Current through all regulations passed and filed through September 16, 2024
(A) This rule
describes the responsibilities that an initiating or responding child support
enforcement agency (CSEA) has to enforce support orders in intergovernmental
cases.
(B) When two or more support
orders exist, only the support order that has been determined to be the
controlling order may be enforced. Therefore, before any action is taken to
enforce a support order, the initiating CSEA shall conduct an investigation to
identify the number of support orders that may exist in the case and take any
necessary steps as described in rule 5101:12-70-05.3 of the Administrative
Code.
(C) Support orders
in interstate cases may be enforced either by:
(1)
Sending a direct income
withholding as described in sections
3115.501 to
3115.507 of the Revised Code, if
it is verified that an obligor is employed or receives income in another state
and the CSEA determines that direct income withholding is available and
appropriate; or
(2) Sending a
Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA)(2008) petition that requests the enforcement of
support from an initiating CSEA to an interstate central registry(ICR) in a responding state.
(D)
A CSEA shall determine whether direct income
withholding is available and appropriate to enforce a controlling order. Prior
to sending the income withholding notice, the CSEA shall verify that the laws
of the state where the obligor's payor is located permit the direct withholding
of the type of income being received.
(E)
A CSEA shall have the following responsibilities when
it determines that direct income withholding is appropriate:
(1) It shall prepare an income withholding
notice as described in rule 5101:12-50-10.2 of the Administrative Code;
and
(2) It shall send the income
withholding notice directly to the obligor's payor in the other
state.
(F) An initiating
CSEA shall have the following responsibilities when it is unable to verify a
source of income for the obligor or when it determines that direct income
withholding is inappropriate:
(1) Prepare a
UIFSA petition within twenty days of determining that an obligor resides in
another jurisdiction; and
(2) When
the controlling order has been issued by the state where the obligor resides,
send a UIFSA petition requesting enforcement of the controlling order to the
ICR in that state; or
(3) When the
controlling order has been issued by a state other than the state where the
obligor resides, take each of the following actions:
(a) Obtain a certified copy of the
controlling order, and all modifications of the
controlling order including certified payment records for which the
registration is being requested;
(b) Prepare a UIFSA petition that requests
registration of the controlling order; and
(c) Send the UIFSA petition to the ICR in the
state where the obligor resides or has assets, or to the
central authority of another country or tribe.
(G) UIFSA petitions requesting the
registration of a support order for enforcement may be sent simultaneously to
any state where the obligor resides or has income or assets.
A CSEA must maintain records of all actions taken to enforce a support order
using the registration process described in this rule.
(H) A responding CSEA has the following
responsibilities:
(1) Immediately upon receipt
of a UIFSA petition
from the Ohio ICR, which requests the enforcement
of a controlling order, verify the residence address of the obligor and:
(a) When the CSEA has verified that the
obligor resides in the same county as the responding CSEA, the CSEA shall take
the actions requested in the petition; or
(b) When the CSEA has verified that the
obligor has moved to another county, the CSEA shall:
(i)
Determine which
county has administrative responsibility pursuant to rules
5101:12-10-03
and
5101:12-10-04
of the Administrative Code;
(ii)
Determine if a
transfer is required, and forward the forms and documentation to the county
with administrative responsibility; and
(iii)
Notify the
initiating agency and the Ohio ICR of the transfer.
(c) When the CSEA has verified that a support
order exists in a different Ohio county, the CSEA shall:
(i)
Determine which
county has administrative responsibility pursuant to rules
5101:12-10-03
and
5101:12-10-04
of the Administrative Code;
(ii)
Determine if a
transfer is required, and forward the forms and documentation to the county
with administrative responsibility; and
(iii)
Notify the
initiating agency and the Ohio ICR of the transfer.
(2) The responding CSEA with
administrative responsibility for the case shall take the following actions
within seventy-five days of receipt of the UIFSA petition:
(a) Notify the child support agency in the
initiating jurisdiction of any additional information needed to proceed with
the case;
(b) Process the case to
the extent possible pending receipt of the additional information needed from
the child support agency in the initiating jurisdiction; and
(c) Complete the case intake process in the
Ohio case registry, support enforcement tracking system (SETS), using
information from the UIFSA petition and any information received from the child
support enforcement network (CSENet) transaction.
(3) Register the controlling order if all
information necessary to register the order has been received. A controlling
order that is registered and confirmed in Ohio is enforceable in the same
manner and subject to the same procedures as an order issued by Ohio.
(I) When all of the parties to a
case reside in Ohio and the controlling order exists in a jurisdiction other
than Ohio, the controlling order may be registered for enforcement
pursuant to
sections 3115.601 to
3115.616 of the Revised Code by
the CSEA with administrative responsibility as described in rule
5101:12-10-04
of the Administrative Code.
Effective: 7/1/2016
Five Year Review
(FYR) Dates: 03/22/2016 and
07/01/2021
Promulgated
Under: 119.03
Statutory
Authority: 3125.25
Rule
Amplifies: 3115.206,
3115.304,
3115.305,
3115.307,
3115.602,
3115.603 and
3125.03
Prior
Effective Dates: 1/1/98, 3/1/03, 9/1/05,
11/1/11
