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March 18, 2024 Clear | 38°F
The 193rd General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts

AN ACT TO IMPROVE THE MASSACHUSETTS CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT PROGRAM.

Whereas , The deferred operation of this act would tend to defeat its purpose, which is forthwith to provide for enhanced enforcement of child support obligations, therefore it is hereby declared to be an emergency law, necessary for the immediate preservation of the public convenience.


Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:


SECTION 1. Chapter 6 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1996 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after section 172C the following section:-

Section 172D. Notwithstanding any provision of section 172 or of any other provision of law, the following information shall be available to the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A, upon request, for purposes connected with establishing paternity, or establishing, modifying or enforcing child support obligations pursuant to chapter 119A and Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act: criminal offender record information, including, but not limited to, arrest, conviction, incarceration and rehabilitation information, and evaluative information pursuant to section 14 of chapter 119A; criminal offender record information obtained through any interstate system used by the commonwealth to locate an individual for purposes relating to motor vehicles or law enforcement as required by Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act; youthful offender and adjudication of juvenile delinquency data; information contained in the warrant management system established pursuant to section 23A of chapter 276; and to further the protection of children and victims of domestic violence, data in the statewide domestic violence record keeping system maintained by the commissioner of probation. The IV-D agency shall not make, and shall prohibit, any dissemination of such information for any purpose other than as set forth herein.

SECTION 2. Section 15D of chapter 22 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "commissioner", in line 22, the following words:- , including information which appears in child support enforcement files maintained by the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A concerning dates and amounts of income received, employer, last known address and other information relevant to the investigation of fraud.

SECTION 3. Said section 15D of said chapter 22, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 24, the words "public welfare" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- transitional assistance.

SECTION 4. Chapter 30A of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 13 the following section:-

Section 13A. Agencies and political subdivisions of the commonwealth, that issue a license under section 13 shall require an applicant for issuance or renewal of such license to provide a social security number as a condition of issuing or renewing such license and shall record such social security number in the applicant's record; provided, however, that the applicant may, on the face of the license, use a number other than his social security number as permitted under any other provision of law of the commonwealth; provided further, that the agency issuing the license shall provide information in its records, including the social security number of applicants, to the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A, using the method and format required by said IV-D agency.

SECTION 5. Section 1 of chapter 32 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1996 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the definition of "Hospital district", the following definition:-

"IV-D agency", the state agency that has the responsibility for administering or supervising the administration of the provision of child support enforcement services pursuant to Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act and chapter 119A of the General Laws.

SECTION 6. Section 10 of said chapter 32, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "in", in line 149, the following words:- section 11 or.

SECTION 7. Section 11 of said chapter 32, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "three", in line 6, the following words:- , to the provisions of this section,.

SECTION 8. Subdivision (1) of said section 11 of said chapter 32, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after paragraph (b) the following paragraph:-

(c)(i) If a member is eligible to receive a return of accumulated total deductions and requests such return from the board on the prescribed form, prior to the return of such accumulated total deductions, the board shall provide to the IV-D agency the member's name, date of birth, address, and social security number. Within 15 days of receipt of such information the IV-D agency shall notify the board if such member owes child support arrears, provided, however, that if, due to unforeseen circumstances, the IV-D agency is unable to provide such notice within 15 days, said IV-D agency shall notify the board of said unforeseen circumstances and the anticipated date by which the IV-D agency will provide such notice. In the event the member owes child support arrears, upon receipt of a levy from the IV-D agency on the accumulated total deductions, the board shall withhold the child support arrears from the accumulated total deductions and, unless the IV-D agency releases the levy or the board receives notice from either the IV-D agency or the member that an appeal of the levy is pending, the board shall, within 60 days, disburse to the IV-D agency the accumulated total deductions up to the amount of child support arrears. If the board receives such notice of an appeal, the board shall not disburse such accumulated total deductions until the board receives notice that the appeal has been resolved and in what manner the accumulated total deductions should be disposed.

Upon notice by the IV-D agency to the board that a lien has arisen under section 6 of chapter 119A against a member and if the member has terminated service, the board shall send to the member the prescribed form to request a return of accumulated total deductions. If the member fails to file the prescribed form with the board within 60 days, the board shall notify the IV-D agency of such failure and whether the board has received notice that the member has become a member of any other system. The IV-D agency may seek a court order for the submission of the prescribed form to request a return of accumulated total deductions. Upon request of the IV-D agency, the court shall order the member to sign and submit the prescribed form or shall appoint a special master to sign and submit such form in place of the member. Upon receipt of a levy from the IV-D agency on the accumulated total deductions, the board shall withhold any child support arrears owed by such member from the accumulated total deductions and, unless the IV-D agency releases the levy or the board receives notice from the IV-D agency or the member, that an appeal of the levy is pending, the board shall, within 60 days, disburse to the IV-D agency the accumulated total deductions up to the amount of child support arrears. If the board receives such notice of an appeal, the board shall not disburse such accumulated total deductions until the board receives notice that the appeal has been resolved and in what manner the accumulated total deductions should be disposed. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or special law to the contrary, a disbursement of accumulated total deductions and a return of accumulated total deductions pursuant to the provisions of this subdivision shall have the same effect on the rights of the member as a return of accumulated total deductions pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.

SECTION 9. Said section 11 of said chapter 32, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "thereto", in line 46, the following words:- ; provided, however, that prior to the payment of such accumulated total deductions to said beneficiary or beneficiaries, the board shall provide to the IV-D agency the name, date of birth, address, and social security number of each beneficiary; and provided further, that within 15 days of receipt of such information the IV-D agency shall notify the board if such beneficiary owes child support arrears. If due to unforeseen circumstances the IV-D agency is unable to provide such notice within 15 days, said agency shall notify the board of the unforeseen circumstances and the anticipated date by which the IV-D agency shall provide such notice. If such beneficiary owes arrears, upon receipt of a levy from the IV-D agency, the board shall withhold any arrears owed by any such beneficiary and disburse the accumulated total deductions due that beneficiary, up to the amount of the arrearage, to the IV-D agency within 60 days.

SECTION 10. Section 19 of said chapter 32, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 38 and 39, the words "or a retirement allowance" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- , retirement allowance or return of accumulated total deductions.

SECTION 11. Said section 19 of said chapter 32, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "seventy-three", in line 42, the following words:- , or received, entered or registered pursuant to chapter 209D,.

SECTION 12. Section 19A of said chapter 32, as so appearing, is hereby amended adding the following paragraph:-

Any member retired under this chapter may by assignment made in writing authorize the retirement board paying such pension or retirement allowance to withhold each month such amount as he may designate for the payment of a child support order, issued under chapter 208, 209, 209A, 209C or 273, or received, entered, or registered pursuant to chapter 209D, and the amount designated shall be transmitted and paid monthly by the treasurer or custodian of any system to the IV-D agency. Nothing in this section shall preclude the IV-D agency from executing an order to withhold income from a member's retirement allowance, pursuant to section 12 of chapter 119A.

SECTION 13. Said chapter 32 is hereby further amended by inserting after section 19B the following section:-

Section 19C. The annuity, retirement allowance, pension, return of accumulated total deductions or payment to any person pursuant to the provisions of this chapter or similar annuity, retirement allowance, pension, return of accumulated total deductions or payment to any person pursuant to the provisions of any general or special law shall be subject to any liens, attachments or income withholding orders issued in accordance with section 6 or 12 of chapter 119A to apply such payment to satisfy an obligation to provide child support.

Upon receipt of notice from the IV-D agency that any person receiving or entitled to receive an annuity, pension, retirement allowance, return of accumulated total deductions or payment pursuant to the provisions of this chapter or similar annuity, pension, retirement allowance, return of accumulated total deductions or payment pursuant to the provisions of any general or special law is subject to a lien under section 6 of chapter 119A, subject to an income withholding order pursuant to section 12 of chapter 119A, or subject to any direct income withholding notice received, entered or registered pursuant to chapter 209D, the board shall comply with said lien, notice or order and shall continue to comply until the board receives notice from the IV-D agency that the lien, notice or order has terminated and all arrears have been paid.

Prior to making a payment to an eligible spouse or beneficiary the board shall provide to the IV-D agency the name, date of birth, address, and social security number of the eligible spouse or beneficiary; provided, however, that within 15 days of receipt of such information the IV-D agency shall notify the board if such eligible spouse or beneficiary owes child support arrears. If due to unforeseen circumstances the IV-D agency is unable to provide such notice within 15 days, said IV-D agency shall notify the board of such unforeseen circumstances and the anticipated date by which the IV-D agency will provide such notice. Upon receipt of a notice from the IV-D agency that an eligible spouse or beneficiary is subject to a lien under section 6 of chapter 119A, subject to a withholding order pursuant to section 12 of chapter 119A, or subject to a direct income withholding notice received, entered or registered pursuant to chapter 209D, the board shall comply with said lien, order or notice and shall continue to comply until the board receives notice from the IV-D agency that the lien, order or notice has terminated and all arrears have been paid.

The retirement system and the members of the board of a retirement system which make a payment to the IV-D agency pursuant to the provisions of this chapter or chapter 119A shall be discharged from any obligation or liability to the member, eligible spouse, beneficiary or any other person arising from said payment notwithstanding the provisions of this chapter or any general or special law.

Information used to ascertain whether a member, a surviving spouse or any beneficiary is subject to a child support lien may only be used for the purpose of assisting the IV-D agency in collecting child support.

Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or special law to the contrary, proceedings pursuant to section 24 and the penalties established thereunder shall be the exclusive remedy relating to compliance on the part of the retirement board with the duties resulting from this section and restrictions on use of information described herein.

SECTION 14. Subdivision (5) of section 20 of said chapter 32, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following paragraph:-

(1) Each board shall file the reports required by section 14 of chapter 119A which shall include the filing of a report on or before March 1 with the IV-D agency providing the name, address, date of birth, status and social security number of all members of the system as of December 31 of the previous year. The IV-D agency shall use such information solely for the purposes outlined in chapter 119A and the use of such information shall be subject to the limitations set forth in said chapter 119A.

SECTION 15. Chapter 46 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section 1, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 1. Each town clerk shall receive or obtain and record the following facts, as well as such additional information that may be required under federal statutes or contracts, regulations promulgated pursuant to section 4 of chapter 17, or, as the commissioner of public health may require, relative to births, marriage, acknowledgments and adjudications of paternity and deaths which occurred in the town and for certificates of marriage issued by the town.

In the record of births, date of birth, place of birth, name and sex of child; names, places of birth, and dates of birth of both parents; and residence and birth surname of the child's mother. In the record of birth of a child born to parents not married to each other, the name of and other facts relating to the father shall not be recorded except as provided in section 2 of chapter 209C where paternity has been acknowledged or adjudicated under the laws of the commonwealth or under the law of any other jurisdiction.

In the record of marriages, date of record, date and place of marriage, name, residence and official station of the person by whom solemnized; for each of the parties to be married the name, date and place of birth, residence, age, number of the marriage, as first or second, and if previously married, whether widowed or divorced, and the birth-given names of their parents.

In the record of death, date of death, names of deceased, including birth surname for women, social security number, sex, race, marital status, education, name of spouse if ever married, supposed age, residence, occupation, place of death, place of birth, names and places of birth of the parents, birth surname of the mother, disease or cause of death, defined so that it can be classified under the international classification of causes of death, place and type of immediate disposition. The word "residence", as used in this section, shall include the name of the street and number, if any, of the house.

SECTION 16. Section 1E of said chapter 46, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out paragraph (c) and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-

(c) "Custodian", a town clerk, the archivist of the commonwealth, the superintendent of the Quabbin reservoir and the state registrar.

SECTION 17. Said section 1E of said chapter 46, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 14, the word "Registrar" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- "State registrar".

SECTION 18. The first paragraph of section 3A of said chapter 46, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the second and third sentences and inserting in place thereof the following four sentences:- If the hospital in which such birth occurred delivers more than 99 births per year, such report shall be prepared on an electronic system of birth registration approved by the commissioner of public health and transmitted to the state registrar. Said administrator or person in charge shall then forthwith make, or cause to be made, a copy of such report on forms prepared and furnished by the commissioner of public health and shall, within ten days after obtaining such report, file such copies with the town clerk of the city or town wherein the birth occurred. Such copies shall be signed or otherwise verified by the mother in a manner developed pursuant to regulations promulgated pursuant to section 4 of chapter 17, or, if she is not able, then by the father or other responsible adult, attesting to the truth and accuracy of the facts appearing in the report. Such copies shall also be signed or otherwise verified, in a manner specified under regulations promulgated pursuant to section 4 of chapter 17, by the physician, certified nurse midwife or hospital medical officer in charge of such birth or by an administrator designated by the hospital as overseeing birth registration.

SECTION 19. Said section 3A of said chapter 46, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out the second paragraph.

SECTION 20. Section 3C of said chapter 46, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following two sentences:- If the mother of the child was or is married and the child's birth occurs during the marriage or within 300 days of termination of the marriage by divorce, a voluntary acknowledgment of parentage naming the putative father may be executed by the mother and the putative father only if the mother and the mother's husband at the time of the child's birth or conception sign an affidavit denying that the husband is the father of the child, as provided in section 5 of chapter 209C. Where the marriage has been terminated by annulment or by the death of either the husband or the wife, paternity of the putative father may only be established by filing a complaint to establish paternity as provided by chapter 209C.

SECTION 21. Said chapter 46 is hereby further amended by inserting after section 3C, as so appearing, the following section:-

Section 3D. The state registrar shall accept for filing acknowledgments of paternity obtained by the hospital administrator and the city and town clerk pursuant to this chapter and adjudications of paternity entered by the court pursuant to chapter 209C and shall upon request make such records available to the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A. The state registrar shall upon such request make available, including by electronic access, to the IV-D agency for purposes of child support enforcement, records of adjudications and acknowledgments and records of subjects for whom no father's name has been inserted on the subject's birth certificate within six months of birth, including the names, addresses, and social security number of the subject of the record, the subject's mother, and the subject's father, where available.

SECTION 22. Said chapter 46 is hereby further amended by striking out section 13, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 13. (a) If the record relating to a birth, marriage, acknowledgment or adjudication of paternity, or death does not contain all the required facts, or if it is claimed that the facts are not correctly stated therein, the town clerk or state registrar shall receive from the person required by law to furnish the information for the original record, or by credible persons having knowledge of the case, an affidavit containing the missing or corrected facts required to correct or complete the record, accompanied by documentary evidence substantiating such facts beyond a reasonable doubt. Except as hereinafter provided, such amendments or additions can be made only to reflect the correct information at the time of the event. The minimum documentary evidence to be required shall be specified by regulations promulgated pursuant to section 4 of chapter 17.

(b) Any record filed under this chapter may be amended, corrected or supplemented within one year after the date of the event without such affidavit or documentary evidence if allowed by regulations promulgated pursuant to the provisions of section 4 of chapter 17, except such amendments, corrections, or supplements which are expressly provided for hereinafter.

(c) If a person shall have acquired the status of a child born in wedlock by the intermarriage of his parents and the acknowledgment of his father or an adjudication of paternity by a court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction under the laws of the commonwealth or any other law, the record of his birth shall be amended so as to read, in all respects, as if such person had been reported at the time of birth as born to such parents in lawful wedlock.

(d) If a person is born to parents not married to each other or if the mother and her husband at the time of the birth or conception of the child complete an affidavit denying that the husband is the father of the child, or if there is an adjudication of the nonpaternity of the mother's husband, such person's birth record shall be amended to include the putative father's information required by section 1 provided that:

(1) the mother and the putative father have signed and filed an acknowledgment of paternity with the clerk in the city or town where the birth occurred, the state registrar, or the probate and family court having jurisdiction over the parties or the child pursuant to chapter 209C;

(2) there has been a judgment of paternity by a court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction under the laws of the commonwealth and the court presents to the state registrar a certified copy of such judgment on a form provided by the state registrar to amend the birth certificate;

(3) there has been an acknowledgment of paternity, or a judgment of paternity by a court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction under the laws of the commonwealth or of another state or a foreign country, and one of the following persons requests an amendment and presents to the state registrar a copy of such judgment: the mother, the father named in such acknowledgment or judgment of paternity, the father named currently on the birth record, the subject of the record, the legal guardian of the subject, or the legal representative of any of the foregoing;

(4) there has been a judgment of paternity by a court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction in the commonwealth and the court orders the state registrar to amend the birth certificate to include the information relating to the father. Such order may include an order to amend information relating to the name of the child; or

(5) there has been a judgment of paternity by a court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction in the commonwealth approving or adopting a judgment establishing paternity issued by a court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction under the law of another state or a foreign country, and the court presents to the state registrar a certified copy of such judgment on a form provided by the state registrar to amend the birth certificate. The clerk of the city or town where the child was born or the state registrar shall amend the birth certificate consistent with the findings of the court and the certificate shall be required to read, in all respects, as if such information had been reported at the time of such birth. The fact that paternity was established after the child's birth shall not be ascertainable from the new certificate but the actual place and date of birth shall be shown. The original certificate and the evidence upon which the amended birth certificate was made and the original birth certificate shall be subject to inspection by the mother, the father, the subject of the record, any man presumed to be the father under section 6 of chapter 209C, or government officials requiring access for their official duties, including the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A, or a legal representative of the subject of the record; an order of the probate and family court in the county where the child was born is required for anyone else seeking access to the original record or evidence.

(e) If a person has completed sex reassignment surgery, so-called, and has had his name legally changed by a court of competent jurisdiction, the birth record of said person shall be amended to reflect the newly acquired sex and name, provided that an affidavit is received by the town clerk, executed by the person to whom the record relates, and accompanied by a physician's notarized statement that the person named on the birth record has completed sex reassignment surgery, so-called, and is not of the sex recorded on said record. Said affidavit shall also be accompanied by a certified copy of the legal change of name aforementioned above.

(f) If the birth of a child is recorded as that of a child born in wedlock to the mother and the man who was her husband at the time of such birth, and the nonpaternity of the husband has been legally determined by a court of competent jurisdiction pursuant to the laws of the commonwealth or by a court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction under the laws of another state or foreign country, or if the birth of a child is recorded as that of a child whose parentage has been acknowledged by the mother and the putative father and either parent rescinds the acknowledgment as provided in section 11 of chapter 209C or under similar law of another state or foreign country, the birth record shall be amended to remove the father's information provided that:

(1) there has been a judgment of nonpaternity by a court under the laws of the commonwealth and the court presents to the state registrar a certified copy of such judgment, together with a form provided by the state registrar to amend the birth certificate; or

(2) there has been a judgment of nonpaternity by a court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction under the laws of another state or foreign country and one of the following persons requests an amendment and presents to the state registrar a certified copy of such judgment: the mother, the father named in such judgment of nonpaternity, the subject of the record, the legal guardian of the subject of the record, or the legal representative of any of the foregoing.

(g) If a person shall have been adopted by judicial decree, the clerk of the town where such person was born or the state registrar shall receive the certificate of such adoption issued under the authority of section 6A of chapter 210 or a certified copy of the decree for such adoption, whether issued by a probate court for the commonwealth or by the appropriate court of any other state or country. Except as hereinafter provided, said clerk or state registrar, after receiving such certificate of adoption or any such certified copy, shall forthwith correct the record of birth of the person so adopted. If such certificate or certified copy does not contain the facts relative to the adopting parents hereinafter required for correcting such record, the clerk or state registrar shall not correct such record until he has received an affidavit, signed and sworn to by the adopting parents, or by the person adopted, furnishing such facts.

(h) The clerk or state registrar shall on forms provided by the state registrar complete an amended, corrected, or supplemented record of birth, death, acknowledgment or adjudication of paternity, or marriage. The original record of birth, death, acknowledgment or adjudication of paternity, or marriage and all returns and index entries in whatever format they are maintained shall be identified as corrected, amended, or supplemented. Effective January 1, 2000, all documentary evidence, including certificates of adoption or certified copies thereof, shall be sent to the state registrar for permanent filing. Until that date, the clerk shall transmit to the state registrar a certified copy of the corrected, amended or supplemented record, noting the documentary evidence to substantiate the affidavit. If the affidavit is initially submitted to the state registrar, the state registrar shall forward to the town clerk where the birth or death occurred, a certified copy of the corrected, amended or supplemented record, noting the documentary evidence to substantiate the affidavit, and the town clerk shall thereupon correct, amend or supplement the record in his office. If a copy of the record had been sent to the town clerk of the residence of the parents at the time of birth or where the deceased lived at the time of death, the state registrar shall forward to such city or town clerk a certified copy of the corrected, amended or supplemented record, noting the documentary evidence to substantiate the affidavit, and the town clerk shall thereupon correct, amend or supplement the record in his office. Reference to the record of the affidavit or such decree shall be made on the margin of the original record. If the clerk or state registrar furnishes a copy of such a record, he shall certify to the facts contained therein as corrected, amended or supplemented. Except as provided in the following two sentences, said clerk or other official responsible for the keeping of such records shall not release said information contained in such original record except upon proper judicial order, or when requested by a person seeking his own birth or marriage record, or by a person whose official duties, in the opinion of the state registrar or town clerk, entitle him to the information contained in the original record. Death records which are corrected, amended or supplemented after January 1, 1996, as well as the affidavit of the party seeking the correction, amendment, or supplementation of the death record and all documentary evidence or related records submitted in support of such affidavit shall not be restricted, except for records or other items of documentary evidence submitted in support of the affidavit which are considered medical records for purposes of paragraph (c) of clause twenty-sixth of section 7 of chapter 4 are restricted by section 2A of this chapter, or are restricted by judicial order. If the original record has been amended following adoption in accordance with this section, the clerk or state registrar shall issue information contained in the original record only upon receipt of an order of the probate court for the county in which said adoption was granted, or in the case of an adoption granted outside the commonwealth, upon order of the probate court for the county in which said birth occurred, instructing said clerk or state registrar to release the information contained in such original record. If the corrected, amended or supplemented record is that of a person who has acquired the status of a child born in wedlock, or whose record has been amended through an adoption decree, or whose record has been amended through addition of the name of the father, the clerk or state registrar shall not indicate on such copy that the record has been corrected, amended or supplemented.

(i) Such affidavit, or a certified copy of the record of any other town or of a written statement made at the time by any person since deceased required by law to furnish evidence thereof, may be made the basis for completing the record of a birth, marriage or death not containing all the facts required by section 1 of this chapter. No delayed record of birth shall be established for any deceased person more than five years after the date of death nor shall any delayed record of marriage be established if both the wife and husband are deceased, except as provided by sections 13A, 13B and 13C.

(j) Upon the adoption of any abandoned child or foundling within the commonwealth and adopted according to the laws thereof and as to whose birth the facts required by section 1 or section 1A to be recorded have not been recorded, or, if recorded, cannot be identified, the state registrar upon receipt of an affidavit executed by the adopting parents, setting forth all the material facts known to him or them concerning said child or foundling, and of an order issued by the commissioner of social services determining the date of birth of such child or foundling as nearly as may be, shall receive and record the facts relative to such births as provided in section 1 or section 1A. In addition to any other certificates or copies of such records authorized by law, said commissioner may, upon application, issue certificates setting forth the facts concerning said abandoned child or foundling appearing in any records of the department of social services if no certificate of birth is recorded in the city or town where the child was born or the state registry.

(k) The person upon whose application a record of a birth, marriage or death is corrected or amended, or a delayed record of a birth, marriage or death is entered shall pay the fee as determined by the secretary of administration and finance.

SECTION 23. Said chapter 46 is hereby further amended by striking out section 17, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 17. Effective January 1, 2000, the clerk of each town and of each city shall, on or before the tenth day of the second month following every month in which births occurred in the city or town, transmit to the state registrar, upon forms furnished by him, the original records of such births and any documentary evidence including voluntary acknowledgments signed by the parents and adjudications of paternity entered by the court. The clerk of each city and town shall retain a certified copy of said birth records. If no births occurred in the city or town during the month for which a report is required, a report of such fact shall be sent on forms provided by the state registrar. Prior to January 1, 2000, the city or town clerk in which the birth occurred shall forward to the state registrar a certified copy of each record of birth and original copies of all acknowledgments and adjudications of paternity filed with such birth records. The city or town clerk shall make an attested, certified copy of these documents for the files of the office of the city or town clerk.

SECTION 24. Said chapter 46 is hereby further amended by inserting after section 17 the following four sections:-

Section 17A. Effective January 1, 2000, the clerk of each city and town shall, on or before the tenth day of the second month following every month in which marriages are solemnized, transmit to the state registrar upon forms furnished by him, the original record of such marriages and all documentary evidence. Certified copies of the marriages shall be retained by said clerk. If no marriages were filed for the month of the report, a report of such fact shall be transmitted to the state registrar. Prior to January 1, 2000, the clerk shall maintain all original documents and transmit to the state registrar a certified copy of each record of marriage. The clerk of each city and town shall annually, not later than April 15, report to the state registrar on forms furnished by him the number of intentions filed in the clerk's office, and the number of intentions on which licenses were not issued, or, if issued, not returned to the clerk.

Section 17B. Effective January 1, 2000, the clerk of each city and town shall, on or before the tenth day of the month, transmit to the state registrar upon forms furnished by him, the original records of death and any documentation relating to said certificates of death recorded therein during the preceding month or, in case no such deaths have occurred, a certificate of such fact. The clerk in the city or town shall retain a certified copy of the record of said death. Prior to January 1, 2000, the clerk shall maintain all original documents and supporting documentation and transmit to the state registrar a certified copy of each record of death.

Section 17C. The original form and documentary evidence of such amendments and corrections in birth, marriage and death records as have not been previously returned shall be transmitted to the state registrar by the tenth day of the following month. A certified copy of any such forms completed by the clerk shall be retained by said clerk.

Section 17D. If an amendment to a birth, death or marriage record is completed at the state registry, the state registrar shall forward a certified copy of the amended birth, death or marriage record to all cities and towns holding an original or certified copy of the initial record within ten days of recording such event. If a delayed record of birth or death or other return of birth or death is recorded by the state registry, the state registrar shall transmit a certified copy of a delayed record of marriage to the town clerk where the original intention of marriage was filed. In cases where no such intention has been filed, the state registrar shall transmit such certified copy to the town clerk in the community where the marriage occurred.

SECTION 25. Section 21 of chapter 62C of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1996 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 5 and 6, the words "other than the name and address of the person filing it,".

SECTION 26. Subsection (b) of said section 21 of said chapter 62C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out paragraph (5) and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-

(5) upon written request, the inspection by, or provision of copies to, the director of the bureau of special investigations of tax returns or other documents filed with the commissioner of revenue, including information which appears in child support enforcement files maintained by the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A concerning dates and amounts of income received, employer, last known address and other information relevant to the investigation of fraud, concerning any person where there is reason to believe that such person has committed fraud under any assistance program administered by the department of transitional assistance or any program administered by the department of social services;.

SECTION 27. Said subsection (b) of said section 21 of said chapter 62C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following two paragraphs:-

(17) the disclosure of return information in any judicial or administrative action, proceeding or activity relating to the conduct, job performance or personnel rights of any employee or former employee of the department of revenue, solely for use in, and only to the extent necessary for, the action, proceeding or activity, or in preparation for the action, proceeding or activity. Return information shall, upon written request, also be available to an employee or former employee of said department, or his duly authorized representative, who is or may be a party or a participant in such action, proceeding or activity to the extent that the requested information is or may be relevant thereto, solely for use in, and only to the extent necessary for, the action, proceeding or activity, or in preparation for the action, proceeding or activity. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, return information disclosed pursuant to this paragraph shall be kept confidential.

(18) the disclosure of the name and address of a person filing any return or document with the commissioner, provided that such information shall not be disclosed if the IV-D agency has been provided with reasonable evidence of a risk of harm pursuant to section 5A of chapter 119A.

SECTION 28. Section 47A of said chapter 62C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "tax", in line 31, the second time it appears, the following words:- or has been penalized pursuant to section 9 of chapter 62E for failure to comply with the provisions under said chapter 62E relating to reporting of employees and contractors, or has been penalized pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection (f) of section 12 of chapter 119A for failure to comply with the provisions under said chapter 119A relating to withholding and remitting child support,.

SECTION 29. Said section 47A of said chapter 62C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "tax", in line 41, the following words:- or the licensee has been penalized pursuant to section 9 of chapter 62E for failure to comply with the provisions under said chapter 62E relating to reporting of employees and contractors, or pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection (f) of section 12 of chapter 119A for failure to comply with the provisions under said chapter 119A relating to withholding and remitting child support.

SECTION 30. Said section 47A of said chapter 62C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "notification", in line 55, the following words:- or, if the licensee has been penalized for failure to comply with the provisions relating to reporting of employees and contractors under chapter 62E or withholding and remitting child support under chapter 119A, a certificate issued by the commissioner that the licensee is in compliance with said provisions.

SECTION 31. Section 49A of said chapter 62C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "taxes", in lines 3, 7, and 13, in each instance, the following words:- , reporting of employees and contractors, and withholding and remitting child support.

SECTION 32. Said section 49A of said chapter 62C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting, after the word "tax", in line 21, the second time it appears, the following words:- or has been penalized pursuant to section 9 of chapter 62E for failure to comply with the provisions under said chapter 62E relating to reporting of employees and contractors, or has been penalized pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection (f) of section 12 of chapter 119A for failure to comply with the provisions under said chapter 119A relating to withholding and remitting child support,.

SECTION 33. Said section 49A of said chapter 62C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "notification", in line 27, the following words:- or, if the licensee has been penalized for failure to comply with the provisions relating to reporting of employees and contractors under chapter 62E or withholding and remitting child support under chapter 119A, a certificate issued by the commissioner that the licensee is in compliance with said provisions.

SECTION 34. Chapter 62E of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section 1, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 1. The following words as used in this chapter shall, unless the context otherwise requires, have the following meanings:-

"Bureau of special investigations", the bureau of special investigations established pursuant to section 15B of chapter 22.

"Business day", a day on which state offices are open for regular business.

"Commissioner", the commissioner of revenue.

"Contractor", any person who is 18 years of age or older who performs services in the commonwealth, to whom a payor of income makes payments that are not subject to withholding of taxes, and for whom the payor of income makes at least one payment that will require the payor to complete a 1099-MISC form under Internal Revenue Service requirements.

"Employer", employer as defined in section 3401(d) of the Internal Revenue Code.

"Employee", employee as defined in section 3401(c) of the Internal Revenue Code.

"Internal Revenue Code" or "Code", the Internal Revenue Code of the United States, as amended and in effect at the time wages are required to be reported under this chapter.

"IV-D agency", the state agency that has the responsibility for administering or supervising the administration of the provision of child support enforcement services pursuant to Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act and chapter 119A of the General Laws.

"Labor organization", any organization, or any agency or employee representation committee or plan, in which employees participate and which exists for the purpose, in whole or in part, of dealing with employers concerning grievances, labor disputes, wages, rates of pay, hours of employment, or conditions of work, or any other organization described in section 2, paragraph 5 of the National Labor Relations Act 29 USC 152(5), including any entity, also known as a hiring hall, which is used by a labor organization and an employer to carry out requirements of an agreement that requires the employer to notify the labor organization of opportunities for employment with such employer, or gives such labor organization an opportunity to refer qualified applicants for such employment, or that is otherwise included under section 8, paragraph (f)(3) of said National Labor Relations Act.

"Obligor", an individual, or the estate of a decedent, who owes or may owe a duty of support, or who is liable under a child support obligation, or who is alleged, by sworn statement, to be the parent of a child to whom a duty of support is owed.

"Payor of income", a person engaged in a trade or business in the commonwealth who engages a contractor for compensation.

"Reporting system", the wage reporting and financial institution match system established in section 3.

SECTION 35. Section 2 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "employers", in line 13, the following words:- , including all governmental entities, and every labor organization,.

SECTION 36. Said section 2 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "employee.", in line 14, the following four sentences:- Every payor of income who enters into an agreement with a contractor for the performance of services shall so notify the department of revenue upon entering into such an agreement. Upon the retirement of an employee who thereafter receives a regular retirement allowance, such employers, including all governmental entities, and every labor organization, shall, in addition, notify the department of revenue of the retirement of such employee and of the entity paying such retirement allowance and the address of such entity. Upon the filing of a workers' compensation claim pursuant to chapter 152 by any employee, such employers, including all governmental entities, and every labor organization, shall, in addition, notify the department of revenue of the claim of such employee, the entity which provides workers' compensation insurance coverage, and the address of such entity. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, no such notice shall be given of an employee of a federal or state agency performing intelligence or counterintelligence functions if the head of such agency has determined that notice to the department under this paragraph could endanger the safety of the employee or compromise an ongoing investigation or intelligence mission; provided that any agency head who has made such a determination shall notify the commissioner that pursuant to such determination some employees have not been reported.

SECTION 37. Said section 2 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "reporting", in line 18, the following words:- and financial institution match.

SECTION 38. Said section 2 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "employer", in lines 19 to 20, the following words:- , including a governmental entity or a labor organization, or a payor of income.

SECTION 39. Section 3 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 2, the word "bank" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- financial institution.

SECTION 40. Section 4 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 18 and 19, the words "whose accounts on the books of such institution have a residential address within the commonwealth," and inserting in place thereof the following words:- maintaining accounts on the books of such institution.

SECTION 41. Said section 4 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 43, the word "mean" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- include.

SECTION 42. Said section 4 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 45 and 46, the words "or a money market mutual fund account" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- money market mutual fund account or a life insurance policy with a cash surrender value.

SECTION 43. Said section 4 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following subsection:-

(f) All reports under this section shall be part of the wage reporting and financial institution match system established pursuant to section 3.

SECTION 44. Section 5 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "employer", in line 9, the following words:- or payor of income.

SECTION 45. Said section 5 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "associations", in line 13, the second time it appears, the following words:- , pension or retirement plans.

SECTION 46. Said section 5 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 14, the words "or safe deposit" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- , safe deposit companies or other similar.

SECTION 47. Section 8 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "system", in line 8, the following words:- ; and provided further, that subject to the safeguards established pursuant to section 5A of chapter 119A, the IV-D agency may disclose information to any agent of the IV-D agency that is under contract with the IV-D agency for purposes of administering the child support enforcement program of the commonwealth, only to the extent necessary for performance of such agent's contracted duties.

SECTION 48. Said chapter 62E is hereby further amended by striking out section 9, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 9. Any employer or payor of income required to submit a report pursuant to this chapter who fails, without reasonable cause, to comply with such reporting requirements shall be liable for a penalty assessed by the department in the following amount for each employee or contractor with respect to whom such employer or payor of income is required to file a report but who is also not included in such report or for whom the required information is not accurately reported, for each employee or contractor required to be included:- up to $25 for each employee or contractor or if the result of a conspiracy between the employer and the employee or contractor not to supply the required report or to supply a false or incomplete report, $500 for each such employee or contractor.

Any treasurer who is required to submit a report pursuant to the provisions of section 4 who fails, without reasonable cause, to comply with such reporting requirements or who willfully renders false information in reply to such request, shall be liable for a penalty assessed by the department of $1,000. Said department may collect a penalty assessed under this section by any means authorized for the collection of corporate or partnership taxes under chapter 62C.

SECTION 49. Section 10 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 2, the word "bank" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- financial institution.

SECTION 50. Said section 10 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 8, the words "money-market".

SECTION 51. Section 11 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 2 and 8, the word "bank", each time it appears, and inserting in place thereof, in each instance, the following words:- financial institution.

SECTION 52. Said section 11 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "states", in line 3, the following words:- , as required by federal law.

SECTION 53. Said section 11 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 4, the words "absent parents" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- obligors.

SECTION 54. Section 12 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 4, the word "bank" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- financial institution.

SECTION 55. The second paragraph of said section 12 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the first sentence the following sentence:- The commissioner may provide access to data gathered as part of the wage reporting and financial institution match system for research and statistical purposes relating to administration of the tax laws, public assistance programs of the commonwealth or any political subdivision thereof or their respective agencies, workers' compensation laws or the child support enforcement program of the commonwealth; provided, however, that such data shall be released without personal identifiers.

SECTION 56. Section 13 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 3, the word "bank" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- financial institution.

SECTION 57. Section 14 of said chapter 62E, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 7, the word "bank" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- financial institution.

SECTION 58. Section 22 of chapter 90 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out paragraph (g) and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-

(g) Upon receipt of notice, as specified by the registrar, from the department of revenue that a final determination of child support delinquency to suspend or prohibit issuance or renewal of a license has been issued against a resident of the commonwealth or an individual licensed to operate a motor vehicle under this chapter, after a hearing or an opportunity therefor pursuant to section 16 of chapter 119A, the registrar, without opportunity for further hearing, shall suspend or prohibit issuance or renewal of such license, learner's permit, right to operate a motor vehicle or certificate of motor vehicle registration held by such individual and forward any notice required by paragraph (d) to such individual. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, the opportunity for a hearing provided by the department of revenue pursuant to section 16 of chapter 119A shall constitute the exclusive administrative remedy to contest the existence of a child support arrearage which is the basis for action by the department of revenue to effect the suspension, nonissuance or nonrenewal of a license, learner's permit, right to operate a motor vehicle or certificate of motor vehicle registration. The registrar shall reinstate, issue or renew such license, learner's permit or right to operate a motor vehicle or allow the registration of a motor vehicle if the department of revenue provides to the registrar a notice, as specified by the registrar, stating that the resident or other individual is in compliance with a subpoena, warrant, summons or judgment or order for child support, including any agreement with or regulation issued by the department of revenue governing payment of arrears or upon order by the reviewing court, if the individual is otherwise entitled thereto. Notices between the department of revenue and the registrar under this subsection may be made in any form, including electronic transmission. Upon exhaustion of administrative remedies provided in section 16 of chapter 119A, an individual aggrieved by a final determination of the department of revenue, as adopted or acted upon by the registrar, may seek judicial review of the final determination issued by the department of revenue in the court where the child support order was issued, which has jurisdiction to register the order, or which issued the subpoena, warrant or summons, within 45 days of the date of the registrar's notice to such individual that his license, learner's permit, right to operate a motor vehicle or certificate of motor vehicle registration is subject to suspension, nonissuance or nonrenewal; provided, however, that a request for judicial review shall be by action against the department of revenue and not the registrar and shall be accompanied by a copy of the department of revenue's final determination. Such review shall constitute the exclusive remedy for individuals aggrieved by a final determination as adopted or acted upon by the registrar under section 16 of chapter 119A; provided, however, that such review shall not limit an individual's appellate remedies. The provisions of section 28 shall not apply.

SECTION 59. Chapter 111 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section 24B, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 24B. Upon the birth of any child, the physician, certified nurse midwife, administrator or other person in charge of a hospital, or any other person responsible for reporting a birth pursuant to chapter 46 shall forward to the commissioner any information, including the residence address and social security number of each parent, as required by the commissioner for administrative, research and statistical purposes, including the purposes of the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A. Access to such information by the IV-D agency shall include electronic access. Such data that is included in the certificate of birth shall be transmitted within ten days of the birth of the child and shall not constitute a public record and shall not be available except for the foregoing purposes. Disclosure of information for research purposes which may identify any person named in any vital record or report restricted by section 2A of chapter 46 or by this section may only be made in accordance with regulations promulgated pursuant to section 4 of chapter 17, which regulations shall require the submission of written requests for information by researchers and the execution of research agreements that protect the confidentiality of the information provided. Such agreements shall prohibit the release by the researcher of any information that might identify any person. For the purposes of this chapter, research means a systematic investigation designed primarily to develop or contribute to general knowledge, including public health, medical, social, demographic and historical research. Nothing in this section shall prohibit the release of information or data that would not identify any person named in a vital record or report.

SECTION 60. Section 28 of chapter 119 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 13, the words "At the discretion of the court, whenever appropriate, any" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- Any.

SECTION 61. Said section 28 of said chapter 119, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 14, the word "may" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- shall.

SECTION 62. Said section 28 of said chapter 119, as amended by section 52 of chapter 19 of the acts of 1997, is hereby further amended by striking out subsection (b) and inserting in place thereof the following subsection:-

(b) Actions under this section to establish support of a child may be commenced by a parent, whether a minor or not; by the child; by the child's guardian, next of kin or other person standing in a parental relationship to the child; by the authorized agent of the department of social services or any agency licensed under chapter 28A provided that the child is in their custody or is or was a recipient of any type of public assistance by the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A on behalf of the department of transitional assistance, the department of social services, the division of medical assistance, or any other public assistance program of the commonwealth. In the event that someone other than the IV-D agency commences the action, if the parent or child is or was a recipient of any type of public assistance, the court shall notify said IV-D agency of the pendency of the action and said IV-D agency shall be permitted to intervene in the action.

SECTION 63. Section 51B of said chapter 119, as appearing in the 1996 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "section", in line 173, the following words:- or permitted to disclose information pursuant to section 5A of chapter 119A.

SECTION 64. Section 1 of chapter 119A of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "obtaining", in line 14, the following word:- , modifying.

SECTION 65. Said section 1 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "enforcing", in line 14, the following word:- child.

SECTION 66. Said section 1 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "orders", in line 15, the following words:- , including orders for health care coverage, and establishing paternity.

SECTION 67. Said chapter 119A is hereby further amended by inserting after section 1 the following section:-

Section 1A. For purposes of administering the child support enforcement program pursuant to this chapter, the following terms shall have the following meanings:

"Business day", a day on which offices of the commonwealth are open for regular business.

"Employee", an individual who performs any service, of whatever nature, for wages or other compensation, including services (i) under an independent contractor arrangement, (ii) as an officer of a corporation, or (iii) as an officer, employee or elected official of the United States, a state, or any political subdivision thereof, or any city or town, or the District of Columbia, or any agency or instrumentality of any one or more of the foregoing; and any person included under chapter 24 of the Internal Revenue Code.

"Employer", the person for whom an individual performs or performed any service, of whatever nature, as the employee of such person, except that-

(a) if the person for whom the individual performs or performed the services does not have control of the payment of the wages for such services, the term "employer" means the person having control of the payment of such wages, and

(b) in the case of a person paying wages on behalf of a nonresident alien individual, foreign partnership, or foreign corporation, not engaged in trade or business within the United States, the term "employer" means such person.

"Employer" shall include the United States, a state, or any political subdivision thereof, or city or town, or the District of Columbia, or any agency or instrumentality of any one or more of the foregoing, and any person included under section 3401(d) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. "Employer" shall also include any entity also known as a hiring hall, which is used by a labor organization described in section 2(5) of the National Labor Relations Act 29 USC 152(5) and an employer to carry out requirements of agreements that require the employer to notify the labor organization of opportunities for employment with such employer, or that give such labor organization an opportunity to refer qualified applicants for such employment, and any entity through which a labor organization provides health care coverage or other benefits to its members.

"Income", any periodic form of payment due to an individual, regardless of source, including wages, salaries, commissions, bonuses, unemployment and workers' compensation, disability payments, payments pursuant to a pension or retirement plan, military pay, other payments made in lieu of periodic payments including severance pay and salary advance, and interest.

"IV-D services", child support enforcement services provided by the IV-D agency relating to the location of obligees and obligors, the establishment of paternity or the establishment, modification, or enforcement of child support obligations and health care coverage, the collection and disbursement of child support payments, and any other services and responsibilities required by Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act, as appropriate, with respect to each child for whom public assistance is provided under Title IV, Parts A and E, and Title XIX, of the Social Security Act, or under other public assistance programs as required by federal or state law, or for whom such assistance was provided and the IV-D agency continues to provide child support enforcement services; and any other child, if an individual applies for such services with respect to the child.

"Obligee", an individual to whom support is or may be owed or in whose favor a support order has been issued or a judgment of paternity has been, or may be, rendered or a state or political subdivision to which rights under a child support obligation have been assigned or which has independent claims based on financial assistance provided to an individual obligee.

"Obligor", an individual, or the estate of a decedent, who owes or may owe a duty of support, or who is liable under a child support obligation, or who is alleged, by sworn statement, to be the parent of a child to whom a duty of support is owed.

"Pension or retirement plan", any program providing payments or benefits to former employees, including programs pursuant to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, 29 USC 1001, et seq.; any other private pension or retirement program, including intrastate pension plans and church pension plans; any federal employee retirement system pursuant to 5 USC 8401, et seq., civil service retirement and disability system pursuant to 5 USC 8301, et seq., or United States military pension or retirement plan pursuant to Title 10, Subtitles A, B, C and D of the United States Code; any program pursuant to chapter 484 of the acts of 1950; and any other public contributory retirement system, pursuant to any other codified or uncodified statute, for the benefit of employees of any governmental unit or political subdivision of the commonwealth, any district or public unit created within one or more political subdivisions of the commonwealth for the purpose of providing public services or conveniences, any public school district, the general court, the judiciary, any military department of the commonwealth, any public commission or board, any public authority including the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, the Massachusetts Port Authority and any municipal or regional housing authority, or any other public entity.

"Support order", a judgment, decree, or order, whether temporary, final, or subject to modification, issued by a court or an administrative agency of competent jurisdiction, for the support and maintenance of a child, including a child who has attained the age of majority under the law of the issuing state, which provides for monetary support, health care coverage, arrearages, or reimbursement, and which may include related costs and fees, interest and penalties, income withholding, attorneys' fees, and other monetary relief. For purposes of enforcement only, "support order" includes an order for the support of a parent with whom the child is living.

SECTION 68. Said chapter 119A is hereby further amended by striking out section 2, as amended by chapter 19 of the acts of 1997, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 2. (a) In accordance with the provisions of Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act, the IV-D agency shall provide IV-D services to children and families, whether or not they are recipients of public assistance, to establish, modify, and enforce child support obligations. Said services shall include, through the use of expedited administrative and judicial procedures, the location of obligees and obligors, the establishment of paternity, the establishment, modification, and enforcement of child support orders, including orders for health care coverage, the collection and disbursement of support payments, the enforcement of support orders through civil and criminal proceedings, including criminal contempt and criminal prosecution for failure to pay support, and any other services or responsibilities required by said Title IV, Part D and this chapter. Said IV-D agency shall accept applications for services from individuals seeking to establish, modify, or enforce orders of child support, including orders for health care coverage, with respect to a child who is not a recipient of public assistance, and may charge a fee for such services which shall be established pursuant to the provisions of section 3B of chapter 7, subject to the provisions of federal law.

The IV-D agency shall also enforce the subrogation rights of the department of transitional assistance under section 21 of chapter 18, the subrogation rights of the department of social services under section 23 of chapter 119, and the subrogation rights of the division of medical assistance under section 23 of chapter 118E, and shall provide IV-D services for each child for whom assistance is provided pursuant to Title IV, Parts A and E, and Title XIX of the Social Security Act, or other public assistance programs as required by federal or state law, and for whom such assistance has been provided. Pursuant to section 18A of chapter 18, the IV-D agency shall make the determination and redetermination at appropriate intervals as to whether an individual who has applied for or is receiving assistance under Part A or Title XIX of the Social Security Act is cooperating in good faith with the IV-D agency in establishing the paternity of, or in establishing, modifying, or enforcing a support order for, any child of the individual by providing the IV-D agency with the name of and such other information with respect to the noncustodial parent of the child, as required by regulation promulgated by the commissioner of revenue and subject to good cause and other exceptions determined by the department of transitional assistance and the division of medical assistance. IV-D services shall be made available to residents of other states and to residents of foreign reciprocating countries on the same basis as to residents of the commonwealth, provided there is jurisdiction over the parties, their income or assets; provided further that no application will be required from, and no costs for such services will be assessed against, the foreign reciprocating country or foreign obligee; provided, however, that costs may be assessed against the obligor. The IV-D agency shall enforce any support obligation established with respect to the custodial parent of a child receiving IV-D services from the IV-D agency; provided, however, the IV-D agency is not required to establish or modify a support obligation with respect to such custodial parent.

(b) The first priority of the IV-D agency with regard to the enforcement of the subrogation rights of the department of transitional assistance shall be the collection of sufficient support payments on behalf of recipients of public assistance to enable such recipients to live independently of public assistance; provided, however, that the department of transitional assistance is authorized to receive support payments made on behalf of a current recipient, or on behalf of a former recipient for arrearages owed to the department of transitional assistance, only to the extent required by the provisions of Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act.

(c) In carrying out said responsibilities, the IV-D agency may expend such funds as may be necessary for public information, including paid advertisements and outreach programs to advise the public of the services available through such agency to establish, modify, or enforce orders of child support, and to publicize the availability and to encourage the use of procedures for voluntary acknowledgment of paternity and of other IV-D services. Any penalty, fee or interest that this chapter authorizes to be assessed by the IV-D agency shall be collected and enforced by any means authorized under this chapter for the enforcement and collection of child support. Upon collection, a penalty or fee shall be retained by the IV-D agency; provided, however, that such penalties or fees shall be placed in a separate fund established upon the books of the commonwealth by the comptroller; and provided further, that such penalties or fees may only be expended subject to appropriation. Upon collection, interest shall be distributed to the obligee.

SECTION 69. Section 3 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the first sentence and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- (a) In enforcing the subrogation rights of the department of transitional assistance, the department of social services and the division of medical assistance, the IV-D agency may file an action either in the name of the recipient of public assistance or in the name of the department or both.

SECTION 70. Said section 3 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "of", in line 6, the following word:- IV-D.

SECTION 71. Said section 3 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out the second paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following two paragraphs:-

(b) The IV-D agency shall provide notice by first class mail to the address in the state case registry as set forth in rule 4(d)(2) of the Massachusetts Rules of Domestic Relations Procedure to individuals who have applied for or are receiving IV-D services, or who are parties to cases in which IV-D services are being provided, of all complaints and motions which the IV-D agency files or of proceedings of which the IV-D agency receives notice pursuant to court rule, in which support obligations might be established or modified, and the IV-D agency or the issuing court shall provide a copy of any order establishing or modifying a child support obligation, or, in the case of a request for modification made by either parent, a notice of determination that there should be no change in the amount of the child support award, within 14 days after issuance of such order or determination.

(c) The IV-D agency may use any method available to a private party to collect support, including the following:-.

SECTION 72. Said section 3 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out clauses (2) and (3) and inserting in place thereof the following two clauses:-

(2) the IV-D agency may seek to obtain a modification of any outstanding court order for support, including health care coverage, on any complaint or judgment of divorce, separate support, paternity or support or may modify the order pursuant to section 3B.

(3) the IV-D agency may institute contempt proceedings under section 34A of chapter 215 to compel compliance with a court order or may institute proceedings to seek entry of a qualified domestic relations order pursuant to the Employee Retirement Security Act, 29 USC 1056.

SECTION 73. Said section 3 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out clause (4) and inserting in place thereof the following clause:-

(4) the IV-D agency may intervene or appear in actions for divorce, separate support, paternity, support, appointment as guardian of a minor, care and protection or proceedings supplemental thereto, and in trust proceedings in which an obligor has a beneficial interest, for the purpose of advising the court as to the financial interest of the commonwealth in the action, when either or both of the parties or their child is receiving public assistance, or has received public assistance, or is receiving IV-D services, or for the purpose of seeking a qualified domestic relations order, pursuant to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, 29 USC 1056, if an arrearage is owed to the IV-D agency pursuant to an existing court order or judgment for support;.

SECTION 74. Said section 3 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 44, the word "and".

SECTION 75. Said section 3 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 46, the word "nine D" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- 9D;

(8) the IV-D agency may file a petition under chapter 203 for the purpose of distribution of trust income; and

(9) the IV-D agency may file a complaint under chapter 109A alleging a fraudulent transfer by an obligor, on the basis of evidence showing a prima facie case that an obligor has transferred income or property to avoid payment of a support obligation.

SECTION 76. Said section 3 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following sentence:- In an action to enforce payment of arrears or determine the current support obligation, the existence or amount of any arrears shall not be a basis for rebutting the current support obligation determined under the child support guidelines promulgated by the chief justice for administration and management.

SECTION 77. Said chapter 119A is hereby further amended by inserting after section 3 the following two sections:-

Section 3A. In any case requiring the establishment of paternity, the IV-D agency may, on the basis of an affidavit by the mother or the putative father alleging that sexual intercourse between the mother and putative father occurred during the probable period of conception and without the necessity of obtaining an order from a court, order the mother, the child and the putative father to submit to genetic marker tests; provided, however, that the IV-D agency may order such tests only if no other man is presumed to be the father under section 6 of chapter 209C. Notice of the order shall be served on the obligor and individual obligee in accordance with rule 4(d)(2) of the Massachusetts Rules of Domestic Relations Procedure. Upon receipt of the results of the genetic marker tests, the IV-D agency may provide the parties with an opportunity to voluntarily acknowledge parentage pursuant to chapter 209C. If the parties do not voluntarily acknowledge parentage as provided in chapter 209C, the IV-D agency may commence an action to establish paternity pursuant to chapter 209C. If any party fails to appear for or refuses to submit to genetic marker tests in accordance with the order of the IV-D agency, or if any party contests the jurisdiction of the IV-D agency to issue the order for genetic marker tests, the IV-D agency shall commence an action to establish paternity pursuant to chapter 209C.

Section 3B. (a) With respect to a child support order in a case receiving IV-D services, every three years, or more frequently, as the commissioner may by regulation determine, upon the request of either parent, or if there is an assignment under Title IV, Part A of the Social Security Act, upon the request of the IV-D agency or either parent, the IV-D agency shall, taking into account the best interest of the child involved-

(1) review and, if appropriate, prepare a proposed stipulation to modify the order in accordance with the child support guidelines if the amount of the child support award under the order differs from the amount that would be awarded in accordance with the guidelines; provided, however, that no threshold for application of the guidelines to modifications shall apply;

(2) prepare a proposed stipulation to modify the order by applying a cost-of-living adjustment to the order in accordance with a formula developed by regulation promulgated by the commissioner of revenue; or

(3) use automated methods, including comparisons with wage or state income tax data or other data, to identify orders eligible for review, conduct the review, identify orders eligible for modification, and, if appropriate, prepare a proposed stipulation to modify an eligible order under any threshold for modification that may be established by regulation promulgated by the commissioner of revenue.

(b) The IV-D agency shall send notice of intent to modify the order, together with the proposed stipulation to modify the order under this section, by first class mail to the address of the obligor and the individual obligee as appearing in the state case registry pursuant to section 4. The parties may accept the proposed stipulation by signing it and returning it to the IV-D agency within 30 days of the date the notice is mailed. If the parties sign and return the stipulation to the IV-D agency within 30 days of the date the notice is mailed, the IV-D agency shall file a complaint to modify the order, together with the signed stipulation, and the signed stipulation shall provide a sufficient basis for the court to modify the order in accordance with the stipulation, without any additional testimony or hearing. If any party does not sign and return the proposed stipulation to the IV-D agency within 30 days of the date the notice is mailed, or if any party contests the proposed stipulation, the IV-D agency may file a complaint to modify the order.

(c) If the order that the complaint seeks to modify was entered by a probate and family court of the commonwealth, the IV-D agency shall file the complaint in the probate and family court which issued the order that the complaint seeks to modify. If the order that the complaint seeks to modify was issued by the Boston municipal court or by a district court of the commonwealth, or by a court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction of another state and a court of the commonwealth would have jurisdiction to modify the order pursuant to chapter 209D, the IV-D agency shall file the complaint in the probate and family court located in the county in which one of the parents and the child reside or, if the child resides with neither parent, where the child resides. The IV-D agency shall provide to the parties by first class mail a copy of the modified order entered by the court, and shall enforce the order as provided by this chapter.

(d) If the IV-D agency elects to conduct the review under paragraph (1) of subsection (a), and the IV-D agency determines that there is a variation between the amount of the existing order and the amount that would result upon application of the child support guidelines, the IV-D agency may issue a notice of its intent to modify the order and proposed stipulation on the basis of financial information relating to both parties available to the agency, including tax information pursuant to chapter 62C and wage reporting information pursuant to chapter 62E, in accordance with such guidelines. The notice shall identify the sources of the financial information relating to the parties that serves as the basis for the calculation of the amount of support in the proposed stipulation.

(e) If the IV-D agency elects to conduct the review under paragraph (2) or (3) of subsection (a), the IV-D agency shall issue a notice to the obligor and individual obligee of its intent to modify the order and proposed stipulation. If the IV-D agency conducts the review under said paragraph (2) of said subsection (a), the notice shall specify the cost of living formula. If the IV-D agency conducts the review under said paragraph (3) of said subsection (a).

(f) The notice pursuant to subsection (b) shall specify the threshold for modification and shall identify the sources of the financial information relating to the parties, including tax information pursuant to chapter 62C and wage reporting information pursuant to chapter 62E that serves as the basis for the calculation of the amount of support in the proposed stipulation.

(g) Any modification of an order initiated by the IV-D agency within the three-year cycle, or such shorter cycle as the commissioner of revenue may by regulation determine, as provided in subsection (a), shall be made without a requirement for proof or showing of a change in circumstances by either parent or by the IV-D agency. In the case of a request for review and, if appropriate, a modification, made by a parent or the IV-D agency outside the three-year cycle, or such shorter cycle as the commissioner of revenue may by regulation determine, the IV-D agency shall review and, if the requesting party demonstrates a substantial change in circumstances, file a complaint to modify the order in accordance with the child support guidelines and any threshold for application of the child support guidelines to modifications shall apply.

(h) The IV-D agency shall provide notice not less than once every three years to the parents subject to the order informing the parents of their right to request the IV-D agency to review and, if appropriate, modify the order as set forth herein. The notice may be included in the order of support.

(i) This section shall not apply to support orders in cases not receiving IV-D services.

SECTION 78. Section 4 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 1, the word "The" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- (a) The.

SECTION 79. Said section 4 of said chapter 119A, as amended by section 53 of chapter 19 of the acts of 1997, is hereby further amended by striking out the third to eighth sentences, inclusive, and inserting in place thereof the following:- The IV-D agency shall have in operation a single statewide automated data processing information retrieval system which has the capability to perform the tasks specified by Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act. The automated system shall include a registry, which shall be known as the "state case registry", that contains records with respect to each case in which IV-D services are being provided by the IV-D agency pursuant to Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act; and with respect to all other cases, including cases for which the IV-D agency only collects and disburses income withholding payments, each support order established or modified in the commonwealth on or after October 1, 1998. Such records for all cases shall use standardized data elements for both parents, such as names, social security numbers, dates of birth and other such information as the IV-D agency deems appropriate or as the federal secretary of health and human services may require. Each case record in the state case registry with respect to which IV-D services are being provided and with respect to which a support order has been established shall include a record of the amount of monthly or other periodic support owed under the order, and other amounts, including arrearages, interest or late payment penalties, and fees, due or overdue under the order; any such amounts collected; the distribution of such collected amounts; the date of birth, and beginning not later than October 1, 1999, the social security number of each child for whom the order requires the provision of support; and the amount of any lien imposed pursuant to section 6.

The IV-D agency shall promptly establish and update, maintain, and regularly monitor case records in the state case registry with respect to which IV-D services are being provided on the basis of information on administrative actions and administrative and judicial proceedings and orders relating to paternity and support, information obtained from comparison with federal, state, or local sources of information, information on support collections and distributions, and any other relevant information. With respect to all other cases in the state case registry which are not receiving IV-D services, including cases for which the IV-D agency only collects and disburses income withholding payments, the IV-D agency shall update the information required by this section upon provision of such information by the court or the parties.

Each party to any paternity or child support proceeding, whether or not a recipient of IV-D services, is required, subject to privacy and safety safeguards as provided in section 5A, to file with the state case registry upon entry of an order, and to update as appropriate, information on location and identity of the party, including social security number, residential and mailing addresses, telephone number, driver's license number, and name, address, and telephone number of employer. In any subsequent child support enforcement action between the parties, upon sufficient showing that diligent effort has been made to ascertain the location of such a party, the court shall deem due process requirements for notice and service of process to be met with respect to the party, upon delivery of written notice to the most recent residential or employer address filed with the state case registry.

(b) The IV-D agency shall use the automated system required by this section to extract information from, to share and compare information with, subject to section 5A of this chapter, section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and section 21 of chapter 62C, and to receive information from other data bases and information comparison services, in order to obtain or provide information necessary to enable the IV-D agency or other state or federal agencies to carry out the requirements of Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act. Such information comparison activities shall include: (1) furnishing, and updating as necessary, to the Federal Case Registry of Child Support Orders information on child support cases recorded in the state case registry, including notification of expiration of orders; (2) exchanging information with the Federal Parent Locator Service; (3) exchanging information with other agencies of the state, including the wage reporting and financial institution match system of the department of revenue, and agencies of other states administering programs funded under Title IV, Part A, of the Social Security Act, programs operated pursuant to Title XIX of the Social Security Act, and other programs designated by the federal Secretary of Health and Human Services; and (4) exchanging information with other agencies, authorities, commissions, courts, counties, cities and towns of the state, companies authorized to issue policies of insurance pursuant to chapter 175, pension or retirement plans, agencies of other states, and interstate information networks, as necessary and appropriate to carry out, or assist other states to carry out, the purposes of the Social Security Act.

(c) The IV-D agency shall use the automated system to the maximum extent feasible, to implement expedited administrative procedures as required by this chapter and Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act and to assist and facilitate the collection and disbursement of support payments through the state disbursement unit as provided in section 5, through the performance of functions, including transmission of orders and notices to employers and other debtors for the withholding of income within two business days after receipt of notice of, and the income source subject to, such withholding, from a court, another state, an employer, the Federal Parent Locator Service, or another source recognized by the state, and using uniform formats as prescribed by the federal Secretary of Health and Human Services; ongoing monitoring to promptly identify failures to make timely payment of support; and automatic use of enforcement procedures where payments are not timely made. In cases receiving IV-D services, the IV-D agency shall provide reports to the obligor and the obligee of the amounts of payments received and how such payments were distributed as required by Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act.

SECTION 80. Section 5 of said chapter 119A, as amended by section 55 of said chapter 19 of the acts of 1997, is hereby further amended by striking out the first paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-

(a) The IV-D agency shall establish and operate a unit, which shall be known as "the state disbursement unit", for the collection and disbursement of payments under support orders in all cases being enforced by the IV-D agency and, on and after October 1, 1998, in all cases not receiving IV-D services in which the income of the obligor is subject to withholding pursuant to section 12; provided, however, that with respect to cases not receiving IV-D services, the IV-D agency shall be required only to collect and disburse payments and to update the state case registry based on information provided by the parties or the court, and shall not be required to enforce such orders or to take any other action unless the obligee or obligor files an application for IV-D services with the IV-D agency as provided in section 2. The state disbursement unit shall be operated directly by the IV-D agency or by a contractor responsible directly to the IV-D agency, and shall distribute collected amounts on behalf of the obligee, whether or not a recipient of public assistance, in accordance with Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act. The state disbursement unit shall use automated procedures, electronic processes, and computer-driven technology to the maximum extent feasible, efficient, and economical, for the collection and disbursement of support payments, including procedures for receipt of payments from parents, employers, other states, and any other source, and for disbursements to custodial parents and other obligees, the department of transitional assistance, the department of social services, and the agencies of other states; for accurate identification of payments; to ensure prompt disbursement of the obligee's share of any payment; and to furnish any parent, upon request, timely information on the current status of support payments under an order requiring payments to be made by or to the parent; provided, however, that with respect to cases not receiving IV-D services for which the IV-D agency only collects and disburses income withholding payments, the state disbursement unit shall not be required to convert and maintain in automated form records of payments kept for any period prior to October 1, 1998, or before such income withholding order was made payable to the IV-D agency. The state disbursement unit shall distribute all amounts payable within two business days after receipt from the employer or other source of periodic income, if sufficient information identifying the obligor and the obligee is provided; except that the state disbursement unit may delay the distribution of collections toward arrearages until the resolution of any timely appeal requesting an administrative or judicial review pursuant to section 17 with respect to such arrearages. Whenever the department of transitional assistance notifies the IV-D agency that it has terminated public assistance payable to an obligee, said IV-D agency shall distribute support payments collected by the IV-D agency to the obligee in accordance with this subsection, until said IV-D agency is notified by the department of transitional assistance that such obligee is again receiving public assistance.

SECTION 81. Said section 5 of said chapter 119A, as amended by section 55 of chapter 19 of the acts of 1997, is hereby further amended by striking out the second paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following two paragraphs:-

(b) Whenever the IV-D agency closes a child support case in accordance with Part D of Title IV of the Social Security Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder because the whereabouts of the obligee are unknown, the IV-D agency shall direct the obligor, and any employer or other person remitting child support payments on behalf of the obligor, to cease remitting such payments to the IV-D agency. Thereafter the IV-D agency may, in accordance with regulations promulgated under this chapter, transfer the undisbursed payments to the department of transitional assistance to reimburse the commonwealth for arrears due for any period that public assistance was provided to the obligee or may return to the obligor any payments received by it that cannot be disbursed to the obligee because such obligee's whereabouts are unknown. The return of a child support payment to an obligor hereunder shall not affect the underlying child support obligation. The IV-D agency shall maintain any undisbursed payments, along with any payments that are unidentifiable as to either the obligee or the obligor, in the child support trust fund payments account for three years and shall attempt to locate or identify such obligee or obligor. If, at the expiration of such time the IV-D agency has been unable to locate the obligee on whose behalf the payments were remitted or has not transferred the payments to the department of transitional assistance or cannot locate the obligor in order to return the payments or has not identified the obligor or obligee of the payments and the payments remain undisbursed or unidentified, the IV-D agency may expend such funds on public awareness about teenage pregnancy, out-of-wedlock births, paternity establishment, child support and domestic violence. Such public education shall consist of efforts to provide the public, or groups within the public, with information directed specifically at preventing teenage pregnancies and pregnancies from parents not married to each other encouraging paternity establishment, including voluntary acknowledgment of parentage, promoting responsibility for child support obligations, and protecting the confidentiality of domestic violence victims receiving IV-D services. Expenditures of such funds for such purposes shall be in addition to and shall not replace existing local, state, or federal funding related to the same purposes.

(c) The IV-D agency shall notify the obligee upon termination of public assistance of his eligibility to continue to receive IV-D services, and, unless requested by the obligee to terminate IV-D services, the IV-D agency shall continue to provide such services subject to the same conditions and on the same basis as in the case of other individuals to whom IV-D services are furnished, except that an application or other request to continue such IV-D services shall not be required of such a family.

SECTION 82. Said chapter 119A, is hereby further amended by inserting after said section 5, as so amended, the following two sections:-

Section 5A. (a) Personal data collected and maintained by the IV-D agency shall not be a public record under chapter 66 and access to this data shall be available only to employees of the IV-D agency and its contractors only to the extent reasonably necessary for the performance of said contractors duties; provided, however, that the IV-D agency may disclose such data for purposes connected with establishing paternity, establishing, modifying or enforcing child support obligations pursuant to this chapter and Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act; and provided further, that subject to subsection (b), section 5B and section 21 of chapter 62C, the IV-D agency may disclose personal data-

(1) to any state or federal public assistance program or to the IV-D agency of another state for purposes connected with the administration of such program or of the child support enforcement program, as authorized by Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act and by the secretary of the federal department of health and human services;

(2) for the purpose of conducting information comparisons pursuant to section 4;

(3) to persons authorized to receive information from the Federal Parent Locator Service established pursuant to Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act;

(4) as provided in section 21 of chapter 62C, section 8 of chapter 62E, and section 15D of chapter 22, to the director of the bureau of special investigations for purposes directly connected with detecting and preventing fraud in any assistance program administered by the department of transitional assistance or any program administered by the department of social services;

(5) to the department of social services for purposes directly connected with an investigation under section 51B of chapter 119 or proceedings related to termination of parental rights or adoption;

(6) as provided in section 10 of chapter 62D, for the purpose of setoff debt collection pursuant to the provisions of said chapter 62D;

(7) to a person authorized in writing by the parent or, in the case of the child, by the custodial parent or legal guardian of the child, to receive such personal data;

(8) for purposes directly connected to obtaining health care coverage for a child receiving IV-D services, to an employer or provider of health care coverage or to the obligor;

(9) in the case of personal data about an individual parent, to that parent or, in the case of personal data about the child, to the custodial parent or legal guardian of the child.

Before disclosing personal data pursuant to this section, the IV-D agency may require the person or agency requesting such data to verify that such data is required for a purpose permitted by this section and that such data will be used solely for such purpose. The IV-D agency shall limit disclosure to the specific data required by the person or agency to carry out a purpose permitted by this chapter. For the purposes of this chapter, "personal data" shall have the same meaning as provided in section 1 of chapter 66A.

(b) The IV-D agency shall safeguard personal data if the IV-D agency is provided with reasonable evidence of a risk of harm. A state agency, court, IV-D agency of another state, obligor, obligee, and such other persons or entities as the IV-D agency may specify may provide the IV-D agency with reasonable evidence of a risk of harm in such manner as the IV-D agency may require. The IV-D agency shall not be required to safeguard personal data for longer than two years unless the IV-D agency is provided with reasonable evidence of a continued risk of harm in such manner as the IV-D agency may require. The IV-D agency shall notify individuals whose personal data is safeguarded under this section that in order for the safeguards to remain in effect, such individuals must provide the IV-D agency every two years with reasonable evidence of a continued risk of harm. For the purposes of this section, "reasonable evidence of a risk of harm" shall mean reasonable evidence that the release of information may result in physical harm to the parent or child, that the release of information may result in emotional harm to the parent or child which would significantly reduce the parent's capacity to care for the child, or would significantly reduce the parent or child's ability to function adequately, or that a protective order or restraining order has been issued on behalf of the parent or the child pursuant to section 18 or 34B of chapter 208, section 32 of chapter 209, section 3, 4 or 5 of chapter 209A, or section 15 or 20 of chapter 209C, or similar law of another jurisdiction.

If the IV-D agency is provided with reasonable evidence of a risk of harm, the IV-D agency, its employees and its contractors shall not disclose any personal data that could otherwise be disclosed pursuant to subsection (a) about the location of a parent or child, including residential address, telephone number, and name, address and telephone number of employer, and shall not disclose the social security number of a parent or child; provided, however, that such personal data may be shared by and between employees of the IV-D agency and its contractors; provided further that the IV-D agency may disclose such personal data to the Federal Parent Locator Service, to a court or agent of a court that is authorized to receive information from the Federal Parent Locator Service established pursuant to Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act, to the department of transitional assistance, to the department of social services for purposes directly connected with an investigation under section 51B of chapter 119 or proceedings related to termination of parental rights or adoption, to a person authorized to receive such personal data by the parent or, in the case of the child, by the custodial parent or legal guardian of the child; provided further, that the IV-D agency may disclose the social security number of a child receiving IV-D services for purposes directly connected to obtaining health care coverage for such child to an employer or provider of health care coverage.

If the IV-D agency is provided with reasonable evidence of a risk of harm pursuant to this section, the IV-D agency shall notify the Federal Parent Locator Service established pursuant to Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act that a risk of harm exists. Upon written request by a court or agent of a court authorized to receive information from the Federal Parent Locator Service, the IV-D agency shall release personal data, which may include location information and social security numbers, to such court or agent, as required by said Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act; provided, however, that if the IV-D agency has been provided with reasonable evidence of a risk of harm, the IV-D agency shall notify the court or agent that the IV-D agency has received such information and that pursuant to section 5B, before making any disclosure of such personal data, the court is required to determine whether such disclosure to any other person could be harmful to the parent or child. A person or agency seeking disclosure of personal data which the IV-D agency is prohibited from disclosing because of a risk of harm, but which could otherwise be disclosed pursuant to subsection (a), may file a petition with the probate and family court pursuant to section 5B to request disclosure of such personal data.

(c) The IV-D agency shall have in effect safeguards to ensure the integrity, accuracy, and completeness of, access to, and use of data, including personal data and data in the automated system required by section 4, which shall include: (1) written policies concerning access to data by IV-D agency personnel and its contractors, and sharing of data with other persons, which permit access to and use of data only to the extent necessary to carry out the purposes of the child support enforcement program, and which specify the data which may be used for particular program purposes, and the personnel permitted access to such data; (2) systems controls to ensure strict adherence to said policies; (3) routine monitoring of access to and use of the automated system required by section 4, through methods such as audit trails, to guard against and promptly identify unauthorized access or use; (4) procedures to ensure that all personnel, including employees of the IV-D agency and its contractors, who may have or had access to or who may be or were required to use confidential program data and personal data are informed of applicable requirements and penalties, including those in this section, section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and section 21 of chapter 62C, and are adequately trained in security procedures; (5) penalties, as provided in this section for willful inspection or disclosure of, or unauthorized access to, personal data; and (6) such other safeguards as the commissioner of revenue and the secretary of the federal Department of Health and Human Services may specify in regulations.

The willful inspection or disclosure of personal data, except as authorized by this section or section 5B, by any employee of the IV-D agency, its contractors, or any person obtaining unauthorized access to such data, including data stored in a computer system or computer files, while such data are in the custody of the commissioner of revenue or in the custody of any employee of the IV-D agency or its contractors is prohibited. Personal data may be inspected, and shared by and between employees of the IV-D agency in the performance of their official duties as provided in this chapter. Authorized employees of the department of revenue may disclose personal data to any employee of a contractor of the IV-D agency to the extent necessary for performance of the contracted duties of the employee. Personal data properly disclosed by employees of the IV-D agency may be inspected and shared by and between employees of a contractor of the IV-D agency in performance of their contracted duties and for the purpose for which such data was disclosed. Any violation of this section by an employee of the IV-D agency, its contractors or an officer, director or employee thereof, a person obtaining unauthorized access to personal data, or any other individual shall be punished by a fine of not more than $1,000 with respect to each person concerning whom information has been disclosed or inspected or by imprisonment for not more than one year, or both, and by disqualification from holding office in the commonwealth for such period, not exceeding three years, as the court determines. The determination by the commissioner of revenue that an employee of the IV-D agency, or the determination by another agency head that an employee of such other agency, has made a disclosure or willful inspection of personal data that was not authorized by this section and not protected by the good faith provision of subsection (d) shall be grounds for dismissal of such employee. A violation, as determined by the commissioner of revenue, of this section by an officer, director or employee of any contractor of the commonwealth shall be grounds for prohibiting such officer, director or employee from working on a contract between the contractor and the commonwealth. A violation, as determined by the commissioner of revenue, of this section by any contractor of the commonwealth, or any officer, director or employee thereof, shall also be cause for terminating any current contract between such contractor and the commonwealth and for prohibiting such contractor from entering into any future contract with the commonwealth.

(d) Any unauthorized disclosure or unauthorized willful inspection made in a good faith effort to comply with this section shall not be considered a violation of this section.

Section 5B. A person or agency, including the IV-D agency, seeking personal data which the IV-D agency is prohibited from disclosing because of a risk of harm, but which could otherwise be disclosed pursuant to subsection (a) of section 5A, or which the Federal Parent Locator Service established pursuant to Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act is prohibited from disclosing because the secretary of the federal Department of Health and Human Services has been notified that there is reasonable evidence of domestic violence or child abuse, may file a petition with the probate and family court where the person resides, or in the case of an agency, with the probate and family court of Suffolk county, to request disclosure of such personal data. The petition shall specify the purposes for which such personal data is required. When a petition is filed under this section, or when the court receives notice from the IV-D agency that the IV-D agency has been notified of a risk of harm pursuant to said section 5A, the court shall determine whether disclosure of personal data could be harmful to the parent or child before releasing such data to any other person or agency. In making such determination, the court shall notify the parent that the court has received a request to release personal data and shall provide a specific date by which the parent must object to release of the information and provide the basis for objection. The parent may provide such information in writing and shall not be required to appear in person to contest the release of information. The court shall also notify the IV-D agency of any petition filed pursuant to this section and the IV-D agency shall provide the court with any reasonable evidence of the risk of harm which has been provided to the IV-D agency pursuant to said section 5A; provided, however, that the IV-D agency shall not be made a party to the action, except upon good cause shown. The court may also request information directly from the Federal Parent Locator Service, from the IV-D agency of another state, and from any other source.

In determining whether disclosure of personal data could be harmful to the parent or child, the court shall consider any relevant information provided by the parent or child, any information provided by the IV-D agency or by the IV-D agency of another state, any evidence provided by the person seeking the personal data, whether the address of the parent or child has been impounded pursuant to sections 3 and 8 of chapter 209A, and any other relevant evidence, including information contained in the records of the statewide domestic violence record keeping system maintained by the office of the commissioner of probation. Documentary evidence transmitted to the court by facsimile, telecopier, or other means that do not provide an original writing may not be excluded from evidence on an objection based on the means of transmission. The court may permit a party or witness to be deposed or to testify by telephone, audiovisual means, or other electronic means.

The court shall not enter an order to disclose personal data without reviewing all of the information that has been provided to the court and shall not draw an adverse inference from the failure of the parent to appear in person to contest disclosure of information. The court may enter an order (1) impounding the personal data and prohibiting any disclosure by the court or its agents, (2) permitting disclosure by the court or its agents to a specific person or persons, (3) prohibiting disclosure by the court or its agents to a specific person or persons, or (4) removing any restrictions on disclosure by the court and its agents. An order permitting disclosure of personal data may specify the purposes for which the data may be used and may prohibit a person to whom the data is disclosed from making further disclosures to any other person. The court shall notify the IV-D agency of any order entered pursuant to this section. Any person or agency who violates an order issued pursuant to this section may be held in contempt of court and subject to the penalties provided in said section 5A.

The court may disclose location information about a parent for the limited purpose of notifying the parent of a proceeding under this section or of any other proceeding in the probate and family court, provided that such information shall not be disclosed to another party unless the court issues an order pursuant to this section permitting such disclosure.

SECTION 83. Section 6 of said chapter 119A, as appearing in the 1996 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 7, the words "a wage assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- an order to withhold income.

SECTION 84. Said section 6 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "programs", in line 9, the following words:- ; use of federal administrative offset pursuant to the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996 31 USC 3716; use of federal program for denial, revocation, or limitation of passports; notification to consumer credit reporting agencies pursuant to section 52A of chapter 93.

SECTION 85. Said section 6 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "apply", in line 14, the following words:- ; petition to the probate and family court for distribution of trust income in accordance with chapter 203.

SECTION 86. Said section 6 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "nine D", in line 18, the following words:- or required by Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act. The IV-D agency is further authorized, in cases where there is a support arrearage, to secure assets to satisfy the arrearage by intercepting or seizing periodic or lump-sum payments from any state or local agency or authority, including unemployment compensation, workers' compensation and other benefits not otherwise exempt, judgments, settlements, and lotteries; attaching and seizing assets of the obligor held in financial institutions; attaching any public and private pension or retirement funds as provided by this chapter and by chapter 32; and imposing liens in accordance with this section and, in appropriate cases, forcing sale of any real or personal property and distribution of proceeds. Such procedures shall be subject to due process as provided in this chapter, including an opportunity for administrative and judicial review as provided in section 17.

SECTION 87. Said section 6 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "review", in line 43, the following words:- under section 17, including sufficient documentation.

SECTION 88. Said section 6 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 44, the word "twenty-one" and inserting in place thereof the following figure:- 30.

SECTION 89. Said section 6 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 44, the word "conduct" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- initiate.

SECTION 90. Said section 6 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 47, the word "twelve" and inserting in place thereof the following figure:- 4.

SECTION 91. Said section 6 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "property", in line 115, the following words:- , including property located outside the commonwealth and accounts as defined in section 4 of chapter 62E,.

SECTION 92. Said section 6 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "section.", in line 139, the following three sentences:- With respect to a levy on securities, or a levy on shares of a mutual fund other than a money market mutual fund, the obligor may sell or repurchase such securities or shares in the ordinary and usual course of investing, but may not receive funds resulting from such sale, for a time period of up to 45 days. If during such time period the IV-D agency has not rescinded the levy, extended the time period, or notified the person or entity in possession of such securities or shares to remit funds, at the end of such time period such person shall forthwith liquidate sufficient securities or shares to satisfy the full amount of the lien and remit the liquidated funds to the IV-D agency; provided, however, that if during such time period, the obligor files a timely request for administrative review pursuant to this chapter which is not resolved prior to the end of such time period, the time period shall be extended until the final resolution of the request for administrative review; and provided further, that if a request for administrative review is resolved prior to the end of such time period, the IV-D agency may notify the person or entity in possession of such securities or shares to remit funds forthwith or that the levy is released. For the purposes of this section, the term "money market mutual fund" shall mean every regulated investment company within the meaning of section 851(a) of the Internal Revenue Code which seeks to maintain a constant net asset value of $1 per share in accordance with section 270.2a-7 of title 17 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

SECTION 93. Said section 6 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 178, the designation "(11)" and inserting in place thereof the following:- (c).

SECTION 94. Said section 6 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 179, the words "subparagraph (2) or subparagraph (4)" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- this section.

SECTION 95. Said section 6 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 180 to 181, the words "herein, seek judicial review", and inserting in place thereof the following words:- in section 17, seek judicial review within 45 days.

SECTION 96. Said chapter 119A is hereby further amended by inserting after section 6, as so appearing, the following section:-

Section 6A. (a) The IV-D agency is hereby authorized to attach payments, distributions or benefits owing to an obligor under any pension or retirement plan, as provided in this section.

(b)(1) With respect to any pension or retirement plan governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, Title 29 of the United States Code, the IV-D agency may attach payments, distributions or benefits pursuant to a qualified domestic relations order, as defined in 29 USC 1056, issued by a court of competent jurisdiction or by the IV-D agency, as provided in paragraph (2).

(2) Pursuant to regulation promulgated by the commissioner, the IV-D agency may issue a qualified domestic relations order, as defined in 29 USC 1056, without the need for judicial or administrative hearing; provided, however, that the IV-D agency shall notify the obligor of the issuance of such qualified domestic relations order and of the procedures to follow under section 17 if the obligor wishes to contest such issuance on the grounds that the withholding under the qualified domestic relations order or the amount withheld is improper due to mistake of fact.

(c) With respect to all other pension or retirement plans, the IV-D agency may attach payments, distributions or benefits or execute an income withholding order under the procedures set out in sections 6 and 12, without obtaining or issuing a qualified domestic relations order as defined in 29 USC 1056.

(d) If a member of a pension or retirement plan is eligible to receive a return of accumulated total deductions under the provisions of chapter 32 or under the provisions of any general or special law and requests such return from the pension or retirement board on the prescribed form, prior to the return of such accumulated total deductions, the board shall provide to the IV-D agency the member's name, date of birth, address, and social security number. Within 15 days of receipt of such information, the IV-D agency shall notify the board if such member owes child support arrears, provided, however, that if, due to unforeseen circumstances, the IV-D agency is unable to provide such notice within 15 days, the IV-D agency shall notify the board of said unforeseen circumstances and the anticipated date by which the IV-D agency will provide such notice. If the member owes child support arrears, upon receipt of a levy from the IV-D agency on the accumulated total deductions, the board shall withhold the child support arrears from the accumulated total deductions and, unless the IV-D agency releases the levy, the board shall, within 60 days, disburse to the IV-D agency the accumulated total deductions up to the amount of the arrears.

(e)(1) With respect to any pension or retirement plan not governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, Title 29 of the United States Code, upon notice by the IV-D agency to a pension or retirement board that a lien has arisen under section 6 against a member of the pension or retirement plan, and if the member has terminated service, the board shall send to the member the prescribed form to request a return of accumulated total deductions under the provisions of chapter 32 or the provisions of any general or special law.

(2) An obligor who is subject to a lien under section 6 and who is eligible to receive a return of accumulated total deductions under the provisions of chapter 32 or under the provisions of any general or special law shall sign and return to the pension or retirement plan any prescribed form required by such plan to request a return of accumulated total deductions; provided that the obligor shall also send by first class mail a copy of such completed form to the IV-D agency.

(3) If the member fails to file the prescribed form with the board within 60 days, the board shall notify the IV-D agency of such failure and whether the board has received notice that the member has become a member of any system. The IV-D agency may seek a court order for the submission of the prescribed form to request a return of accumulated total deductions. Upon request of the IV-D agency, the court shall order the member to sign and submit the prescribed form or shall appoint a special master to sign and submit such form in place of the member.

(4) Upon receipt of a levy from the IV-D agency on the accumulated total deductions, the board shall withhold any arrears owed by such obligor from the accumulated total deductions and, unless the IV-D agency releases the levy, the board shall, within 60 days, disburse to the IV-D agency the accumulated total deductions up to the amount of the arrears.

SECTION 97. Section 7 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 2 and 3, the words "assignment by sending notice of the assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- withholding order or a qualified domestic relations order pursuant to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, 29 USC 1056, by sending notice of the withholding or qualified domestic relations order.

SECTION 98. Section 8 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "agency", in line 1, the following words:- , party to a child support order or other entity.

SECTION 99. Said section 8 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "court", in line 8, the following words:- and without requiring judicial notice or hearing prior to the enforcement of such lien or order, provided that the IV-D agency, enforcement agency of another state, party or other entity seeking to enforce the lien complies with the procedural rules relating to enforcing orders or recording or serving liens that arise within the commonwealth. An order for genetic marker tests from a court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction shall be accorded full faith and credit and shall be enforceable in the commonwealth.

SECTION 100. Section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "nine C", in line 4, the following words:- and section 28 of chapter 119.

SECTION 101. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "section.", in line 6, the following two sentences:- Each such judgment or order for support shall include a provision for immediate withholding of income, as provided in paragraph (7) of subsection (b); provided, however, that such order for income withholding may be suspended, pursuant to subsection (c). Each such judgment or order for support shall also include an order for health care coverage, as provided in paragraph (6) of subsection (b), unless the obligor and obligee agree in writing that the obligee shall obtain health care coverage for his child or children or that such coverage will be provided by other means.

SECTION 102. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 11 to 16, inclusive, the words "At the discretion of the court, whenever appropriate, any order for the support of a child issued pursuant to section twenty-eight of chapter one hundred and nineteen may conform to and be enforced in accordance with the provisions of this section. For the purposes of this chapter, employer shall mean any source of periodic income paid to the obligor.".

SECTION 103. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 17, the words "(b) Each" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- (b)(1) Each.

SECTION 104. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 19 and 20, the words "is a recipient of transitional assistance or who signs an application to such IV-D agency for child support services. If," and inserting in place thereof the following words:- applies for or is a recipient of IV-D services until September 30, 1998, if.

SECTION 105. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "order", in line 22, the following words:- if to be paid by withholding of income of the obligor,.

SECTION 106. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "obligee.", in line 27, the following three paragraphs:-

(2) All judgments and orders of support entered in the commonwealth on or after October 1, 1998, in which support is ordered to be paid by withholding of income of the obligor, shall be made payable to the IV-D agency on behalf of the obligee.

(3) In all other cases in which support is payable by withholding income of the obligor, including cases not receiving IV-D services, payment of income withholding pursuant to such judgment or order for support shall be paid, on and after October 1, 1998, to the IV-D agency on behalf of the obligee, notwithstanding the payee specified in the order, provided that a party or the employer notifies the IV-D agency of the amount to be withheld, including any amount to be withheld toward payment of arrearages, and provides the IV-D agency with the identifying information required by paragraph (6) of subsection (b) and a copy of the most recent order or notice of income withholding.

(4) With respect to any case in which support to be paid by withholding income is or becomes payable to the IV-D agency on behalf of the obligee under this section and such support payment was previously made payable to the obligee or another entity, the IV-D agency upon receipt of the case shall execute an order to make payments under the income withholding order payable to the IV-D agency, and shall so notify the employer, the obligor, and the obligee; provided, however, that if insufficient information identifying the obligee and the obligor has been provided to the IV-D agency, the IV-D agency shall return to the employer or other source of periodic income any payment received and shall direct such employer or other source of periodic income to provide information identifying the obligor and obligee prior to transmitting additional payments to the IV-D agency; and provided further that the IV-D agency shall not be liable to such obligor or obligee for not transmitting the payments to the obligee.

SECTION 107. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 27, the word "Such" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- (5) Any.

SECTION 108. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 30, the word "obligor" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- obligor's.

SECTION 109. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "payments.", in line 31, the following sentence:- With respect to any order for income withholding made payable to the IV-D agency, the issuing court shall provide to the IV-D agency a copy of the judgment or order for support and the order for income withholding, and shall also provide the address and social security number of the obligee, date of birth and social security number of the child and such other information as the IV-D agency requires to assist it in collecting support payments; provided, however, that such information need not be included in the order for income withholding.

SECTION 110. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "cost", in line 35, the first time it appears, the following words:- , unless the obligor and obligee agree in writing that the obligee shall obtain health care coverage for his child or children or that such coverage will be provided by other means.

SECTION 111. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the words "obligor; and", in line 36, the following words:- , if the IV-D agency is responsible for enforcing the order, require the obligor.

SECTION 112. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out the sixth and seventh sentences and inserting in place thereof the following two sentences:- For the purposes of this section, health care coverage shall be deemed available to the obligor at reasonable cost if it is available through his employer. (6) Each such judgment or order shall include a provision under which a portion of the obligor's income as defined in section 1A, shall be withheld, except as expressly limited by law, in an amount.

SECTION 113. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 46, the words "the assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- any income withholding.

SECTION 114. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 48, the words "the assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- income withholding.

SECTION 115. The second paragraph of subsection (b) of said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the first sentence.

SECTION 116. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 62, the word "assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- income withholding.

SECTION 117. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 63, the words "assignment and this section shall apply" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- order, by any reasonable means, including by electronic means, to withhold income, without the need for judicial or administrative hearing, and this section shall apply; provided, however, that the IV-D agency shall notify the obligor that the withholding has commenced and of the procedures to follow under section 17 if the obligor wishes to contest such withholding on the grounds that the withholding or the amount withheld is improper due to mistake of fact.

SECTION 118. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 64, the words "Such assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- Any withholding of income.

SECTION 119. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 65 and 66, the words "Such assignment shall also take effect immediately" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- Income withholding shall also take effect immediately, without the necessity of any judicial or administrative hearing,.

SECTION 120. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 67, 75 and 77, each time it appears, the word "assignment" and inserting in place thereof, in each instance, the following words:- income withholding.

SECTION 121. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 71, the words "an immediate wage assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- immediate income withholding.

SECTION 122. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 75, the words "IV-D agency" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- court.

SECTION 123. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 81, the words "an assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- income withholding.

SECTION 124. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "effect", in line 82, the following word:- immediately.

SECTION 125. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 90, the word "Assignments" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- Income withholding.

SECTION 126. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 92, the words "employee changes employers" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- obligor changes employers or other source of periodic income.

SECTION 127. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "employer", in line 93, the following words:- or other source of periodic income.

SECTION 128. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "employment", in line 94, the following words:- or other source of periodic income.

SECTION 129. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 95, the word "assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- income withholding order.

SECTION 130. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 96, the words "employer. If an assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- employer or other source of periodic income. With respect to a case receiving IV-D services, if an income withholding order.

SECTION 131. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 98, the words "employer, said agency shall send the assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- employer or other source of periodic income, said agency shall send the income withholding order.

SECTION 131A. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "employer", in line 100, the following words:- or other source of periodic income.

SECTION 132. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "employs", in line 100, the following words:- or pays.

SECTION 133. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 101, the word "If" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- With respect to a case receiving IV-D services, if.

SECTION 133A. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "employment", in line 101, the following words:- or other source of periodic income.

SECTION 134. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following sentence:- Such provider shall enroll the child for whom the order for health care coverage applies and shall not suspend such coverage while it is available to the obligor unless the court which entered the original order, at the request of the obligor, determines that such coverage is not available to the obligor at reasonable cost, or otherwise creates an undue hardship upon the obligor.

SECTION 135. Subsection (d) of said section 12 of said section 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out the first four sentences and inserting in place thereof the following three sentences:-

With respect to a case receiving IV-D services or where an obligee applies for child support services from the IV-D agency, when the IV-D agency determines on its own information of on account of a claim in writing under the penalties of perjury that an arrearage has accrued, it shall immediately send the notice on income withholding increased by 25 per cent to the obligor's employer or other source of periodic income as specified in subsection (f) and shall send a notice to the obligor that he may, within 15 days from the date the notice is sent submit a request in writing for a hearing as to whether the income withholding should be further suspended. With respect to all other case, an obligee making a claim that an arrearage has accrued shall make the claim in writing under the penalties of perjury to the court that entered the order and the court may order that the withholding be increased by 25 per cent. The notice to the obligor shall also specify the amount to be withheld, and the procedure and grounds for further suspending the income withholding or appealing the amount of any arrearage alleged to be owed. Such notice to the obligor shall set forth that the income withholding order applies to the obligor's subsequent employers or other sources of periodic income and that the obligor is bound to notify said agency immediately when his employment or other source of periodic income changes or be subject to possible punishment for civil contempt of court or other enforcement remedies under this chapter.

SECTION 136. Said subsection (d) of said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following sentence:- The obligor may contest an order for health care coverage by requesting that the court that issued the order determine whether such coverage is available to the obligor at reasonable cost or otherwise creates an undue hardship upon the obligor; provided, however, that the obligor shall bear the burden of proving that such coverage is not available at reasonable cost or otherwise creates an undue hardship upon the obligor; and provided further that the provider of health care coverage shall maintain coverage for the child under the order pending a modification of the order.

SECTION 137. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 135 and 136, the words "If the obligor requests a hearing, it shall be held within fifteen days from the receipt of his request," and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- If the obligor contests income withholding, he shall, in a case receiving IV-D services, request an administrative review under section 17, or, in all other cases, seek judicial review from the court that entered the order.

SECTION 138. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 140, the word "assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- income withholding order.

SECTION 139. Subsection (e) of said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the second paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-

If the court or hearing officer orders that income withholding be suspended, upon notice to the IV-D agency, said agency shall promptly notify the employer or other source of periodic income.

SECTION 140. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "notice", in line 149, the following words:- as set forth in paragraph (1),.

SECTION 141. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 155, the words "15 U.S.C.A. 1673(b)" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- the Consumer Credit Protection Act, 15 USC 1673(b).

SECTION 142. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 161, the word "assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- income withholding order.

SECTION 143. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "employer", in lines 162 and 164, each time it appears, the following words:- or other source of periodic income.

SECTION 144. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 163, the word "assignment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- income withholding.

SECTION 145. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "amount", in line 165, the second time it appears, the following words:- shall be made payable to the IV-D agency on behalf of the obligee and sent to the state disbursement unit as provided in section 5 and.

SECTION 146. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "Act", in line 167, the following:- , 15 USC 1673(b).

SECTION 147. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 168, the words "may deduct from said earnings" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- or other source of periodic income may deduct from said earnings or income.

SECTION 148. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "employees", in line 170, the following words:- or recipients of periodic income.

SECTION 149. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 171, the word "assigned" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- withheld.

SECTION 150. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 171 to 172, the words "each employee's obligation" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- the obligation of each employee or recipient of periodic income.

SECTION 151. Subsection (f) of said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out paragraphs (2) and (3) and inserting in place thereof the following two paragraphs:-

(2) The employer may not discipline, suspend or discharge an employee, or refuse to hire any individual because of an income withholding order issued pursuant to this section or because of any obligation such income withholding imposes against the employer. Any employer who violates this section shall be liable in a civil action, action for contempt or other appropriate proceeding to such employee or individual for all wages and employment benefits lost by the employee or individual from the time of the unlawful discipline, suspension, refusal to hire or discharge to the period of reinstatement, and an additional penalty of up to $1,000.

(3)(A) If an employer or other source of periodic income fails to comply with an order of income withholding executed pursuant to this section the court may, on its own motion or upon report of the IV-D agency or other administrative agency of competent jurisdiction, or upon the motion or complaint of any party to the order of income withholding, summon the employer or other source of periodic income to appear in court and show cause why he should not be held in civil contempt for failure to obey said order. Said employer or other source of periodic income shall also be liable to the obligee in a civil action, action for contempt, or other appropriate proceeding for the full amount of the income that the employer or other source of periodic income failed to withhold or remit, and shall also be liable for a civil penalty equal to that amount or in the amount of $500, whichever is greater, payable to the IV-D agency or to the moving or complaining party. A finding by the court, by an administrative agency of competent jurisdiction, or by the IV-D agency that the employer or other source of periodic income has failed or neglected to comply with an income withholding order executed pursuant to this section shall be prima facie evidence of the liability of such employer in such proceeding.

(B) With respect to a case receiving IV-D services, upon a finding by the IV-D agency that the employer or other source of periodic income has failed to withhold, or has withheld and failed to remit, any amount required to be withheld and remitted under this section, the IV-D agency may notify the employer or other source of periodic income of its obligation to withhold and remit pursuant to the income withholding order. Any subsequent failure to withhold and remit after the IV-D agency has sent said notice, or any failure to remit within 30 days an amount that has been withheld, shall result in an assessment by the IV-D agency against the employer or other source of periodic income of the amount subject to withholding and a penalty equal to that amount or in the amount of $500, whichever is greater. Such employer or other source of periodic income shall have 30 days from the date of the assessment to pay the amount due to the IV-D agency under the assessment and the penalty, or to request an administrative hearing by the IV-D agency to review the assessment.

(C) In any action pursuant to subparagraphs (A) or (B), the following defenses may be raised by the entity alleged to have failed to withhold or remit support pursuant to the income withholding order:

(i) said entity withheld and remitted the amount required by the order;

(ii) said entity was not a source of periodic income to the obligor during the period of alleged non-compliance;

(iii) no order to withhold support was in effect during the period of alleged non-compliance; or

(iv) said entity had no notice of an order to withhold support during the period of alleged non-compliance.

(D) Any amount assessed under subparagraph (A) by a court in a case receiving IV-D services, and any amount assessed by the IV-D agency under subparagraph (B), shall be collected and enforced by any means authorized under this chapter for the enforcement and collection of support. Any penalty imposed under this paragraph shall not be credited against the support liability. Any employer or other source of periodic income who contests an assessment confirmed by the IV-D agency after an administrative hearing pursuant to subparagraph (B) may, after exhaustion of administrative remedies, seek judicial review pursuant to section 17 of this chapter.

SECTION 152. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "assignment", in line 193, the following words:- income withholding,.

SECTION 153. Subsection (f) of said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out paragraphs (5), (6) and (7) and inserting in place thereof the following three paragraphs:-

(5) As provided in subsection (b), the employer or other source of periodic income shall send the amount required by the income withholding order to the IV-D agency within three business days of the date the employee or recipient of periodic income is paid, and shall furnish such identifying information as the IV-D agency may require, including name, telephone number and employer identification number of the employer or other source of income, and the names, addresses, and social security numbers of the obligor and, if known, of the obligee, and the amount of support attributable to each obligor and obligee. With respect to income withholding orders issued by a court or agency of competent jurisdiction of another state and sent pursuant to section 5-501 of chapter 209D, the employer or other source of periodic income shall send the amount required by the income withholding order to the state disbursement unit in such other state and shall comply with the procedural rules governing income withholding for the state where the employee or other recipient of periodic income works or receives such income.

(6) The income withholding shall begin on the first payment of income that occurs more than three days after the employer or other source of periodic income receives notice of the income withholding and shall continue until the employee leaves that employment, the recipient of periodic income no longer receives periodic income from that source, or the employer or other source of periodic income is notified by said agency that the income withholding should be terminated.

(7) With respect to a case receiving IV-D services, if the employee leaves the employment, the employer shall be responsible to notify said IV-D agency of his departure and his subsequent employer, if known, or his subsequent source of periodic income, including pension or retirement payments, if known, prior to the time that the next payment to said agency is due and, if a recipient of periodic income no longer is to receive periodic income from a source of such income, that source shall notify the IV-D agency of the termination of his receipt of periodic income from that source and, if known, his subsequent source of periodic income, prior to the time that the next payment to said agency is due. Any subsequent employer or other source of periodic income of the obligor shall, upon notice of an income withholding order, comply with the provisions of this section.

SECTION 154. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out subsection (g).

SECTION 155. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out subsections (h) and (i) and inserting in place thereof the following two subsections:-

(h) Each obligor making payments to the IV-D agency under this section shall be provided a notice describing the procedure for withholding income, including the factors triggering income withholding under subsection (c), the obligor's duty to report changes in employment, address, and other identifying information as required under section 4(c). Such notice may be provided at the time that the support order is entered.

(i) When the obligor is self-employed, income withholding shall be ordered in compliance with subsection (b) and such self-employed obligor shall be subject to the same penalties provided in this section for failure to comply with income withholding to which any other employer is subject. When income withholding cannot be obtained because the obligor has insufficient periodic income subject to attachment, the court may require that the obligor post a bond in an amount sufficient to secure the obligation of support.

SECTION 156. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 229, the word "obligations" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- Obligations.

SECTION 157. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "employee", in line 235, the following words:- and shall operate to enroll the child in the obligor's health care plan.

SECTION 158. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 275, the words "15 U.S.C.A. 1673(b)" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- the Consumer Credit Protection Act, 15 USC 1673(b).

SECTION 159. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "incurred", in line 285, the following words:- and for attorneys' fees.

SECTION 160. Said section 12 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out subsection (n).

SECTION 161. Section 13 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "and", in line 7, the second time it appears, the following words:- a judicial or administrative action to enforce said judgment may be commenced at any time; provided that said judgment.

SECTION 162. Said section 13 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the words "one hundred and nineteen,", in line 40, the following:- 119A,.

SECTION 163. Section 14 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 2 and 3, the words "information from the individuals and the entities named in this section" and inserting in place thereof the following:- from all entities and individuals in the commonwealth, including for- profit, nonprofit, and governmental employers and other sources of income or benefits, information on the employment, compensation, and benefits of any individual employed by such individual or entity as an employee, contractor, or subcontractor or of any individual to whom such individual or entity provides income or benefits. The IV-D agency shall have access, including electronic access, in the case of records maintained in electronic data bases, subject to safeguards on privacy and information security as provided in section 5A, to information, including social security numbers, contained in the following records:

(1) records of other state and local government agencies, including vital statistics records relating to marriage, birth, paternity establishment, and divorce; state and local tax and revenue records, including information on residence address, employer, income and assets; records concerning real and titled personal property; records of occupational and professional licenses, and records concerning the ownership and control of corporations, partnerships, and other business entities; employment security records; records of agencies administering public assistance programs; records of the registry of motor vehicles; and corrections records including records of the department of youth services;

(2) certain records held by private entities with respect to individuals who owe or are owed support (or against or with respect to whom a support obligation is sought), consisting of the names and addresses of such individuals and the names and addresses of the employers of such individuals as appearing in customer records of public utilities and cable television companies, pursuant to an administrative subpoena authorized by section 15; and information (including information on assets and liabilities) on such individuals held by financial institutions as defined in section 4 of chapter 62E,.

SECTION 164. Subsection (a) of said section 14 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the last sentence.

SECTION 165. Said section 14 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 42, the words "section one hundred and seventy-two" and inserting in place thereof the following:- sections 172 and 172D.

SECTION 166. Said section 14 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "six", in line 46, the following words:- , and other information and data specified in section 172D of said chapter 6.

SECTION 167. Said section 14 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "agencies", in line 58, the following words:- , pension or retirement plan, or creditor or other entity identified on a credit report furnished to the IV-D agency; provided that the IV-D agency may, in addition, request from a creditor of an obligor or obligee the following information: amounts, nature and sources of income and assets, names and addresses of all employers and other sources of income and assets, documents or records provided by an obligor or obligee to a creditor.

SECTION 168. Said section 14 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 60, the word "address" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- name, social security number if available, address.

SECTION 169. Said section 14 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "obligee.", in line 61, the following three paragraphs:-

(d) Information to which the IV-D agency shall be entitled shall include information from the department of public health as set forth in chapter 17 relating to the records of births, deaths, and marriages of persons in the commonwealth, including name, address, social security number, and such other information as necessary for the purpose of administering the child support enforcement program, including information about any child born out of wedlock whose paternity has not been acknowledged or established within six months of birth. The IV-D agency shall use such information only for purposes of administering the child support enforcement program and shall not disclose such information, except in proceedings or other activities to establish paternity, to locate or identify obligors and obligees, and to establish, modify or enforce child support orders. The information required in this section shall be data compiled by any method or in any format, including data available through electronic means.

(e) The IV-D agency shall use information received pursuant to this section and pursuant to chapter 62E to locate individuals for purposes of establishing paternity and establishing, modifying, and enforcing child support obligations, and as permitted by section 5A, may disclose such information to the IV-D agency of another state upon request of such agency with respect to an individual case or a data match and to any agent of the IV-D agency that is under contract with the agency to carry out the purposes of this chapter only to the extent necessary for the performance of such agent's contracted duties.

(f) Individuals, agencies or entities disclosing information to the IV-D agency under this section shall furnish such information using the method and format required by the IV-D agency. If the individual, agency or entity making disclosure is unable to furnish the information using the method and format so required, such individual, agency or entity shall cooperate with the IV-D agency to determine another method or format by which the information may be furnished.

SECTION 170. Said section 14 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 68, the letter "(d)" and inserting in place thereof the following letter:- (g).

SECTION 171. Said section 14 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "income", in line 69, the following words:- or benefits, including health care benefits and pension benefits,.

SECTION 172. Said section 14 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "income", in lines 71, 74, 76, 77 and 80, each time it appears, the following words:- or benefits.

SECTION 173. Said section 14 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "care", in line 73, the following words:- or other.

SECTION 174. Said section 14 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "sixty-two E", in line 87, the following words:- or to the IV-D agency under section 6A.

SECTION 175. Said section 14 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 88, the letter "(e)" and inserting in place thereof the following letter:- (h).

SECTION 176. Section 15 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting before the first sentence the following seven sentences:- The IV-D agency may take testimony and proofs under oath with reference to any matter within the administrative authority of the agency and, in connection therewith, may issue subpoenas or summonses and require the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of books, papers, records, data and other evidence. In the case of records maintained in electronic data bases, the IV-D agency may issue a subpoena, including a subpoena in machine readable format, for access, including electronic access, to such records. In all other cases, subpoenas and summonses issued by the IV-D agency shall be served in the same manner as subpoenas or summonses issued on behalf of the commonwealth for witnesses in civil cases. All provisions of law relative to the subpoenas or summonses shall apply to subpoenas or summonses issued hereunder. Any individual, employer, agency, institution or other entity who, without reasonable cause, fails to comply with a subpoena or summons issued under this section shall be liable for a penalty and reasonable attorneys' fees to be assessed by the IV-D agency or by a court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction, provided, that if such penalty and attorney's fees are assessed by the IV-D agency or by such other administrative agency, the individual, employer, agency, institution or other entity against whom such penalties and fees are assessed may seek judicial review of such assessment within 45 days of notice of such assessment. The amount of such penalty shall be $100 for the first violation, $200 for the second violation, and $300 for the third violation and each violation thereafter. Any license held or sought by any obligor who, without reasonable cause, fails to comply with a subpoena or summons issued under this section may also be subject to revocation, suspension, or nonissuance pursuant to section 16, provided that any individual aggrieved by a final determination to so revoke, suspend or not issue a license may seek judicial review pursuant to section 17 within 45 days of notice of such final determination.

SECTION 177. Said chapter 119A is hereby further amended by striking out section 16, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 16. (a)(1) For purposes of this section, the following words shall have the following meanings:

"License", any license, permit, certificate, registration, charter, authority or any other form of permission required by law for the operation or use of property, the conduct of an activity or the carrying on of a trade or business, including, but not limited to, any professional, trade, business, occupational, commercial, recreational or sporting license or permit, driver's license, learner's permit, right to operate a motor vehicle, or certificate of motor vehicle registration.

"Licensing authority", any department, bureau, authority, division, board, commission, unit or other entity of the commonwealth, any political subdivision or agency thereof, or any city or town of the commonwealth, which issues licenses.

"Final determination of delinquency", an administrative finding by the IV-D agency that an obligor owes a child support arrearage that is subject to a child support lien under section 6 or has failed to respond to a subpoena, warrant or summons relating to a judicial or administrative proceeding regarding paternity or child support.

(2) Every licensing authority shall collect and maintain certain information, including the name, date of birth, address and social security number, for each applicant for a license and each individual to whom a license is granted or renewed. Every licensing authority shall provide to the IV-D agency the name, date of birth, address, social security number, federal identification number and other information as the IV-D agency may request regarding an applicant for a license or an individual to whom a license has been granted, including requests by electronic data matches. The agencies or entities disclosing information to the IV-D agency under this section shall furnish such information using the method and format required by the IV-D agency. If the agency or entity making disclosure is unable to furnish the information using the method and format so required, such agency or entity shall cooperate with the IV-D agency to determine another method or format by which the information may be furnished.

(b) The IV-D agency may notify in writing an obligor who owes a child support arrearage and is subject to a child support lien pursuant to section 6 of this chapter or an obligor who has failed to comply with a subpoena, warrant or summons relating to a judicial or administrative proceeding regarding paternity or child support, that unless the obligor requests, within 30 days of the date of such notice, a hearing before the department, the IV-D agency may issue a final determination of delinquency and, if the IV-D agency issues such final determination, shall notify the licensing authority to suspend, revoke or prohibit issuance or renewal of the license of the obligor. The provisions of this section shall constitute the sole administrative remedy for an obligor to contest a final determination of delinquency and the suspension, revocation, nonissuance or nonrenewal of the obligor's license.

(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 10 and 11 of chapter 30A, the department shall provide a hearing upon request by the obligor as provided in subsection (b). If the obligor has been notified that he owes a child support arrearage, the obligor must establish at the hearing that (1) no child support arrearage exists, (2) the obligor is not the individual owing the arrearage, or (3) the obligor is complying with a payment plan approved by the IV-D agency. If the obligor has been notified that he has failed to comply with a subpoena, warrant or summons, the obligor must establish at the hearing, with respect to the subpoena, warrant or summons, that he did comply, he was not properly served, or the failure to comply was due to reasonable cause. If, after hearing, the department finds that the obligor owes a child support arrearage and is subject to a child support lien or that the obligor failed to comply with a subpoena, warrant or summons relating to a judicial or administrative proceeding regarding paternity or child support and that the obligor has failed to establish any of the defenses provided herein, the IV-D agency may issue a final determination of child support delinquency and, upon issuance of such final determination, shall notify the licensing authority to suspend, revoke or prohibit issuance or renewal of the obligor's license.

(d) If the obligor signs a payment plan approved by the IV-D agency and thereafter fails to make payments in accordance with such plan and fails to show cause for such failure by requesting a hearing as provided by this section, the IV-D agency may issue a final determination of delinquency and, upon such issuance, shall notify the licensing authority to suspend, revoke or prohibit issuance or renewal of the obligor's license.

(e)(1) Notwithstanding section 14 of chapter 30A, within 45 days of the date of the notice by the licensing authority to the obligor of its action to suspend, revoke or prohibit issuance or renewal of the obligor's license, an individual who contests a final determination of delinquency by the IV-D agency, upon exhaustion of administrative remedies provided herein, may seek judicial review in the court where the child support order was issued, or which has jurisdiction to register the child support order, or which issued the subpoena, warrant or summons; provided, however, that a request for judicial review shall be made by filing a complaint against the IV-D agency and not the licensing authority and shall be accompanied by a copy of the final determination of delinquency of the IV-D agency. Upon receipt of the request for judicial review, the court shall notify the IV-D agency at least 14 days prior to any hearing. Such judicial review shall constitute the exclusive remedy for individuals who contest a final determination of delinquency as adopted or acted upon by the licensing authority under this section; provided, however, that such review shall not limit an individual's right to appeal from the decision of the court.

(2)(A) In the case of an obligor who is subject to a determination of delinquency by the IV-D agency on the basis of a child support arrearage, if the reviewing court finds that no child support arrearage exists, or that the obligor is not the individual owing the arrearage, or that the obligor is complying with a payment plan approved by the IV-D agency, the reviewing court shall order the IV-D agency to immediately notify the licensing authority or authorities to reinstate, issue or renew the license or licenses of the obligor. The court also may order reinstatement, issuance or renewal of a license of such an obligor who is not intentionally unemployed and who is complying with an employment search supervised by the court. In the case of an obligor who is subject to a determination of delinquency by the IV-D agency on the basis of his failure to comply with a subpoena, warrant or summons, if the reviewing court finds with respect to the subpoena, warrant or summons, that the obligor (1) did comply, (2) was not properly served, or (3) failed to comply due to reasonable cause, the reviewing court shall order the IV-D agency to notify the licensing authority to reinstate, issue or renew the obligor's license, (4) any other defenses permitted by a court necessary for adjudication.

(B) The licensing authority shall reinstate, issue or renew the license of the obligor upon receipt of notice from the reviewing court or the IV-D agency if the obligor is otherwise entitled thereto.

(f) If an obligor whose license has been suspended, revoked or prohibited from being issued or renewed thereafter pays his child support arrearage in full, or complies with a payment plan with the IV-D agency, or complies with the subpoena, warrant or summons which was the basis for the final determination of delinquency, the IV-D agency shall notify the licensing authority that it shall reinstate, issue or renew the license of the obligor if the obligor is otherwise entitled thereto.

SECTION 178. Section 17 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "herein", in line 17, the following words:- and within 45 days of such determination.

SECTION 179. Said section 17 of said chapter 119A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following sentence:- Appeals from a decision of a court pursuant to this section may be made in the same manner as other judicial appeals.

SECTION 180. Section 130 of chapter 127 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following sentence:- In every case, such terms and conditions shall include payment of any child support due under a support order, as defined in section 1A of chapter 119A, including payment toward any arrearage of support that accrues or has accrued or compliance with any payment plan between the prisoner and the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A, provided, however, that the board shall not revise, alter, amend or revoke any term or condition related to payment of child support unless the parole permit itself is revoked.

SECTION 181. Section 46A of chapter 152 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "given", in line 39, the following words:- or any other nonperiodic compensation is made pursuant to this chapter.

SECTION 182. Said section 46A of said chapter 152, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "settlement", in line 41, the following words:- or other nonperiodic compensation.

SECTION 183. Said section 46A of said chapter 152, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "sum", in line 44, the following words:- or other nonperiodic compensation.

SECTION 184. The second paragraph of said section 46A of said chapter 152, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following two sentences:- Such direct payment shall be made before payment of any claim of the department of transitional assistance and any claim of the division of medical assistance. The provisions of sections 6 and 17 of chapter 119A shall constitute the sole remedy for an employee to contest a lien for past due child support.

SECTION 185. Said section 46A of said chapter 152, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out the third paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-

When a lump sum settlement or award is proposed or any other nonperiodic compensation is made or proposed pursuant to this chapter and the employee and the lienholder are unable to agree on a fair and reasonable amount to discharge a lien or claim filed pursuant to this section against the lump sum settlement or award provisions of this section or against any other nonperiodic compensation pursuant to this chapter, the reviewing board shall have the right to determine the fair and reasonable amount to be paid out of the lump sum settlement, award or other nonperiodic compensation to discharge the lien; provided, however, that in determining what amount is fair and reasonable, the reviewing board shall give primary consideration to the interests of the children of the employee in receiving past due child support and the public policy of the commonwealth that children shall be maintained, as completely as possible, from the resources of their parents, as provided in section 1 of chapter 119A; and, provided further, that if after payment of any attorneys' fees and any claim of the IV-D agency, the remaining amount of the award or lump sum or other nonperiodic compensation is insufficient to satisfy in full any competing claim of the department of transitional assistance and the division of medical assistance, the department and the division each shall be entitled to its respective pro rata share of such award or lump sum or other nonperiodic compensation. Upon the payment of such sums as found by the reviewing board to be fair and reasonable, the lien or claim against the award, lump sum or other nonperiodic compensation shall be discharged. In no event shall the reimbursement exceed the amount of the award or lump sum or other nonperiodic compensation.

SECTION 186. Chapter 175 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section 24D, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 24D. (a) Prior to making any payment equal to or in excess of $500 to a claimant under a contract of insurance, every company authorized to issue policies of insurance pursuant to chapter 175 shall exchange information with the IV-D agency, as set forth in chapter 119A, to ascertain whether such claimant owes past due child support to the commonwealth or to an individual to whom the IV-D agency is providing services, and is subject to a child support lien pursuant to section 6 of said chapter 119A. To determine whether a claimant owes past due child support, the company shall either provide the IV-D agency with information about the claimant, or examine information made available by the IV-D agency and updated not more than once a month. If the company elects to provide the IV-D agency with information about such claimant, the company shall provide to the IV-D agency, no less than 10 business days prior to making payment to such claimant, the claimant's name, address, date of birth, and social security number as appearing in the company's file, and such other information appearing in the company' s file as the commissioner of revenue may require by regulation in consultation with the commissioner of insurance. The company shall use a method and format prescribed by the commissioner of revenue; provided, however, that if the company is unable to use a method and format prescribed by the commissioner of revenue, such company shall cooperate with the IV-D agency to identify another method or format, including submission of written materials. If the company elects to examine information made available by the IV-D agency and such claimant owes past due child support and is subject to a lien, the company shall notify the IV-D agency, no less than ten business days prior to making payment to such claimant, of the claimant's name, address, date of birth, and social security number as appearing in the company's file, and such other information appearing in the company's file as the commissioner of revenue may require by regulation in consultation with the commissioner of insurance, using a method and format prescribed by the commissioner of revenue; provided, however, that the company may remit to the IV-D agency the full amount of the lien or the full amount otherwise payable to the claimant at the time that it so notifies the IV-D agency at any time prior to making payment to the claimant, without regard to the ten business day period. If, at any time prior to payment, the IV-D agency notifies the company of its child support lien against such claimant by giving the company a notice of levy pursuant to section 6 of said chapter 119A, the company shall withhold from the payment the amount of past due support as set forth in the notice of levy and shall provide such amount to the IV-D agency for disbursement to the obligee. The child support lien shall encumber the right of the claimant to payment under the policy and the company shall disburse to the claimant only that portion of the payment, if any, remaining after the child support lien has been satisfied. For the purposes of this section, the word "claimant" shall mean an individual who files a claim under any policy of insurance governed by this chapter, or a beneficiary under a life insurance or annuity policy.

(b) This section shall not apply to that portion of a claim resulting in payments on behalf of the claimant issued to a third party where there is documentation showing that the third party has provided or agreed to provide the claimant with a benefit or service related to the claim including, but not limited to, the services of an attorney or a medical doctor, or to any portion of a claim based on damage to or a loss of real property. The commissioner of revenue, in consultation with the commissioner of insurance, shall promulgate regulations setting forth procedures for making payment to the IV-D agency when a third party has either provided or agreed to provide goods or services to the claimant, and the insurance company cannot reasonably determine the remaining amount payable to the claimant.

(c) The provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act limiting, for contracts of insurance, the amounts which may be assigned or attached in order to satisfy child support obligations shall apply to the provisions of this section.

(d) Pursuant to regulations issued by the commissioner of revenue in consultation with the commissioner of insurance, a company that knowingly fails to accurately exchange information regarding a claim to which this section applies shall be subject to a penalty assessed by the IV-D agency. A company that fails or refuses to surrender property subject to a child support lien to the IV-D agency shall be liable as provided in paragraph (7) of subsection (b) of section 6 of said chapter 119A. A company that makes a payment to the IV-D agency pursuant to this section and an insured individual on whose behalf the company makes a payment shall be immune from any obligation or liability to the claimant or other interested party arising from the payment, notwithstanding the provisions of this chapter or any other law.

(e) Information provided by the IV-D agency to a company under this section may only be used for the purpose of assisting the IV-D agency in collecting past due child support. Any individual or company who uses such information for any other purpose shall be liable in a civil action to the IV-D agency in the amount of $1,000 for each violation.

(f) An individual making a claim governed by this section shall provide his current address, date of birth and social security number to the insurance company, upon the request of the company. Such company may inform the claimant that such request is being made in accordance with this section for the purpose of assisting the IV-D agency in enforcing child support liens arising pursuant to section 6 of chapter 119A. Any such individual who refuses to provide the information required by this section shall not receive payment on the claim, and the company that declines payment on this basis shall be exempt from suit and immune from liability under this chapter or any other chapter or in any common law action in law or equity.

(g) In the event of a state of emergency declared by the governor or the president of the United States, the commissioner of insurance may temporarily suspend the application of this section to claims made due to the conditions resulting in such state of emergency.

SECTION 187. Section 1 of chapter 198 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "taxes", in line 8, the following words:- , child support arrears.

SECTION 188. Section 2 of chapter 201 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following sentence:- If the minor is or was a recipient of any type of public assistance, the court shall notify the IV-D agency, as set forth in chapter 119A, of all proceedings relating to the appointment of a guardian for the minor and the IV-D agency shall be permitted to intervene in such proceedings on behalf of the department of transitional assistance, the department of social services, the division of medical assistance, or any other public assistance program of the commonwealth.

SECTION 189. Section 20 of chapter 207 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 1 to 3, inclusive, the words "The clerk or registrar shall require written notice of intention of marriage, on blanks furnished by the commissioner of public health, containing such information as is required by law and also a" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- The clerk shall require written notice of intention of marriage, on forms furnished by the state registrar of vital records and statistics, containing such information as is required by law and also a.

SECTION 190. Said section 20 of said chapter 207, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 10 to 11, the words "by the physician certifying to the illness or by the other party." and inserting in place thereof the following words:- , or by the other party. Said forms containing the parties' written notice of intent to marry shall constitute a public record. In addition to such forms, the town clerk shall also require the parties to furnish information required for a separate report to be transmitted to the state registrar, including the social security number and residence address of both parties and such other information as may be required by state or federal law. A copy of said report shall not be retained by the town clerk nor shall it constitute a public record. The state registrar may make the information contained in said separate report available to the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A and to such other state or federal agencies as may be required by state or federal law.

SECTION 191. Said section 20 of said chapter 207, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 5, 7, 19 and 22, the words "clerk or registrar" and inserting in place thereof, in each instance, the following words:- town clerk.

SECTION 192. Said section 20 of said chapter 207, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "oath", in lines 16 and 21, each time it appears, the following words:- or affirmation.

SECTION 193. Section 6B of chapter 208 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the second sentence and inserting in place thereof the following two sentences:- Said complaint shall be accompanied by a statistical report, upon a form prepared by the commissioner of public health and made available through the office of the register of probate, to include the name, residence, date of birth and social security number of each of the parties, the name of the plaintiff, the number of times each of the parties had been married before, if any, the date of the marriage being dissolved, the number of children born of such marriage, if any, the name and date of birth of each such child, the number of minor children in the care and custody of the parties, if any, and such additional information as the commissioner of public health deems useful for statistical and research purposes. The state registrar may make such information available to the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A and such other state or federal agencies as may be required by law.

SECTION 194. Section 28 of said chapter 208, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the first sentence the following two sentences:- In determining the amount of the child support obligation or in approving the agreement of the parties, the court shall apply the child support guidelines promulgated by the chief justice for administration and management, and there shall be a rebuttable presumption that the amount of the order which would result from the application of the guidelines is the appropriate amount of child support to be ordered. If, after taking into consideration the best interests of the child, the court determines that a party has overcome such presumption, the court shall make specific written findings indicating the amount of the order that would result from application of the guidelines; that the guidelines amount would be unjust or inappropriate under the circumstances; the specific facts of the case which justify departure from the guidelines; and that such departure is consistent with the best interests of the child.

SECTION 195. Said section 28 of said chapter 208, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the eighth sentence the following sentence:- If the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A is responsible for enforcing a case, an order may also be modified in accordance with the procedures set out in section 3B of said chapter 119A.

SECTION 196. Section 32F of chapter 209 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out subsection (d) and inserting in place thereof the following subsection:-

(d) In determining the amount of the child support obligation or in approving the agreement of the parties, the court shall apply the child support guidelines promulgated by the chief justice for administration and management, and there shall be a rebuttable presumption that the amount of the order which would result from the application of the guidelines is the appropriate amount of child support to be ordered. If, after taking into consideration the best interests of the child, the court determines that a party has overcome such presumption, the court shall make specific written findings indicating the amount of the order that would result from application of the guidelines; that the guidelines amount would be unjust or inappropriate under the circumstances; the specific facts of the case which justify departure from the guidelines; and that such departure is consistent with the best interests of the child.

SECTION 197. Subsection (e) of said section 32F of said chapter 209, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following sentence:- If the IV-D agency is responsible for enforcing the case, an order may also be modified in accordance with the procedures set out in section 3B of chapter 119A.

SECTION 198. Section 37 of said chapter 209, as amended by section 3 of chapter 77 of the acts of 1997, is hereby further amended by inserting after the first sentence the following two sentences:- In determining the amount of the child support obligation or in approving the agreement of the parties, the court shall apply the child support guidelines promulgated by the chief justice for administration and management, and there shall be a rebuttable presumption that the amount of the order which would result from the application of the guidelines is the appropriate amount of child support to be ordered. If, after taking into consideration the best interests of the child, the court determines that a party has overcome such presumption, the court shall make specific written findings indicating the amount of the order that would result from application of the guidelines; that the guidelines amount would be unjust or inappropriate under the circumstances; the specific facts of the case which justify departure from the guidelines; and that such departure is consistent with the best interests of the child.

SECTION 199. The first paragraph of said section 37 of said chapter 209, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the seventh sentence the following sentence:- If the IV-D agency is responsible for enforcing the case, an order may also be modified in accordance with the procedures set out in section 3B of chapter 119A.

SECTION 200. Said section 37 of said chapter 209, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "insurance", in line 53, the following words:- or other health coverage.

SECTION 201. Said section 37 of said chapter 209, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "organization", in line 54, the following words:- , or has health insurance or other health coverage available to him at a reasonable cost,.

SECTION 202. Said section 37 of said chapter 209, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "child", in line 58, the following words:- or obtain coverage for the child.

SECTION 203. Said section 37 of said chapter 209, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "to", in line 68, the following word:- be.

SECTION 204. Section 3 of chapter 209A of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 22, the word "guidelines;" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- guidelines. Each judgment or order of support which is issued, reviewed or modified pursuant to this chapter shall conform to and shall be enforced in accordance with the provisions of section 12 of chapter 119A;.

SECTION 205. Section 1 of chapter 209C of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "an", in line 6, the following words:- acknowledgment or.

SECTION 206. Said chapter 209C is hereby further amended by striking out section 2, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 2. Paternity may be established by filing with the court, the clerk of the city or town where the child was born or the registrar of vital records and statistics an acknowledgment of parentage executed by both parents pursuant to section 11 or pursuant to an action to establish paternity filed pursuant to this chapter; provided, however, that if a judgment or finding of paternity has been issued by a court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction under the law of another state or foreign country or if both parents executed a voluntary acknowledgment of parentage in accordance with the law of another state or foreign country, such judgment, finding or voluntary acknowledgment shall be accorded full faith and credit and paternity shall not be relitigated. Upon receipt of an acknowledgment of paternity, the clerk of such city or town shall forward the original acknowledgment to said registrar as provided in chapter 46. Upon receipt of an acknowledgment of parentage or upon an adjudication of paternity under this chapter, the court shall transmit to the registrar of vital records and statistics a certified copy of the acknowledgment or order establishing paternity, together with such statistical information as said registrar may require, upon such form and in such format as designated by said registrar, which shall include the name, residence, date of birth, place of birth and social security number of each of the parties and the child, the sex of the child, and such additional information as the commissioner of public health deems useful for statistical and research purposes. Actions to establish support obligations or for custody or visitation rights may also be filed pursuant to this chapter.

SECTION 207. Section 3 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "department", in line 16, the following words:- in the county where the child resides.

SECTION 208. Said section 3 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "agency", in line 23, the following words:- as set forth in chapter 119A.

SECTION 209. Said section 3 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 37 to 39, inclusive, the words "to the probate and family court department by any party or by the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter one hundred and nineteen A" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- by any party or by the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A to the probate and family court department in the county where the child resides or, if the child does not reside in the commonwealth and a court of the commonwealth has jurisdiction under chapter 209D, in the county where one of the parents resides.

SECTION 210. Section 5 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "child", in line 4, the following words:- , whether a minor or not.

SECTION 211. Said section 5 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 12, the words "by the department of public welfare" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- by the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A on behalf of the department of transitional assistance the department of social services, the division of medical assistance or any other public assistance program of the commonwealth.

SECTION 212. Said section 5 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "complaints", in line 15, the following words:- to establish paternity.

SECTION 213. Said section 5 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out subsection (b) and inserting in place thereof the following subsection:-

(b) Voluntary acknowledgments of parentage may be executed by the mother and the putative father, whether either or both is a minor, and may be registered pursuant to section 11 only if the signatures of the mother and the father are notarized. If the mother of the child was or is married and the child's birth occurs during the marriage or within 300 days of its termination by divorce, a voluntary acknowledgment of parentage naming the putative father may be executed by the mother and the putative father only if the mother and the person who was the spouse of the mother at the time of the child's birth or conception sign an affidavit denying that the spouse is the father of the child; provided, however, that where the marriage has been terminated by annulment or by the death of either spouse, paternity of the putative father may only be established by filing a complaint to establish paternity as provided in this chapter. A mother and a putative father signing a voluntary acknowledgment of parentage at the hospital or thereafter at the office of the city or town clerk as part of the birth registration process pursuant to section 3C of chapter 46, with the department of transitional assistance, with the IV-D agency set forth in chapter 119A, with any agency designated by the federal Secretary of Health and Human Services or with any official of a court shall receive notice orally, or through the use of video or audio equipment, and in writing of alternatives to signing the acknowledgment, including the availability of genetic marker testing, as well as the benefits and responsibilities with respect to child support, custody and visitation that may arise from signing the acknowledgment, and subsequently filing the acknowledgment with the court or with the registrar of vital records and statistics as provided in this chapter.

SECTION 214. Said section 5 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 39, the words "department of public welfare" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A on behalf of the department of transitional assistance, the department of social services, the division of medical assistance or any other public assistance program.

SECTION 215. Said section 5 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 41, the word "department" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- IV-D agency.

SECTION 216. Section 6 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby amended, in line 25, by inserting before the words "with his consent", the following words:- with respect to a child born before April 13, 1994,.

SECTION 216A. Section 8 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the second sentence the following sentence:- For good cause shown, the court may set aside an entry of default and, if a judgment has been entered, may likewise set it aside in accordance with rule 60(b) of the Massachusetts Rules of Domestic Relations Procedure.

SECTION 217. Said section 8 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "father", in line 9, the following words:- or mother.

SECTION 218. Said section 8 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 9, the word "registration" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- filing of a voluntary acknowledgment.

SECTION 219. Said section 8 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 13, the words "public welfare" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- transitional assistance, the department of social services, the division of medical assistance or any other public assistance program.

SECTION 220. Said section 8 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 14, the word "department" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A.

SECTION 221. Said section 8 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 16, the word "may" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- shall.

SECTION 222. Section 9 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 19, the word "may" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- shall.

SECTION 223. Said section 9 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "personally", in line 20, the following words:- upon a showing that notice was served in accordance with the applicable rules of court. For good cause shown, the court may set aside an entry of default and, if a judgment has been entered, may likewise set it aside in accordance with rule 60(b) of the Massachusetts Rules of Domestic Relations Procedure.

SECTION 224. Said section 9 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "assistance", in line 32, the following words:- or the division of medical assistance or division of health care finance and policy.

SECTION 225. Said section 9 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 34 and 35 and in line 36, each time it appears, the words "department of transitional assistance" and inserting in place thereof, in each instance, the following words:- IV-D agency.

SECTION 226. Said section 9 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out subsection (e) and inserting in place thereof the following subsection:-

(e) If the child on whose behalf an order of support is sought is a recipient of benefits pursuant to chapter 117, 118 or 119 and the department of transitional assistance, the department of social services, the division of medical assistance or any other public assistance program has not been made a party as required by section 5, the court shall notify the IV-D agency of the order or judgment of support.

SECTION 227. Section 11 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out subsection (a) and inserting in place thereof the following subsection:-

(a) A written voluntary acknowledgment of parentage executed jointly by the putative father, whether a minor or not, and the mother of the child, whether a minor or not, and filed with the registrar of vital records and statistics or with the court shall be recognized as a sufficient basis for seeking an order of support, visitation or custody with respect to the child without further proceedings to establish paternity, and no judicial proceeding shall be required or permitted to ratify an acknowledgment that has not been challenged pursuant to this section. A report, prepared on an electronic system of birth registration approved by the commissioner of public health and indicating that an acknowledgment pursuant to this chapter has been executed in accordance with section 3C of chapter 46 and filed with the registrar of vital records and statistics, shall be presumed to be a sufficient basis for seeking an order of support, visitation or custody without further proceedings to establish paternity. The voluntary acknowledgment shall be attested to before a notary public and shall have the legal effect as provided in this section. Unless either signatory rescinds the acknowledgment within 60 days of the date of signing as provided in this section, the acknowledgment shall establish paternity as of the date it has been signed by such putative father and mother and shall have the same force and effect as a judgment of paternity, subject to challenge within one year only on the basis of fraud, duress or material mistake of fact; provided, however, that if, prior to the expiration of the 60-day period, the signatory is a party to an administrative or judicial proceeding related to the child, including a proceeding to establish child support, visitation or custody, and fails to rescind the acknowledgment at the time of such proceeding, the acknowledgment shall thereafter have the same force and effect as a judgment, subject to challenge only as provided in this section. The person seeking to rescind the acknowledgment shall, within 60 days of signing the acknowledgment, file a petition in the probate and family court in the county in which the child and one of the parents resides seeking to rescind the acknowledgment, with notice to the other parent. If neither of the parents lives in the same county as the child, then such complaint shall be filed in the county where the child lives. If the child whose paternity is challenged is a recipient of public assistance and the department of transitional assistance, the department of social services, the division of medical assistance or any other public assistance program has not been made a party, or if the child is receiving child support enforcement services from the IV-D agency pursuant to chapter 119A, the court shall notify the IV-D agency. The person seeking to rescind the acknowledgment shall bear the burden of proof in such proceeding. The responsibilities of a signatory arising from the acknowledgment shall not be suspended during the pendency of such challenge unless the court so orders for good cause shown. If either party rescinds the acknowledgment in a timely fashion, the court shall order genetic marker testing and proceed to adjudicate paternity or nonpaternity in accordance with this chapter; provided, however, that the rescinded acknowledgment shall constitute the proper showing required for an order to submit to such testing; and provided further, that the rescinded acknowledgment shall be admissible as evidence of the putative father's paternity and shall serve as sufficient basis for admitting the report of the results of genetic marker tests. Upon adjudication of nonpaternity, the court shall instruct the registrar of vital records and statistics as provided in section 13 of chapter 46 to amend the birth record of the child in accordance with the order of the court.

SECTION 228. Said section 11 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "public", in line 41, the following words:- and shall include the residence addresses and social security numbers of each of the parents, the residence address of the child and, if available, the social security number of the child.

SECTION 229. Said chapter 209C is hereby further amended by striking out section 13, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 13. In an action to establish paternity or in which paternity of a child is an issue, all complaints, pleadings, papers, documents or reports filed in connection therewith, docket entries in the permanent docket and record books shall be segregated and unavailable for inspection only if the judge of the court where such records are kept, for good cause shown, so orders or the person alleged to be the father is adjudicated not to be the father of the child; provided, however, that the child, the child's mother, the person adjudicated to be the father and the department of transitional assistance, the department of social services, the division of medical assistance or any other public assistance program and the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A, when the child who is or was the subject of the complaint is a recipient of public assistance or the attorney for any of them, and the department of social services, when the child who is or was the subject of the complaint is within the care and protection of the department of social services, is the subject of a petition for such care or protection pursuant to chapter 119 or is the subject of a petition to dispense with consent for adoption pursuant to subsection (b) of section 3 of chapter 210, shall have access to and the right to obtain copies of the papers, docket books and judgments in actions pursuant to this chapter. For good cause shown, which may be made ex parte or upon credible evidence, parties may file a complaint without the address, and the court shall impound a party's address by excluding it from the complaint and from all other court documents and testimony, and shall ensure that the address is kept confidential from each other party except the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A.

SECTION 230. Section 14 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "representative", in line 3, the following words:- or by the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A on behalf of the mother.

SECTION 231. Said section 14 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "child", in line 5, the following words:- ; provided, however, that the court may order temporary support or health care coverage.

SECTION 232. Section 16 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out subsection (b) and inserting in place thereof the following subsection:-

(b) Upon refusal of a witness, including a party, to testify under oath and produce evidence, the court may order such witness or party to testify under oath and produce evidence concerning all relevant facts. If a witness or party refuses to answer on the ground that the testimony may be self-incriminating, the court may draw an adverse inference from such refusal.

SECTION 233. Said section 16 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out subsection (f) and inserting in place thereof the following two subsections:-

(f) Copies of bills for genetic marker tests and for prenatal and postnatal health care of the mother and child, furnished to the adverse party at least ten days before trial, shall be admissible in evidence to prove the amount of the charges billed and that the charges were reasonable, necessary and customary. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the right of any party to the action or the IV-D agency to summon, at its own expense, a physician, agent of a hospital or other individual for the purpose of examination with respect to such bills or to rebut the contents thereof or for any other purpose to limit the right of a party or the IV-D agency to summon any other person to testify in respect to such bills or for any other purpose.

(g) All other evidence relevant to the issue of paternity of the child, custody of a child or support of a child shall also be admissible.

SECTION 234. Section 17 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the first and second sentences and inserting in place thereof the following three sentences:- In an action under this chapter to establish paternity of a child born out of wedlock, the court shall, on a motion of a party and upon a proper showing except as provided in this section, order the mother, the child and the putative father to submit to one or more genetic marker tests of a type generally acknowledged as reliable and performed by a laboratory approved by an accreditation body designated by the federal Secretary of Health and Human Services pursuant to Title IV, Part D of the Social Security Act: An affidavit by the mother or the putative father alleging that sexual intercourse between the mother and the putative father occurred during the probable period of conception shall be sufficient to establish a proper showing. If during the probable period of conception, the mother was married to someone other than the putative father, the court may order genetic marker tests only after notice pursuant to subsection (c) of section 6 to the spouse or former spouse.

SECTION 235. Said section 17 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 8, the words "may, in its discretion" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- or the IV-D agency as provided in section 3A of chapter 119A may.

SECTION 236. Said section 17 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 12, the words "blood grouping or".

SECTION 237. Said section 17 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "child", in line 23, the following words:- and, upon motion of any party or on its own motion, the court shall issue a temporary order of support.

SECTION 238. Said section 17 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 24, the words "blood tests" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- genetic marker tests.

SECTION 239. Said section 17 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 28, the word "blood" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- genetic marker or other.

SECTION 240. Said section 17 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 29, the words "a blood" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- genetic marker test.

SECTION 241. Said section 17 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "admissible", in line 30, the following words:- and the court may draw an adverse inference from such refusal.

SECTION 242. Said section 17 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "shall", in line 31, the following words:- , in the first instance,.

SECTION 243. Said section 17 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 34, the words "department of public welfare" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A.

SECTION 244. Said section 17 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 35, the word "department" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- IV-D agency.

SECTION 245. Said section 17 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "party", in line 35, the following words:- and provided further, that if the putative father is found to be the father, the court shall order the putative father to reimburse the IV-D agency or the other party.

SECTION 246. Said section 17 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 37, the word "blood" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- genetic marker tests.

SECTION 247. Section 19 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 3, the words "section 15" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- this chapter.

SECTION 248. Said section 19 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "nine D", in line 16, the following words:- , including any remedy available under chapter 119A.

SECTION 249. Section 20 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following sentence:- For cases being enforced by the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A, a support order may also be modified in accordance with section 3B of said chapter 119A.

SECTION 250. Section 1-101 of chapter 209D of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 23, the words "section twelve" and inserting in place thereof the following figure:- 1A.

SECTION 251. Said section 1-101 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out clause (7) and inserting in place thereof the following clause:-

(7) "Initiating state" a state from which a proceeding is forwarded or in which a proceeding is filed for forwarding to a responding state under this chapter or a law or procedure substantially similar to this chapter, the Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act or the Revised Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act.

SECTION 252. Said section 1-101 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "state", in line 56, the second time it appears, the following words:- in which a proceeding is filed or.

SECTION 253. Said section 1-101 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "law", in line 57, the following words:- or procedure.

SECTION 254. Said section 1-101 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "Rico,", in line 65, the following words:- the United States Virgin Islands,.

SECTION 255. Clause (19) of said section 1-101 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out the second sentence and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- The term "state" shall include: (i) an Indian tribe; and (ii) a foreign jurisdiction that has enacted a law or established procedures for issuance and enforcement of support orders which are substantially similar to the procedures under this chapter, the Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act or the Revised Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act.

SECTION 256. Section 2-201 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the preceding caption and inserting in place thereof the following caption:- PART 1. EXTENDED PERSONAL JURISDICTION.

SECTION 257. Section 2-203 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the preceding caption and inserting in place thereof the following caption:- PART 2. PROCEEDINGS INVOLVING TWO OR MORE STATES.

SECTION 258. Subsection (a) of section 2-205 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out clause (2) and inserting in place thereof the following clause:-

(2) until all of the parties who are individuals have filed written consents with the tribunal of the commonwealth for a tribunal of another state to modify the order and assume continuing, exclusive jurisdiction.

SECTION 259. Section 2-207 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the preceding caption and inserting in place thereof the following caption:- PART 3. RECONCILIATION OF MULTIPLE ORDERS.

SECTION 260. Said chapter 209D is hereby further amended by striking out section 2-207, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 2-207.

(a) If a proceeding is brought under this chapter and only one tribunal has issued a child support order, the order of that tribunal shall control and shall be so recognized.

(b) If a proceeding is brought under this chapter and two or more child support orders have been issued by tribunals of the commonwealth or another state or by tribunals of more than one jurisdiction with regard to the same obligor and child, a tribunal of the commonwealth shall apply the following rules in determining which order to recognize for purposes of continuing, exclusive jurisdiction:

(1) if only one of the tribunals would have continuing, exclusive jurisdiction under this chapter, the order of such tribunal shall control and shall be so recognized.

(2) if more than one of the tribunals would have continuing, exclusive jurisdiction under this chapter, an order issued by a tribunal in the current home state of the child shall control and shall be so recognized; provided, however, that if an order has not been issued in the current home state of the child, the order most recently issued shall control and shall be so recognized.

(3) if none of the tribunals would have continuing, exclusive jurisdiction under this chapter, the tribunal of the commonwealth having jurisdiction over the parties shall issue a child support order which shall control and shall be so recognized.

(c) If two or more child support orders have been issued for the same obligor and child and if the obligor or the individual obligee resides in the commonwealth, a party may request a tribunal of the commonwealth to determine which order shall control and shall be so recognized under subsection (b). The request shall be accompanied by a certified copy of every support order in effect. The requesting party shall give notice of the request to each party whose rights may be affected by the determination.

(d) The tribunal that issued the controlling order under subsection (a), (b) or (c) shall be the tribunal that has continuing, exclusive jurisdiction under section 2-205.

(e) A tribunal of the commonwealth which determines by order the identity of the controlling order under clause (1) or (2) of subsection (b) or which issues a new controlling order under clause (3) of said subsection (b) shall state in such order the basis upon which the tribunal made its determination.

(f) Within 30 days after issuance of an order determining the identity of the controlling order, the party obtaining the order shall file a certified copy of it with each tribunal that issued or registered an earlier order of child support. A party who obtains the order and fails to file a certified copy shall be subject to appropriate sanctions by a tribunal in which the issue of failure to file arises. The failure to file shall not affect the validity or enforceability of the controlling order.

(g) Any action pursuant to former chapter 273A that is pending or was previously adjudicated in the district court or the Boston municipal court department may be transferred to the probate and family court department by any party or by the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A. An action shall be transferred upon the filing of the following documents with the probate and family court: (1) a copy of the petition, if any, and accompanying documents; (2) a copy of the order of the district court or Boston municipal court, if any; (3) a copy of the findings of the court, if any; (4) a copy of the financial statements submitted by the parties, if any; (5) a copy of the worksheet used to calculate the amount of the child support order pursuant to the child support guidelines, if any; and (6) a copy of the docket maintained by the district court or the Boston municipal court, if any. Once transferred, the order of the district court or the Boston municipal court shall have the same force and effect and shall be subject to the same procedures and defenses as an order of the probate and family court and may be enforced or modified in the same manner available to enforce or modify any judgment or order of the probate and family court. Upon transfer, the provisions of this chapter shall apply. Transfer of an order pursuant to this section shall not limit the use of any enforcement remedy, whether judicial or administrative, that may be available and the probate and family court shall preserve all arrears that have accrued pursuant to the order of the district or Boston municipal court departments.

SECTION 261. Section 3-301 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 11, the word "Part B" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- Part 2.

SECTION 262. Said section 3-301 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 16, the word "Part A" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- Part 1.

SECTION 263. Section 3-304 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 1, the word "upon" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- (a) Upon.

SECTION 264. Said section 3-304 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following subsection:-

(b) If a responding state has not enacted the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act or a law or procedure substantially similar to said act, a tribunal of the commonwealth may issue a certificate or other document and make findings required by the law of the responding state. If the responding state is a foreign jurisdiction, the tribunal may specify the amount of support sought and provide other documents necessary to satisfy the requirements of the responding state.

SECTION 265. Section 3-305 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "mail", in lines 5 and 37, each time it appears, the following words:- or by facsimile or other electronic transmission.

SECTION 266. Section 3-306 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "mail", in line 4, the following words:- , or by facsimile or other electronic transmission.

SECTION 267. Section 3-307 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "mail", in lines 15 and 20, each time it appears, the following words:- , or by facsimile or other electronic transmission.

SECTION 268. Section 3-310 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "employers", in line 19, the following words:- or other sources of periodic income.

SECTION 269. Section 5-501 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in the preceding caption, the word "DIRECT".

SECTION 270. Said section 5-501 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out subsection (a) and inserting in place thereof the following subsection:-

(a) An income withholding order issued in another state may be sent by first class mail or by facsimile or other electronic transmission to the person or entity defined as the obligor's employer under section 1A of chapter 119A or to any other source of periodic income to the obligor, without first filing a petition or comparable pleading or registering the order with a tribunal of the commonwealth.

SECTION 271. Said chapter 209D is hereby further amended by striking out the section 5-502, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following six sections:-

Section 5-502.

(a) Upon receipt of an income withholding order, the obligor's employer or other source of periodic income shall immediately provide a copy of the order to the obligor.

(b) The employer or other source of periodic income shall treat an income withholding order issued in another state which appears valid on its face as if it had been issued by a tribunal of the commonwealth.

(c) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (d) and section 5-503, the employer or other source of periodic income shall withhold and distribute the funds as directed in the withholding order by complying with terms of the order which specify:

(1) the duration and amount of periodic payments of current child support, stated as a sum certain;

(2) the person or agency designated to receive payments and the address to which such payments shall be forwarded;

(3) medical support whether in the form of periodic cash payment, stated as a sum certain, or ordering the obligor to provide health insurance coverage for the child under a policy available through the obligor's place of employment;

(4) the amount of periodic payments of fees and costs for a support enforcement agency, the issuing tribunal and the obligee's attorney, stated as sums certain; and

(5) the amount of periodic payments of arrearages and interest on arrearages, stated as sums certain.

(d) An employer or other source of periodic income shall comply with the law of the state of the obligor's principal place of employment for withholding from income with respect to:

(1) the fee of the employer or other source of periodic income for processing an income withholding order;

(2) the maximum amount permitted to be withheld from the obligor's income; and

(3) the times within which the employer or other source of periodic income shall implement the withholding order and forward the child support payment.

Section 5-503. If an obligor's employer or other source of periodic income receives multiple income withholding orders with respect to the earnings of the same obligor, the employer or other source of periodic income shall be deemed to have satisfied the terms of the multiple orders if the employer or other source of periodic income complies with the law of the state of the obligor's principal place of employment to establish the priorities for withholding and allocating income withheld for multiple child support obligees.

Section 5-504. An employer or other source of periodic income who complies with an income withholding order issued in another state in accordance with this chapter shall not be subject to civil liability to an individual or agency with regard to the withholding of child support by the employer or other source of periodic income from the obligor's income.

Section 5-505. An employer or other source of periodic income who willfully fails to comply with an income withholding order issued by another state and received for enforcement shall be subject to the same penalties that may be imposed for noncompliance with an order issued by a tribunal of the commonwealth.

Section 5-506. (a) An obligor may contest the validity or enforcement of an income withholding order issued in another state and received directly by an employer or other source of periodic income in the commonwealth in the same manner as if such order had been issued by a tribunal of the commonwealth. The provisions of section 6-604 shall apply to such contest.

(b) The obligor shall give notice of the contest to:

(1) any support enforcement agency providing services to the obligee;

(2) each employer or other source of periodic income that has directly received an income withholding order; and

(3) the person or agency designated to receive payments in the income withholding order or, if no such person or agency is designated, to the obligee.

Section 5-507. (a) A party seeking to enforce a support order or an income-withholding order, or both, issued by a tribunal of another state may send the documents required for registering the order to a support enforcement agency of the commonwealth.

(b) Upon receipt of the documents, the support enforcement agency, without initially seeking to register the order, shall consider and, if appropriate, use any administrative procedure authorized by the law of the commonwealth to enforce a support order or an income-withholding order, or both. If the obligor does not contest administrative enforcement, the order need not be registered. If the obligor contests the validity or administrative enforcement of the order, the support enforcement agency shall register the order pursuant to this chapter.

SECTION 272. Section 6-601 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in the preceding caption, the word "PART A" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- PART 1.

SECTION 273. Section 6-605 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in the preceding caption, the word "PART B" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- PART 2.

SECTION 274. Said section 6-605 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "employer", in line 22, the following words:- or other source of periodic income.

SECTION 275. Section 6-606 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "mail", in line 15, the following words:- or by facsimile or other electronic transmission.

SECTION 276. Section 6-609 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in the preceding caption, the word "PART C" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- PART 3.

SECTION 277. Said section 6-609 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 4, the words "PART A" and inserting in place thereof the following word:- PART 1.

SECTION 278. Section 6-611 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 3, the words ", after notice and hearing, it" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- section 6-613 does not apply and after notice and hearing it.

SECTION 279. Subsection (a) of said section 6-611 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out clause (2) and inserting in place thereof the following clause:-

(2) the child, or a party who is an individual, is subject to the personal jurisdiction of the tribunal of the commonwealth and each of the parties who are individuals has filed a written consent in the issuing tribunal for a tribunal of the commonwealth to modify the support order and assume continuing, exclusive jurisdiction over such order; provided, however, that if the issuing state is a foreign jurisdiction that has not enacted a law or established procedures substantially similar to the procedures under this chapter, the consent otherwise required of an individual residing in the commonwealth shall not be required for the tribunal to assume jurisdiction to modify the child support order.

SECTION 280. Said section 6-611 of said chapter 209D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "state.", in line 23, the following sentence:- If two or more tribunals have issued child support orders for the same obligor and child, the order that controls and must be so recognized under section 2-207 establishes the aspects of the support order which are nonmodifiable.

SECTION 281. Said chapter 209D is hereby further amended by adding the following two sections:-

Section 6-613. (a) If all of the parties who are individuals reside in the commonwealth and the child does not reside in the issuing state, a tribunal of the commonwealth shall have jurisdiction to enforce and modify the issuing state's child support order in a proceeding to register such order.

(b) A tribunal of the commonwealth exercising jurisdiction under this section shall apply the provisions of this article and articles 1 and 2, and the procedural and substantive law of the commonwealth to the proceeding for enforcement or modification. The provisions of articles 3, 4, 5, 7 and 8 shall not apply.

Section 6-614. Within 30 days after issuance of a modified child support order, the party obtaining the modification shall file a certified copy of the order with the issuing tribunal that had continuing, exclusive jurisdiction over the earlier order and in each tribunal in which the party knows the earlier order has been registered. A party who obtains the order and fails to file a certified copy shall be subject to appropriate sanctions by a tribunal in which the issue of failure to file arises. The failure to file shall not affect the validity or enforceability of the modified order of the new tribunal having continuing, exclusive jurisdiction.

SECTION 282. Section 34 of chapter 215 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 8, the words "for failure to obey a judgment" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- or ordering a person to participate in a program of community service for failure to obey an order or judgment.

SECTION 283. Said section 34 of said chapter 215, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "served" in line 10, the following words:- or that the community service be performed.

SECTION 284. Said section 34 of said chapter 215, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the first paragraph the following paragraph:-

When a judge of the probate court finds that a defendant is in civil contempt for failure to obey any order or judgment of the court relative to support of a spouse or child, the judge shall issue an order for the defendant to do one or more of the following:

(1) serve a sentence in jail; provided, however, that such sentence shall be stayed if the defendant purges himself of the contempt by taking such action as may be specified in the order, including one or more of the actions specified in clauses (2) to (6), inclusive;

(2) pay the full amount due under the order or judgment for support;

(3) make regular payments of current support and an additional specified amount towards arrears, pursuant to a payment schedule ordered by the court that requires payment of not less than the amount required under section 12 of chapter 119A and that meets all other requirements of said section 12 of said chapter 119A;

(4) actively seek paid employment and report at regular intervals, as specified in the order, to a probation officer on actions taken to seek employment;

(5) participate in a program of community service, as specified in the order, for up to 40 hours per week and report at regular intervals to a probation officer to present proof of participation in such program; or

(6) participate in an appropriate job readiness or job training program, as specified in the order, and report at regular intervals to a probation officer to present proof of participation in such program.

SECTION 285. Said section 34 of said chapter 215, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following paragraph:-

In addition to any other remedy available pursuant to this section or chapter 119A to enforce an order or judgment for support, if the defendant is unable to comply with an order to make current payments of support, is unemployed and is not disabled, a judge of the probate court shall order such defendant to; (i) actively seek paid employment and report at regular intervals, as specified in the order, to a probation officer on actions taken to seek employment; (ii) to participate in a program of community service for up to 40 hours per week and to report at regular intervals, as specified in the order, to a probation officer to present proof of participation in such program; or (iii) to participate in an appropriate job readiness or job training program and to report at regular intervals, as specified in the order, to a probation officer to present proof of participation in such program.

SECTION 286. Section 34A of said chapter 215, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "any", in line 2, the following words:- order or.

SECTION 287. Section 34B of said chapter 215, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "any", in line 2, the following words:- order or.

SECTION 288. Said section 34B of said chapter 215, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "such", in line 5, each time it appears, the following words:- order or.

SECTION 289. The second paragraph of section 1 of chapter 279 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following sentence:- In granting probation under this section, the court shall include in its terms and conditions of probation that the person convicted shall pay any child support due under a support order, as defined in section 1A of chapter 119A, including payment toward any arrearage of support that accrues or has accrued or compliance with any payment plan between the person convicted and the IV-D agency as set forth in said chapter 119A.

SECTION 290. Section 1A of said chapter 279, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following sentence:- In granting probation under this section, the court shall include in its terms and conditions of probation that the person convicted shall pay any child support due under a support order, as defined in section 1A of chapter 119A, including payment toward any arrearage of support that accrues or has accrued or compliance with any payment plan between the person convicted and the IV-D agency as set forth in said chapter 119A.

SECTION 291. Notwithstanding any provision of chapter 66A of the General Laws to the contrary, the executive office of health and human services and state agencies within said executive office may submit personal data as defined in said chapter 66A to the department of revenue to establish and maintain the Massachusetts Longitudinal Database for Research in Child Support Enforcement and Social Services Programs.

Approved March 31, 1998.