BILL NUMBER: S5269

SPONSOR: PERSAUD
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the family court act, in relation to authorizing expe-
dited settlement conference processes for establishing child support
orders

 
PURPOSE OF BILL:

This legislation provides for the development of expedited settlement
conference processes in each family court to facilitate the establish-
ment of child support orders consistent with the state's child support
guidelines for parents who agree on child support and seek to voluntar-
ily engage in a settlement conference.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends section 439-a of the family court act by adding a new
section 439-a(c) providing for the development of expedited settlement
conference processes in each family court to facilitate the establish-
              

ment of child support orders pursuant to section four hundred thirteen
of the family court act consistent with the state's child support guide-
lines for parents who agree on child support and seek to voluntarily
engage in a settlement conference.

Section 1 provides that the expedited settlement conference is initiated
by the petitioner selecting an option for a conference on the petition
(with no objection by the respondent) or by referral from a family
court.  It provides that certain cases are excluded from an expedited
settlement conference process under this section including: (i) cases
that involve minor parents who are unrepresented by legal counsel; (ii)
cases that require a determination of parentage; (iii) cases between
parties who are also parties to a temporary or final order of protection
issued by any court of competent jurisdiction; and (iv) cases that
involve spousal support in addition to child support.

Section 1 sets forth that the parties shall exchange financial affida-
vits and supporting documentation in accordance with section four
hundred twenty-four-a of the family court act unless the parties
expressly waive all or further financial disclosure.

It further describes the conduct of the conference, including the
requirement that parties shall be informed as to how the conference will
proceed.

Section 1 provides that the family court staff facilitating the confer-
ence shall review the financial affidavit submitted by each party and
any other documentation or information provided by the parties and shall
complete a child support guidelines worksheet to calculate the support
obligation and shall review the worksheet with the parties and confirm
that the parties received and had the opportunity to review a copy of
the child support standards chart promulgated by the Commissioner of the
New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance pursuant to
section one hundred eleven-i of the social services law.

It further provides that where the combined parental income exceeds the
amount set forth in paragraph (b) of subdivision two of section one
hundred eleven-i of the social services law, the parties shall be
informed at the expedited settlement conference that the law permits,
but does not require, the use of the child support percentages in calcu-
lating the child support obligation on the income above the statutory
cap and that the child support obligation for parental income above the
statutory cap may be determined pursuant to the factors listed in subdi-
vision (0 of section four hundred thirteen of the family court act as an
alternative to applying the child support percentages.

Section 1 states that to the extent resources are available in a family
court, the expedited settlement conference and subsequent appearances
before a support magistrate may be held virtually upon consent of the
parties and in accordance with subdivision (c) of section four hundred
thirty-three of the family court act and that expedited child support
settlement conferences are considered proceedings in civil cases in the
trial courts such that Part 217.1 of the Uniform Rules for the N.Y.
Trial Courts applies and obligates the court to provide interpretation
services for parties in expedited child support settlement conferences
as needed.

Section 1 further provides that if an expedited settlement conference
results in an agreement of the parties, each party shall sign the child
support stipulation and same shall be provided to a support magistrate
for review and confirmation on the date of the conference.  If a confer-
ence does not result in agreement by all parties to the child support
order, the parties shall be referred to a support magistrate on the date
of the conference for further proceedings in the case.

Finally, Section 1 directs the court administration to make publicly
available an annual report on data related to certain enumerated meas-
ures of the operation and impact of family court expedited child support
settlement conference processes.

Section 2 provides that the act shall take effect on the one hundred and
twentieth day after it becomes law.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

This legislation develops an expedited settlement conference process for
child support cases in the New York Family Courts for parents who choose
to reach agreement on child support and do not dispute income available
for support. This legislation brings needed attention to a significant
economic justice issue for families, especially for those living in
poverty, and an area of civil justice that demands reform.  Child
support is of critical importance to families: it affects 16 million
children and 11 million mothers in the U.S. For the lowest income house-
holds nationwide, child support from another parent living separately
can comprise more than 57% of income. Thus, the child support system
plays a critical role in determining economic justice for single parents
and children living in poverty.

New York primarily utilizes its courts to determine child support for
families, with the state child support agency handling child support
collection, enforcement, and some support establishment. Child support
is calculated pursuant to the New York Child Support Standards Act,
which was enacted in 1989 to provide a fair and consistent method for
determining child support payments based on parental income. For some
parents, proof of income is straightforward, for example, where the
parent earns traditional W-2 tax reportable income. For others who are
paid in cash or own a business with complicated or incomplete records,
proof of income can be challenging and the process to obtain it through
litigation lengthy. (Litigation can become more challenging where
parents hide or under-disclose income; that more than 90% of parents in
child support courts have no legal representation makes fair support in
many cases even more difficult to obtain. )

The courts are uniquely equipped to handle these disputed or complex
matters. Yet the current judicial system is one-size-fits-all, so that
both complicated and straightforward cases proceed through the same
courthouse doors. With the vast majority of New York's child support
establishment being handled through a judicial system, the courts are
flooded with child support cases. In 2019 alone, there were almost
200,000 filings for child support in the New York Family and
Supreme/Integrated Domestic Violence Courts, representing more than
one-third of the family law petitions filed in the state.  Without
triaging based on type or complexity of case, courts experience serious
delays even where they could be avoided - especially egregious in
straightforward matters - and hold case appearances that are often brief
and superficial without the time needed to address the key issues. In
addition to both reflecting and causing system inefficiencies, court
delays are the worst enemy of custodial parents who are living in pover-
ty. Indeed, many parents may decide to forego child support orders alto-
gether where court delays threaten job loss because of missed days of
work, or because they must secure childcare for days in court that they
cannot afford. For noncustodial parents who cannot afford to pay child
support, court inefficiencies can also be costly in terms of missed days
of work.

The inefficiencies around obtaining child support in the courts have
been exacerbated since the start of the COVID19 pandemic when the New
York Family Courts largely closed for petitions to establish child
support, deferring this needed support for some indefinitely, and other
relief in support cases. In 2020, the number of filings dropped to
approximately half of the typical number in previous years, and this
continued in 2021 and 2022. The courts were slow to regain full func-
tionality in some jurisdictions, especially in New York City where the
courts typically received more than 60,000 filings for child support
annually pre-pandemic. This created a backlog of cases, but the courts
have not publicized a plan to address this crisis. And challenges around
making the courts fully accessible both in person and virtually - have
highlighted both the need and opportunity for innovative justice
solutions. One way to improve the child support system is to expand the
"menu of options" for parents whose children need support. The expedited
settlement conference process developed through this legislation is
designed for parents who seek to voluntarily agree to child support in
accordance with the Child Support Standards Act.  (State law provides
the opportunity for parents to agree to child support; once parents are
advised of the presumptive amount of support under the Child Support
Standards Act, they can agree to "deviate" from that amount and record
the reasons for deviation in a written agreement.) The conferences would
be held in the Family Courts where parents file for child support and
would be facilitated by trained court staff. (Court staff facilitating
the conferences should be court attorneys and/or trained on applicable
law and competent to deliver legal information to litigants.) In the
conference, parents would provide proof of income and finances (unless
they expressly waive this disclosure requirement), and staff would
complete the child support worksheet and inform them of the child
support guidelines calculation. The conference process for reaching an
agreement would be expedited:  parties engaging in the process would
meet with court staff for a conference on the return date (which could
be held virtually) and, where the parties sign a stipulation, it would
be transmitted to a support magistrate that day for review and signa-
ture. If parents do not reach agreement in the expedited settlement
conference, they would appear before the support magistrate for further
proceedings in the litigation. The expedited settlement conference proc-
ess would not be utilized where one parent is a minor without legal
representation or where parentage needs to be established, or for those
who are seeking spousal support in addition to child support. Families
utilizing the expedited settlement conference process with combined
parental income above the "cap" under New York State law for application
of the child support guidelines would be informed on relevant law for
applying the child support percentage to this above the cap income, and
expressly agree to,the application of the guidelines or factors under
N.Y. Family Court Act 413(f).

The expedited settlement conference process authorized by this proposal
excludes parties that are also parties to a temporary or final order of
protection from any court of competent jurisdiction.  This recognizes
that reaching voluntary agreement on child support may be difficult
where one parent is experiencing or has experienced a pattern of behav-
ior used by the other parent to establish and maintain power and control
over them, as domestic violence is defined by the New York State Office
to Prevent Domestic Violence. At the same time, given the national
prevalence of domestic violence, we know that many families involved in
child support proceedings in the New York Family Courts are experiencing
or have experienced domestic violence in the very relationships that
involve children on whose behalf they are utilizing the courts to estab-
lish child support. At present, there is no uniform training on domestic
violence for court personnel involved in child support proceedings in
the New York Family Courts or screening for domestic violence among
litigants in child support proceedings. We urge the Office of Court
Administration (OCA) to explore developing training on domestic violence
for all court staff involved in child support proceedings in the New
York Family Courts, including staff facilitating the expedited settle-
ment conference processes authorized under this legislation, and screen-
ing tools and processes for domestic violence among litigants. To the
extent possible, OCA could leverage and adapt existing resources in
other areas, such as the domestic violence screening tool and training
guide developed by the DV/IPV Stakeholders Group it convened in
connection with its initiative to offer alternative dispute resolution
in some New York courts.

This proposal will benefit the child support system, the family court
system overall, and families who depend on them. Developing an expedited
settlement conference process to handle straightforward child support
needs would reduce the volume of pending child support cases in the
courts, infusing the judicial system with needed efficiency. Those fami-
lies whose circumstances require or would benefit from judicial atten-
tion in court would get it, and the system overall would engage in a
better use of jurists' time and expertise.  Moreover, the expedited
settlement conference process would provide more efficient justice for
parents whose circumstances do not require litigation and who choose to
engage in a more streamlined process to achieve a child support agree-
ment and order. The legislation situates these conferences in court with
due process protections and judicial oversight of the agreement, ensur-
ing fairness for parents. And significantly, the expedited settlement
conference process developed through this legislation would help ensure
fair support to children more quickly. Models in other states provide
guidance, including Massachusetts, which implemented a similar confer-
ence process during the COVID-19 pandemic to address a backlog in child
support cases in court and resolved over 9,000 cases in one year.  The
proposed new conference process is cost-effective. All cases handled
through an expedited settlem ent process would be considered "IV-D
cases" under Title IV-D of the federal Social Security Act and families
would be entitled to collection and enforcement services through the
State's child support agencies. Since the courts' expedited settlement
processes would involve IV-D cases, any new resources or portion of
existing resources that are allocated to the proposed new processes
would be considered child support program activities under Title 1V-D
and would be eligible for 66 percent reimbursement under Federal Finan-
cial Participation funding. Further, to the extent the expedited settle-
ment conference processes improve New York's performance under federally
established child support program measures, there is a potential for an
increased federal child support incentive award for the State.

To evaluate the expedited conference process and generate publicly
available data about the process, the legislation provides that the
court administration shall make publicly available an annual report on
data related to the following measures of the operation and impact of
family court expedited settlement conference processes: the number of
support orders established through expedited settlement conference proc-
esses; the average time required to complete the process for cases where
parties reach agreement (i.e., the time between filing and issuance of
child support order upon stipulation); the number of cases in which the
expedited settlement conference process is deemed unavailable to parties
because they are also parties to a temporary or final order of
protection; and the percentage of cases in which the expedited settle-
ment conference process is begun but then terminated without resulting
in a stipulation for child support.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined in accordance with federal Title IV-D funds available
to the State.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred and twentieth day after it
becomes law.