Arkansas Administrative Code

9 CAR § 1-105. Funding. The Child Support Enforcement Program is supported by: (1) State general revenue; (2) Fees collected from custodial parties and noncustodial parents; and (3) Federal funds.

9 CAR § 1-106. Program goal. (a) The primary goal of the Office of Child Support Enforcement is to work with parents and guardians to help establish and receive court-ordered child and medical support. (b)(1) Child and medical support services are available to any individual, wit…

9 CAR § 1-107. Publicizing support enforcement services. (a) The availability of child and medical support enforcement services is publicized on a regular basis. (b) This is accomplished through media announcements, brochures, presentations, and participation by the Office of Chi…

9 CAR § 1-108. Policy of nondiscrimination. The Office of Child Support Enforcement complies with applicable federal and state civil rights laws and does not discriminate on the basis of: (1) Age; (2) Color; (3) Disability; (4) Race; (5) National origin; (6) Sex; or (7) Religion.…

9 CAR § 2-1001. Overview. (a)(1) As mandated by federal and state law, all support orders issued or modified must be reported to each state’s case registry (SCR). (2) The Office of Child Support Enforcement is responsible for the maintenance of the SCR, known as the Arkansas Regi…

9 CAR § 2-101. Overview. The Office of Child Support Enforcement has established the following as child support case categories.

9 CAR § 2-102. Enforcement case. (a)(1) An open enforcement case is a case open with the Office of Child Support Enforcement for full child support services or a case for medical support services only. (2) These cases are open either by: (A) Application; (B) Referral from the Dep…

9 CAR § 2-103. Split-debt case. (a) A split-debt case is a former enforcement case in which current support and possibly arrears are owed to the custodial party and arrears are also owed to the state, but child support enforcement services are no longer being provided. (b)(1) Any…

9 CAR § 2-104. Payment processing case. (a)(1) A payment processing case is a case in which payments are received and disbursed through the Arkansas Child Support Clearinghouse and no other services are provided. (2) These may also be referred to as non-IV-D cases because, even t…

9 CAR § 2-105. Suspended case. (a) Cases may be suspended for a specific date in the future only if there is a direct order by a court to cease all collection action as ordered by the court. (b) When a case is suspended, all enforcement action and distributions stop.…

9 CAR § 2-1101. Overview. (a)(1) The Acknowledgment of Paternity Program provides a simple way for the biological parents of a child to establish paternity if they are not married at the time of the child’s birth. (2) The Office of Child Support Enforcement provides: (A) Written …

9 CAR § 2-1102. Effect of signing the acknowledgment of paternity. (a) The AOP forms the basis for establishment and enforcement of a child support or visitation order without a further proceeding to establish paternity. (b)(1) If the AOP is completed within ten (10) days after t…

9 CAR § 2-1103. Rescinding the acknowledgment of paternity. (a) Any person who has signed an AOP may rescind the document within the earlier of: (1) Sixty (60) calendar days from the date of signing; or (2) Prior to the date that an administrative or judicial proceeding, includin…

9 CAR § 2-1201. Overview. (a) The Administrator of the Office of Child Support Enforcement or a designee is authorized to issue an administrative subpoena for any financial or other information needed to establish, modify, or enforce a child support order to any individual or org…

9 CAR § 2-1202. New hire reporting. (a)(1) The United States Office of Child Support Enforcement operates the National Directory of New Hires, a database established for the purposes of assisting state child support agencies in locating parents and enforcing child and medical sup…

9 CAR § 2-1203. Social Security numbers. (a)(1) State law mandates that all persons, agencies, boards, commissions, or other licensing entities issuing marriage or any occupational, professional, or business license must record the name, address, and Social Security number of eac…

9 CAR § 2-1204. Specific request for a credit report. (a)(1) If requested by the Administrator of the Office of Child Support Enforcement, the consumer reporting agency must provide a copy of a credit report if the report is needed to establish an individual’s ability to pay chil…

9 CAR § 2-1205. Federal Case Registry. (a)(1) As mandated by federal law, the Federal Case Registry (FCR) is a national database that includes all: (A) Child support cases handled by state child support agencies, referred to as open enforcement or IV-D cases; and (B) Support orde…

9 CAR § 2-1206. Internal Revenue Service full collection service. (a)(1) Past due child and medical support for TEA, Medicaid, SNAP, and non-TEA full Office of Child Support Enforcement services cases can be referred to the Internal Revenue Service to be collected as if unpaid ch…

9 CAR § 2-1207. United States district courts. (a) The United States district courts may be used to enforce the court order of an Arkansas court of competent jurisdiction against a noncustodial parent in another state. (b) An application for using the United States district court…

9 CAR § 2-1208. Federal Parent Locator Service. (a) The Federal Parent Locator Service (FPLS) is a national locate system managed by the United States Office of Child Support Enforcement and contains information to help states locate parents and establish and enforce child suppor…

9 CAR § 2-1209. Child Support Enforcement Network. (a) Child Support Enforcement Network (CSENet) is a nationwide network which links state child support enforcement systems. (b) States use CSENet to electronically request or report: (1) Location; (2) Paternity and support establ…

9 CAR § 2-1301. Guidelines for diligent efforts to obtain service of process. (a) Attorneys representing the Office of Child Support Enforcement are responsible for selecting the appropriate method of service. (b) The method must be selected and action taken to obtain service wit…

9 CAR § 2-1302. Monitoring the request for service of process. (a) Service by sheriff or process server. (1) If proof of service has not been returned within fourteen (14) calendar days of mailing, the sheriff or process server must be contacted to determine whether service has b…

9 CAR § 2-1401. Overview. (a) Arkansas courts may exercise jurisdiction over a putative father or a legal father who resides in another state when any of the following conditions provided in state law are met: (1) The individual is personally served with a summons within Arkansas…

9 CAR § 2-1501. Overview. (a)(1) Federal law requires the recording of a Social Security number (SSN) for any individual who is subject to a divorce decree, support order, or paternity determination or acknowledgment to be recorded in certain family matters. (2) Each recipient of…

9 CAR § 2-201. Assigned office — Open enforcement cases. (a) Cases in which child support enforcement services are provided are assigned to a local child support office responsible for a geographic area of one (1) or more counties. (b) The office responsible for working a case is…

9 CAR § 2-202. Transferring cases. (a) Prior to the establishment of an order. Prior to the establishment of a court order, unless a case is already pending in court, if facts indicate a case should be assigned to a different local child support office, the caseworker shall take …

9 CAR § 2-301. Prohibitions. (a)(1) The Office of Child Support Enforcement will not release information regarding members in an office case except as permitted by federal or state law. (2) Release of information on the whereabouts of a party is permissible only: (A) If it is in …

9 CAR § 2-302. Release of information upon request of the parties. (a)(1) A custodial party or noncustodial parent is entitled to his or her own personal information contained in a case file. (2) Court orders and pay records may be released to either requesting party. (3) Persona…

9 CAR § 2-303. Security of case records. (a) Case records will be stored in electronic files or in file cabinets accessible only to authorized Office of Child Support Enforcement personnel. (b) These file cabinets will be: (1) Maintained in a secure area; and (2) Locked when not …

9 CAR § 2-304. Private collection agencies. (a)(1) The Office of Child Support Enforcement will not accept change request forms or requests for information from a private collection agency. (2) A power of attorney provided by a private collection agency will not be accepted. (b) …

9 CAR § 2-305. Reporting breaches. (a)(1) Federal and state law and regulation require that safeguard measures be in place to secure: (A) Federal tax information (FTI); (B) Personally Identifiable Information (PII); (C) Federal Parent Locator Service (FPLS) information; and (D) C…

9 CAR § 2-401. Maintenance of case records. (a) The caseworker is responsible for the maintenance of a case record for each individual case in an assigned caseload. (b) The record must contain all documents related to the case from the time of referral until closure. (c) A writte…

9 CAR § 2-402. Retention of case records. (a) Local Office of Child Support Enforcement staff must retain records for closed cases for a minimum of three (3) years. (b) Field Managers or their designees may determine that a case record should be retained for a longer period. (c)(…

9 CAR § 2-501. Overview. (a)(1) Federal regulations require that individuals who have the responsibility of handling and issuing receipts may not participate in accounting or record-keeping functions. (2) The person who accepts payments and makes receipts must not be the same per…

9 CAR § 2-601. Overview. (a) The Office of Child Support Enforcement will ensure that every person who has access to or control over funds collected under the child support enforcement program is covered by a bond against loss resulting from employee dishonesty. (b)(1) In order t…

9 CAR § 2-701. Overview. (a) Cases will be reviewed at regular intervals to ensure that: (1) Case activities meet the program standards for completeness and timeliness as outlined in the Code of Federal Regulations; (2) Fees are monitored to ensure that they are charged appropria…

9 CAR § 2-801. Overview. (a)(1) A customer may ask for an administrative review to address any concern regarding his or her case. (2) This informal process is useful in providing an explanation concerning various actions taken in his or her case or its status. (3) Once a request …

9 CAR § 2-901. Domestic violence. (a)(1) Parties who have experienced domestic violence with the other parent should notify his or her caseworker immediately. (2) The party may be asked to provide copies of any orders of protection or other information about the situation. (b) Th…

9 CAR § 2-902. Good cause claims. (a)(1) Good cause is a term used to identify cases where recipients of Medicaid, SNAP, or TEA are excused from cooperating with child support establishment and/or enforcement services. (2) Good cause may be made at any time during the life of a c…

9 CAR § 3-101. Custodial party request. (a)(1) Child support services are available to custodial parties who submit a questionnaire and/or application, as appropriate, with the Office of Child Support Enforcement for services. (2) The office charges a nonrefundable application fe…

9 CAR § 3-102. Referrals. (a)(1) Cases are referred to the Office of Child Support Enforcement when a custodial party and child is receiving TEA, Medicaid, or SNAP benefits. (2) A case will also be referred if a noncustodial parent receives SNAP benefits. (b) Costs and fees for c…

9 CAR § 3-103. Foster care cases. (a)(1) The Department of Health may refer a case to the Office of Child Support Enforcement when appropriate. (2) The department is the custodial party in these cases and may refer a separate case for each parent as the noncustodial parent. (b)(1…

9 CAR § 3-104. Treatment facilities. (a) The Office of Child Support Enforcement may receive a Medicaid referral for cases in which a child under eighteen (18) has been placed in a treatment facility if: (1) There was a noncustodial parent absent from the home at the time of plac…

9 CAR § 3-201. Generally. (a) Child support services in intergovernmental cases are provided in cooperation with the child support program in another: (1) State; (2) Tribe; or (3) Country which is a member of the Hague Convention or which has a reciprocal agreement with the Unite…

9 CAR § 3-202. Arkansas as the responding state. (a) Arkansas is the responding state when another state, tribe, or country: (1) Requests assistance because it is unable to use its long-arm statute for the establishment of paternity and support; or (2) Requires assistance in the …

9 CAR § 3-203. Arkansas as the initiating state. (a) Arkansas is the initiating state when it requests the assistance of the child support program of another state, tribe, or country because it: (1) Is unable to use its long-arm statute for the establishment of paternity and supp…

9 CAR § 3-204. International cases. (a) International requests for services will be accepted from all countries, regardless of whether they are: (1) A member of the Hague Child Support Convention; or (2) Countries with which the United States has a reciprocal agreement. (b) State…

9 CAR § 3-301. Generally. Cooperation in the establishment or enforcement of a case is required in all cases, as well as keeping the Office of Child Support Enforcement informed of changes in address or contact information.