Title 74 — Title 74 PUBLIC ASSISTANCE

Common law and statutory procedures governing the remedies for enforcement of support for financially dependent minor children by responsible parents have not proven sufficiently effective or efficient to cope with the increasing incidence of financial dependency. The increasing …

Unless a different meaning is plainly required by the context, the following words and phrases as hereinafter used in this chapter and chapter 74.20 RCW shall have the following meanings:(1) "Department" means the state department of social and health services.(2) "Secretary" mea…

(1) The department shall be subrogated to the right of any dependent child or children or person having the care, custody, and control of said child or children, if public assistance money is paid to or for the benefit of the child, or for the care and maintenance of a child, inc…

The department of social and health services shall augment its present paternity establishment services through the hiring of additional assistant attorneys general, or contracting with prosecutors or private attorneys licensed in the state of Washington in those judicial distric…

(1) The secretary may issue a notice of a support debt accrued and/or accruing based upon RCW 74.20A.030, assignment of a support debt or a request for support enforcement services under RCW 74.20.040 (2) or (3), to enforce and collect a support debt created by a superior court o…

(1) The secretary may, if there is no order that establishes a person's support obligation or specifically relieves the person required to pay support of a support obligation or pursuant to an establishment of parentage under chapter 26.26A or 26.26B RCW, serve on the person or p…

(1)(a) If an acknowledged parent has signed an acknowledgment of parentage that has been filed with the state registrar of vital statistics:(i) The division of child support may serve a notice and finding of financial responsibility under RCW 74.20A.055 based on the acknowledgmen…

A support obligation arising under the statutes or common law of this state binds the responsible parent, present in this state, regardless of the presence or residence of the custodian or children. The obligor is presumed to have been present in the state of Washington during th…

(1) The department, the payee under the order or the person entitled to receive support, or the person required to pay support may petition for a prospective modification of a final administrative order if:(a) The administrative order has not been superseded by a superior court o…

(1) The secretary may assert a lien upon the real or personal property of a responsible parent:(a) When a support payment is past due, if the parent's support order contains notice that liens may be enforced against real and personal property, or notice that action may be taken u…

(1) The secretary may at any time after filing of a support lien serve a copy of the lien upon any person, firm, corporation, association, political subdivision, or department of the state in possession of earnings, or deposits or balances held in any bank account of any nature w…

(1) The secretary may issue to any person, firm, corporation, association, political subdivision, department of the state, or agency, subdivision, or instrumentality of the United States, an order to withhold and deliver property of any kind, including but not restricted to earni…

Whenever a support lien or order to withhold and deliver is served upon any person, firm, corporation, association, political subdivision, or department of the state asserting a support debt against earnings and there is in the possession of such person, firm, corporation, associ…

When providing support enforcement services, the office of support enforcement may take action, under this chapter and chapter 26.23 RCW, against a responsible parent's earnings or assets, located in, or subject to the jurisdiction of, the state of Washington regardless of the pr…

(1) Any person, firm, corporation, association, political subdivision, or department of the state shall be liable to the department, or to the agency or firm providing child support enforcement for another state, under Title IV-D of the federal social security act and issuing a n…

Whenever any person, firm, corporation, association, political subdivision or department of the state has in its possession earnings, deposits, accounts, or balances in excess of the amount of the debt claimed by the department, such person, firm, corporation, association, politi…

A lien, order to withhold and deliver, or any other notice or document authorized by this chapter or chapter 26.23 RCW may be served on the main office of a bank, savings and loan association, or credit union or on a branch office of such financial institution. Service on the mai…

Whenever a support lien has been filed pursuant to RCW 74.20A.060, the secretary may collect the support debt stated in said lien by the distraint, seizure, and sale of the property subject to said lien. Not less than ten days prior to the date of sale, the secretary shall cause …

Whenever a support lien has been filed, an action in foreclosure of lien upon real or personal property may be brought in the superior court of the county where real or personal property is or was located and the lien was filed and judgment shall be rendered in favor of the depar…

Any person owning real property, or any interest in real property, against which a support lien has been filed and foreclosure instituted, shall have the right to pay the amount due, together with expenses of the proceedings and reasonable attorneys' fees to the secretary and upo…

With respect to any arrearages on a support debt assessed under this chapter, the secretary may at any time consistent with the income, earning capacity and resources of the debtor, set or reset a level and schedule of payments to be paid upon a support debt. The secretary may, u…

The secretary may at any time release a support lien, or order to withhold and deliver, on all or part of the property of the debtor, or return seized property without liability, if assurance of payment is deemed adequate by the secretary, or if said action will facilitate the co…

If the secretary finds that the collection of any support debt, accrued under a support order, based upon subrogation or an authorization to enforce and collect under RCW 74.20A.030, or assignment of, or a request for support enforcement services to enforce and collect the amount…

(1) Before the state may assist another state or jurisdiction with a high-volume automated administrative enforcement of an interstate case, the requesting state must certify that:(a) The requesting state has met all due process requirements for the establishment of the support o…

Any person against whose property a support lien has been filed or an order to withhold and deliver has been served pursuant to this chapter may apply for relief to the superior court of the county wherein the property is located. It is the intent of this chapter that jurisdictio…

Any support debt due the department from a responsible parent may be written off and cease to be accounted as an asset if the secretary finds there are no cost-effective means of collecting the debt.The department may accept offers of compromise of disputed claims or may grant pa…

No employer shall discharge or discipline an employee or refuse to hire a person for reason that an assignment of earnings has been presented in settlement of a support debt or that a support lien or order to withhold and deliver has been served against said employee's earnings. …

(1) Any person, firm, corporation, association, political subdivision, department of the state, or agency, subdivision, or instrumentality of the United States employing a person owing a support debt or obligation, shall honor, according to its terms, a duly executed assignment o…

Whenever the secretary has been authorized under RCW 74.20.040 to take action to establish, enforce, and collect support moneys, the custodial parent and the child or children are deemed, without the necessity of signing any document, to have appointed the secretary as his or her…

Disability payments made pursuant to Title 51 RCW shall be classified as earnings and shall be subject to collection action by the office for support enforcement under this chapter and all other applicable state statutes.[ 1987 c 435 s 34; 1973 1st ex.s. c 183 s 24.]Notes:Effecti…

(1) The secretary may issue a notice of retained support or notice to recover a support payment to any person:(a) Who is in possession of support moneys, or who has had support moneys in his or her possession at some time in the past, which support moneys were or are claimed by t…

(1) If a person or entity not entitled to child support payments wrongfully or negligently retains child support payments owed to another or to the Washington state support registry, those payments retain their character as child support payments and may be collected by the divis…

While discharging its responsibilities to enforce the support obligations of responsible parents, the department shall respect the right of privacy of recipients of public assistance and of other persons. Any inquiry about sexual activity shall be limited to that necessary to ide…

Whenever any person files an application for an adjudicative proceeding under RCW 74.20A.055 or 74.20A.270, after the department has notified the person of the requirements of this section, it shall be the responsibility of the person to notify the department of the person's mail…

(1) Whenever a support order is entered or modified under this chapter, the department shall require either or both parents to provide medical support for any dependent child, in the nature of health care coverage or a monthly payment toward the premium, as provided under RCW 26.…

In furtherance of the policy of the state to cooperate with the federal government in the administration of the child support enforcement program, the department may adopt such rules and regulations as may become necessary to entitle the state to participate in federal funds, unl…

(1) The department may serve upon a responsible parent a notice informing the responsible parent of the department's intent to submit the parent's name to the department of licensing and any appropriate licensing entity as a licensee who is not in compliance with a child support …

(1) A responsible parent may request an adjudicative proceeding upon service of the notice described in RCW 74.20A.320. The request for an adjudicative proceeding must be received by the department within twenty days of service. The request must be in writing and indicate the cur…

(1) The department may certify to the department of licensing and any appropriate licensing entity the name of a responsible parent who is not in compliance with a child support order if:(a) Within twenty-one days after service of a notice issued under RCW 74.20A.320, the respons…

(1) If a responsible parent contacts the department's division of child support office indicated on the notice of noncompliance within twenty days of service of the notice provided in RCW 74.20A.320 and requests arrangement of a payment schedule, the department shall stay the cer…

The department may adopt rules to implement and enforce the requirements of RCW 74.20A.320 and 74.20A.322 through 74.20A.326.[ 2009 c 408 s 5.]

(1) The department and all of the various licensing entities subject to RCW 74.20A.320 shall enter into such agreements as are necessary to carry out the requirements of the license suspension program established in RCW 74.20A.320.(2) The department and all licensing entities sub…

(1) The division of child support may issue a notice of noncompliance to any person, firm, entity, or agency of state or federal government that the division believes is not complying with:(a) An income withholding order issued under chapter 26.23 RCW;(b) A lien, order to withhol…

(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of Washington law, the division of child support, the Washington state support registry, or the agency or firm providing child support enforcement services for another state under Title IV-D of the federal social security act may access rec…

(1) Each calendar quarter financial institutions doing business in the state of Washington shall report to the department the name, record address, social security number or other taxpayer identification number, and other information determined necessary by the department for eac…

If any provision of this chapter or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of this chapter which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the…

The repeal of RCW 74.20A.050 and the amendment of RCW 74.20A.030 and 74.20A.250 by this 1979 act is not intended to affect any existing or accrued right, any action or proceeding already taken or instituted, any administrative action already taken, or any rule, regulation, or ord…

For the purposes of this chapter, the terms spouse, marriage, marital, husband, wife, widow, widower, next of kin, and family shall be interpreted as applying equally to state registered domestic partnerships or individuals in state registered domestic partnerships as well as to …