial Institution Data Match requirements.

"Administrative enforcement" means the use of high volume automated data processing to search various State data bases, including, but not limited to, license records, employment service data and State new hire registries.

"Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC)" means the Judiciary's administrative office that assists in providing guidance to the 15 judicial districts, or vicinages, under the authority granted by the State Constitution to the Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court and the Administrative Director of the Courts in the administration of all courts in the State. The Family, Probation (Child Support) and Finance Divisions, components of the local vicinages, are involved in the administration of the Child Support Program.

"Alleged father" means a person who has been named as the father of a child born out-of-wedlock, but who has not been legally determined to be the father; also referred to as a putative father.

"Arrearage" means the amount of unpaid support that is past due under a court order or an administrative order from a jurisdiction, for support of a child or of a child and the custodial parent.

"Assessment or intake process" means conducting an investigative interview with the applicant for child support services or those applying for or receiving public assistance, and activities associated with initial support case opening, to establish the child support case circumstances and to determine if child support services are appropriate. This is the first step in the child support enforcement process.

"Automated Administrative Enforcement of Intergovernmental Cases (AEI)" means the State's ability to locate, place a lien on, and seize financial assets of delinquent obligors upon request of another state or Indian Tribe/Tribal organization child support enforcement agency, or foreign reciprocating jurisdiction.

"Automated child support system" means the Federally required system of the State that handles the automation of child support records and the performance of all related functions required of that system and is the State Case Registry (SCR) of child support cases.

"Case record" means the official file, including electronically stored data, that constitutes a complete record on a case which supports the decisions and actions of the child support entity on a case and may include, but is not limited to, forms, chronological narrative, correspondence, and other documents pertinent to child support activity on that case.

"Cash medical support" means an amount ordered to be paid toward the cost of health care coverage provided by a public entity or by another parent through employment or otherwise, or for other medical costs not covered by insurance.

"Cash or cash-equivalent assets" means bank accounts, retirement accounts, trusts, insurance proceeds, net monetary awards and settlements from civil lawsuits, non-court settlements, proceeds from estates, investments, commissions, bonuses and any other asset from which funds are readily available without the need for seizure, inventory or public sale.

"Child" means a person, whether over or under the age of majority, who is or is alleged to be owed a duty of child support by that person's parent or who is or is alleged to be the beneficiary of a support order directed to the parent.

"Child support" means the amount required to be paid under a judgment, decree, or order, whether temporary, final or subject to modification, issued by the Superior Court, Chancery Division, Family Part or a court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction of another jurisdiction, for the support and maintenance of a child, or the support and maintenance of a child and the parent with whom the child is living, which provides monetary support, health care coverage, any arrearage or reimbursement, and which may include other related costs and fees, interest and penalties, income withholding, attorney's fees and other relief.

"Child Support Enforcement Network (CSENet)" means the state-to-state telecommunications network which transfers detailed information among states' automated child support systems.

"Child Support Lien Network (CSLN)" means that database network used by various states that was contracted by the OCSS as of July 2002 as a tool of administrative enforcement for obligors owing past-due child support. That database contains the names and information on delinquent child support obligors for purposes of asset matching, and is specifically directed at intercepting newly identified insurance settlement proceeds of such delinquent obligors before the distribution of any net proceeds of a settlement, judgment or award is made to such obligor.

"Child support order" means a support order for a child, including a child who has attained the age of majority under the law of the issuing jurisdiction.

"Child support related warrant" means an outstanding warrant for the arrest of a child support obligor or putative father issued by the court for failure to pay child support as ordered, failure to appear at a hearing to establish paternity or child support, or failure to appear at a hearing to enforce a child support order.

"Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Human Services.

"Confidential information" means any data, written or verbal, available to or obtained through the Title IV-D Program by authorized staff or contracted entities, which assists in the administrative purposes of the Title IV-D Program, and includes such information used for establishment and enforcement purposes as permitted by Federal and State statutes and regulations.

"Contractor for new hire reporting purposes" means someone who is 18 years of age or older who performs labor under contract for an "employer" or "payor of income", and to whom a payor of income makes payments that are not subject to income withholding for child support. The contractor is an individual, and is not a corporation, government, business trust, estate, partnership or other legal entity for whom the payor of income is required to file a Federal "Form 1099-MISCELLANEOUS" (currently required for payment of service of $ 600.00 or more).

"Contractual agent" means an entity providing a child support service(s) or function(s) of the Child Support Program and is inclusive of those agents of the Program procured through purchase-of-service contracts, contractual agreements or memoranda of understanding with the IV-D Agency.

"Cost-of-living adjustment (COLA)" means an adjustment of the amount of a support obligation based on the economy's increasing or decreasing cost of the necessities of life such as food, shelter and clothing based on the Consumer Price Index.

"County welfare agency (CWA)" means that county agency designated by the respective county to handle the administration of public assistance benefits such as, but not limited to, New Jersey Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (NJ SNAP), Work First New Jersey/Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (WFNJ/TANF), Medicaid Programs, Child Support, and Work First New Jersey/General Assistance (WFNJ/GA). The term CWA includes, but is not limited to, agencies that may be locally known as the "Board of Social Services"; the "Department of Citizen Services, Division of Welfare"; the "Division of Social Services"; the "Division of Temporary Assistance and Social Services"; or as the "Department of Family and Community Development."

"County welfare agency child support unit (CWA/CSU)" means that separate work unit within the CWA, as defined herein, that is responsible for Title IV-D responsibilities.

"Court" means the Superior Court, Chancery Division, Family Part.

"Court order" means an order of the court or an order from an administrative or judicial tribunal in another jurisdiction or of an Indian Tribe/Tribal organization child support enforcement agency that is competent to enter or modify orders for parentage or child support.

"Court rules" means the Rules Governing the Courts of the State of New Jersey.

"CP&P" means the Division of Child Protection and Permanency in the Department of Children and Families.

"Credit reporting agency" means a nationally recognized credit reporting agency as approved by the commissioner and defined in the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. § 1681a(f)) as any entity which for monetary fees, dues, or on a cooperative nonprofit basis, regularly engages in whole or in part in the practice of assembling or evaluating consumer credit information or other information on consumers for the purpose of furnishing reports to third parties and which uses any means or facility or interstate commerce for the purpose of preparing or furnishing consumer reports.

"Custodial parent" means the parent or other person who has legal and physical custody of a child for the majority of the time. The custodial parent is responsible for day-to-day decisions related to the child and for providing the basic needs of the child on a daily basis. The custodial parent is the person to whom child support is payable. In shared parenting situations, the custodial parent is known as the parent of primary residence.

"Default order" means a court order entered due to a party's failure to answer a complaint or motion or to appear at a court proceeding as required, after being properly served with notice.

"Department" means the Department of Human Services.

"Division" means the Division of Family Development.

"Employee" means an individual who is an employee within the meaning of chapter 24 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. For purposes of new hire reporting, "employee" does not include an employee of a Federal or state agency performing intelligence or counter-intelligence functions, if the head of such agency has determined that reporting could endanger the safety of the employee or compromise an ongoing investigation or intelligence mission.

"Employer or payor of income" has the meaning given the term in section 3401(d) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and includes any governmental entity or labor organization.

"Family violence" means subjecting an individual(s) to extreme cruelty or physical battering as defined at 408(a)(7)(C) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. § 608(a) 7(c)). These behavioral acts of abuse by a perpetrator are those behaviors that result in, or threaten to result in, physical or mental injury/abuse; threatened or attempted sexual assault; sexual assault activity involving a dependent child; the forcing of an individual as the caretaker relative of a dependent child to take part in non-consensual sexual acts or activities; and neglecting or preventing the individual(s) from getting medical care. Such harmful physical and controlling behavior(s) by the perpetrator, that may have occurred in the past or are presently taking place, can cause, but is not limited to, economic intimidation and isolation of the intimate partner(s) or other family member(s), and may impact that individual's compliance with child support cooperation requirements or in seeking needed services for fear of their own or their child(ren)'s safety.

"Federal Parent Locator Service (FPLS)" means a computerized national location network operated by the Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement to help the states, as defined herein, locate parents in order to obtain child support payments and/or medical support. FPLS obtains address and employer information from Federal agencies and the National Directory of New Hires.

"Federal provisions" means statutes, regulations, the Child Support State Plan submitted and maintained by OCSS to the Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE), and other applicable issuances of that Office, such as, but not limited to Action Transmittals, Information Memoranda, Dear Colleague Letters, Policy Interpretation Questions, as well as Technical Correspondence, used by OCSE to convey Child Support Program and related program interface materials and information, policies, interpretations and procedures to the state and Indian Tribe/Tribal organization child support enforcement agencies.

"Financial institution" means:

"Foreign reciprocating jurisdiction" means any country, or political subdivision thereof, having an authorized declaration or international agreement for purposes of child support establishment and enforcement with the United States in accordance with 42 U.S.C. § 659A; and those existing reciprocity agreements that states had previously made with foreign governments, which have not been declared reciprocating jurisdictions under Federal law under the continuing authority granted to states under 42 U.S.C. § 659A(d).

"Health care coverage" includes fee for service, health maintenance organization, preferred provider organization, dental insurance, eye care, pharmaceutical assistance, and other types of private health insurance and public health care coverage under which medical services could be provided to the dependent child(ren).

"Health care coverage" means cash medical support, health insurance, dental insurance, eye care, pharmaceutical assistance and other types of medical support, as defined herein, which are ordered by the court to maintain the health coverage of a child.

"Income," for the purposes of enforcing a support order, means, but is not limited to, commissions, salaries, earnings, wages, rent monies, unemployment compensation, workers' compensation, any legal or equitable interest or entitlement owed that was acquired by a cause of action, suit, claim or counterclaim, insurance benefits, claims, accounts, assets of estates, inheritances, trusts, Federal or State income tax refunds, homestead rebates, State lottery prizes, casino and racetrack winnings, annuities, retirement benefits, veteran's benefits, union benefits, or earnings or other periodic entitlements to money from any source and any other property subject to withholding for child support pursuant to State law. For the purposes of establishing a support order, income is defined pursuant to the child support guidelines in Appendix IX of the Court Rules.

"Income withholding order" means an order or other legal process directed to an obligor's employer as defined by the "New Jersey Child Support Improvement Act," P.L. 1998, c. 1, or other source of income to withhold support from the income of the obligor.

"Independent contractor for new hires reporting purposes" means someone who operates his or her own business as a sole proprietor who is liable for his or her own taxes, whom another "employer" or "payor of income" expects to reimburse for services for one or more contracts during a year, who is not an employee, but receives compensation or executes a contract for services with the other employer.

"Indian Tribe" means, for purposes of the Child Support Enforcement Program, in accordance with section 455(f) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. § 655(f)), any Indian Tribe, as defined in accordance with subsections (e) and (l) of section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. § 450b), band, nation, pueblo, village or community, or other organized group or community, including any Alaska Native village or regional or village corporation as defined in or established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. §§ 1601 et seq.) that the Secretary of the interior acknowledges to exist as an Indian Tribe, and Tribes meeting this definition that function as political entities exercising governmental authority, and included in the most current list of Federally recognized Indian Tribal governments pursuant to P.L. 103-454(25 U.S.C. § 479a) with a recognized government-to-government relationship with the United States.

"Indian Tribe/Tribal organization child support enforcement agency" means the organizational unit in the Tribe or Tribal organization that has the delegated authority for administering or supervising the Tribal Child Support Enforcement (CSE) Program under section 455(f) of the Act (42 U.S.C. § 655(f), and 45 C.F.R. 309 with an approved Tribal Child Support Plan. This does not mean those Tribes or Tribal organizations that have signed authorized agreements, in accordance with section 454(33) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. § 654(33)), with a state IV-D agency to include the Tribe or Tribal organization in that state's Child Support Enforcement Program.

"Intergovernmental cases" means child support cases processed in accordance with the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA), P.L. 1998, c. 2, or its predecessor law, where a non-custodial parent lives in a different state than his or her child and the custodial party, or where two or more states are involved in some case activity, including, but not limited to, cases where "state" means originating from another state; from an Indian Tribe/Tribal organization child support enforcement agency; from a foreign reciprocating jurisdiction in accordance with 42 U.S.C. § 659A; from a U.S. citizen living abroad; and from a non-resident alien who applies or has applied directly to a state for child support enforcement services.

"IV-D (Four-D)" means a reference to Title IV-D of the Social Security Act that requires that each state create a program to locate non-custodial parents, establish paternity, establish and enforce child support obligations, and collect and distribute support payments. All recipients of public assistance are referred to the state's IV-D or Child Support Program. States must also accept applications, if requested, to assist in collection of child support from families who do not receive public assistance.

"IV-D application" means a written document provided by the State IV-D Agency for non-public assistance individuals, that indicates that the individual is applying for child support services under the State's Title IV-D Program, and is signed by the individual applying for those IV-D services.

"Labor organization" means a labor organization as defined in paragraph (5) of section 2 of the Federal "National Labor Relations Act" (29 U.S.C. § 152) and includes any entity used by the organization and an employer to carry out the requirements of paragraph (3) of the subsection (f) of section 8 of that Act (29 U.S.C. § 158(f)(3)) or an agreement between the organization and the employer.

"Law" includes decisional and statutory law, and rules and regulations having the force and effect of law.

"License" means any license, registration or certificate issued by the State or its agencies or boards that is directly necessary to provide a product or service for compensation, to operate a motor vehicle, or for recreational or sporting purposes.

"Licensing authority" means any department, division, board, agency or other instrumentality of State government that issues a license, registration, certificate or other authorization to provide goods or services for compensation, to operation of a motor vehicle or for recreational or sporting purposes.

"Medicaid" means medical assistance provided under a State plan approved under Title XIX of the Social Security Act.

"Medical support" means medical coverage pursuant to a court order. Medical support includes private and public health care coverage, cash medical support, including payment of health insurance premiums, and payment of medical bills, including dental or eye care. Medical support may be provided by the person paying support, the person receiving support, or another person, such as a step-parent.

"Multi-state financial institution" means a financial institution, as defined herein, that does business in more than one state or territory.

"New Jersey Child Support Institute (NJCSI)" means the entity operated by OCSS, in cooperation with such entities and partners of the New Jersey Child Support Program to provide customized training programs for State, county, and judiciary employees who work in New Jersey's Child Support Program.

"Non-custodial parent" or "NCP" means the parent who does not have physical custody of the child on a day-to-day basis. In shared parenting situations, the non-custodial parent is known as the parent of alternate residence.

"Non IV-D cases" means a child support case not handled by the State/local child support enforcement (IV-D) agency. A non IV-D case is one where the State:

"Obligee" means:

"Obligor" means an individual, or the estate of a decedent:

"Parentage" means the legal relationship between a child and a parent of the child. The term includes the mother-child relationship and the father-child relationship.

"Payor" means an employer or individual or entity that disburses or is in possession of income or assets payable to an obligor."

"Political subdivision of the State" means a county or municipality of the State and any agency of that county or municipality, as well as any legal entity of that subdivision, such as, but not limited to, the county prosecutor and county sheriff.

"Probation Division" means the Probation Division of the Superior Court, Chancery Division, Family Part.

"Reciprocity" means a relationship between states, as defined herein, or jurisdictions, whereby recognition of child support paternity and enforcement policies and procedures is granted by one to the other, and returned one to the other (that is, state-to-state; country-to-country).

"RURESA" means the "Revised Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act (1968)," adopted in New Jersey as P.L. 1981, c.243 (N.J.S.A. 2A:4-30.2 4 et seq., and replaced by the enactment of UIFSA, P.L. 1998, c. 2).

"Spousal support" means a legally enforceable obligation assessed against a person for the support of a spouse or a former spouse.

"Spousal support order" means a support order for a spouse or former spouse of the obligor.

"State" means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. State includes:

"State case registry" means the automated system maintained by the Division that contains Federally required information on child support cases.

"State disbursement unit (SDU)" means a unit responsible for the processing of the collection of child support funds made under support orders in Title IV-D cases being enforced by the State pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 654b, and in non-Title IV-D cases.

"State IV-D Agency" means the Division of Family Development's Office of Child Support Services (OCSS) in the Department of Human Services.

"State Parent Locator Service (SPLS)" means a unit within and operated by the State IV-D Program that is mandated to perform activities relating to the location of non-custodial parents, to establish paternity and to establish and enforce child support obligations, in accordance with 45 C.F.R. 302.35 and 303.70.

"State Plan" means the formalized plan developed by each state, territory or Indian Tribe/Tribal organization child support enforcement agency, in conjunction with the Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement. The State Plan includes procedures for implementing State policies and the allocation of necessary resources.

"Support guidelines" means the set of presumptive standards for determining the amount of child support as established by Court Rule 5:6A and in Appendix IX.

"Support order" means a judgment, decree or order, whether temporary, final, or subject to modification, for the benefit of a child, a spouse, or a former spouse, which provides for monetary support, health care coverage, arrearages, or reimbursement, and may include related costs and fees, interest, income withholding, attorney's fees, and other relief. A support order shall be issued by the court or a court or administrative agency of another jurisdiction.

"TANF" means the "Temporary Assistance to Needy Families" program established pursuant to Title IV-A of the Federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. § 601 et seq.). TANF includes the Work First New Jersey program for dependent children and their parents established pursuant to P.L. 1997, c. 38(44:10-55 et seq.).

"Title IV-D" means Title IV-D of the Federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. §§ 651 et seq.).

"Title IV-D case" means a case under Title IV-A or Title XIX of the Federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. §§ 601 et seq.), that involves an assignment of support rights, an appropriate referral under Title IV-E of the Federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. §§ 601 et seq.), or a non-public assistance case, in which an application for Title IV-D services has been filed and a fee paid, as appropriate, with the Program, or an intergovernmental case referred to the State Program by another jurisdiction.

"Tribal organization" means, for purposes of the Child Support Enforcement Program in accordance with section 455(f) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. § 655(f)), and in accordance with the definition in section 4 of P.L. 93-638 of 'Tribal organization', the recognized governing body of any Indian Tribe as defined herein; any legally established organization of Indians which is controlled, sanctioned, or chartered by such governing body or which is democratically elected by the adult members of the Indian community to be served by such organization and which includes the maximum participation of Indians in all phases of its activities; provided, that in any case where a contract is let or grant made to an organization to perform services benefiting one or more Indian Tribes, the approval of each such Indian Tribe shall be prerequisite to the letting or making of such contract or grant. Then, the Tribal organization is charged with the vested authority by the aforementioned, to apply for and carry out a child support enforcement program on its behalf in accordance with the criteria of 45 C.F.R. 309.

"UIFSA" means the "Uniform Interstate Family Support Act" to be adopted by each state to replace RURESA pursuant to P.L. 104-193, and enacted in the State as P.L. 1998, c. 2(N.J.S.A. 2A:4-30 et seq.).