Chapter 48, Chapter 48

(a) Withholding shall occur and the notice to withhold shall be sent either by first-class mail or by electronic means to the source of income when the support order provides for immediate income withholding pursuant to sections four hundred one and four hundred two of this artic…

(a) The source of income of any obligor who is subject to withholding, upon being given notice of withholding, shall withhold from such obligor's income the amount specified by the notice and pay such amount to the Bureau for Child Support Enforcement for distribution. The notice…

Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the contrary which provides for a limitation upon the amount which may be withheld from earnings through legal process, the amount of an obligor's aggregate disposable earnings for any given workweek which may be withheld as sup…

Every source of income who receives a notice of withholding under the provisions of this section shall implement withholding no later than the first pay period or first date for the payment of income which occurs after fourteen days following the date the notice to the source of …

After implementation in accordance with the provisions of section 14-409, a source of income shall send the amount to be withheld from the obligor's income to the Bureau for Child Support enforcement and shall notify the Bureau for Child Support enforcement of the date of withhol…

Withholding of amounts payable as support under the provisions of this part 4 of this article is binding on the source of income until further notice by the Bureau for Child Support enforcement or until the source of income notifies the Bureau for Child Support enforcement of a t…

A source of income who employs or otherwise pays income to an obligor who is subject to withholding under the provisions of this part 4 shall notify the Bureau for Child Support enforcement promptly when the obligor terminates employment or otherwise ceases receiving income from …

When an employer has more than one employee who is an obligor who is subject to wage withholding from income for amounts payable as support, the employer may combine all withheld payments to the Bureau for Child Support enforcement when the employer properly identifies each payme…

A source of income is liable to an obligee, including the State of West Virginia or the Department of Human Services where appropriate, for any amount which the source of income fails to withhold from income due an obligor following receipt by such source of income of proper noti…

Any source of income who knowingly and willfully conceals the fact that the source of income is paying income to an obligor, with the intent to avoid withholding from the obligor's income of amounts payable as support, is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shal…

When the Bureau for Child Support enforcement makes a written request to a source of income to provide information as to whether the source of income has paid income to a specific obligor, within the preceding sixty-day period, the source of income shall, within fourteen days the…

Support collection under the provisions of this section shall have priority over any other legal process under the laws of this state against the same income, and shall be effective despite any exemption that might otherwise be applicable to the same income.

Any source of income who discharges from employment, refuses to employ, or takes disciplinary action against any obligor subject to income withholding required by this part 4 because of the existence of such withholding and the obligations or additional obligations which it impos…

In addition to or in lieu of the other remedies provided by this article for the enforcement of support orders, the Bureau for Child Support enforcement may commence a civil or criminal contempt proceeding in accordance with the provisions of section 1-304 against an obligor who …

If the court finds that the obligor willfully failed or refused to comply with an order requiring the payment of support, the court shall find the obligor in contempt and may do one or more of the following: (1) Require additional terms and conditions consistent with the court's …

(a) In a commitment under subdivision (5) of section 14-502 the court shall confine the contemnor for an indeterminate period not to exceed six months or until such time as the contemnor has purged himself or herself, whichever shall first occur. (b) An obligor committed under su…

If an obligor is committed to jail under the provisions of paragraph (B), subdivision (5), of section 14-502 and violates the conditions of the court, the court may commit the person to the county or regional jail without the privilege provided under said paragraph (B) for the ba…

If a person is committed to jail under the provisions of paragraph (B), subdivision (5), of section 14-502 and willfully fails to return to the place of confinement within the time prescribed, such person shall be considered to have escaped from custody and shall be guilty of a m…

As used in this chapter: (1) "High-volume automated administrative enforcement" in interstate cases means at the request of another state, the identification by a state, through automated data matches with financial institutions and other entities where assets may be found, of as…

The Bureau for Child Support enforcement shall use automated administrative enforcement to the same extent as used for intrastate cases in response to a request made by another state to enforce support orders, and shall promptly report the results of such enforcement procedures t…

(a) The Bureau for Child Support enforcement may, by electronic or other means, transmit to, or receive from, another state a request for assistance in enforcing support orders through automated administrative enforcement. Such request shall include: (1) Information as will enabl…

An obligor with a pattern of overdue support may be required by order of the court to post bond, give security or some other guarantee to secure payment of overdue support. The guarantee may include an order requiring that stocks, bonds or other assets of the obligor be held in e…

(a) For the purpose of securing overdue support, the Bureau for Child Support Enforcement has the authority to increase the monthly support payments of an obligor by as much as $100 per month to satisfy the arrearage when: (1) An obligor has failed to make payments as required by…

Notice of the increase shall be sent to the obligor at the time such increase is implemented. If the obligor disagrees with the increase in payments, he or she may file, within thirty days of the date of the notice, a motion with the court for a determination of whether there sho…

The provisions of sections 14-801 and 14-802 apply to support orders issued by a court of competent jurisdiction of this or any other state.

(a) In any case arising under the provisions of this article wherein a notice is served upon a person requiring him or her to notify the Bureau for Child Support enforcement if the person is contesting action proposed to be taken against him (1) If the person so notified does not…

For purposes of this article, the words or terms defined in this article, and any variation of those words or terms required by the context, have the meanings ascribed to them. These definitions are applicable unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context.

"Action against a license" means action taken by the Bureau for Child Support enforcement to cause the denial, nonrenewal, suspension or restriction of a license applied for or held by: (A) A support obligor owing overdue support; or (B) a person who has failed to comply with sub…

"Application" means a request to have a license issued, a request for a renewal of an existing license or a request to change the status of an existing license.

"License" means a license, permit, certificate of registration, registration, credential, stamp or other indicia that evidences a personal privilege entitling a person to do an act that he or she would otherwise not be entitled to do, or evidences a special privilege to pursue a …

The following licenses are subject to an action against a license as provided for in this article: (1) A business registration certificate issued under article twelve, chapter eleven of this code authorizing a person to transact business in the State of West Virginia; (2) A permi…

The Bureau for Child Support enforcement shall send a written notice of an action against a license to a person who: (1) Owes overdue child support, if the child support arrearage equals or exceeds the amount of child support payable for six months; (2) Has failed for a period of…

In the case of overdue child support or noncompliance with a medical support order, notice of an action against a license shall be served only if other statutory enforcement methods to collect the support arrearage have been exhausted or are not available.

The bureau shall send a notice of action against a license by regular mail and by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the person's last-known address or place of business or employment. Simultaneous certified and regular mailing of the written notice shall constitute eff…

The notice shall be substantially in the following form:

The notice shall advise the person that further failure to comply may result in an action against licenses held by the person, and that any pending application for a license may be denied, renewal of a license may be refused, or an existing license may be suspended or restricted …

If the person fails to take one of the actions described in section 15-206 within thirty days of the date of the notice and there is proof that service on the person was effective, the Bureau for Child Support enforcement shall file a certification with the court setting forth th…

If the person requests a hearing, the Bureau for Child Support enforcement shall file a petition for a hearing before the family court. The hearing shall occur within forty-two days of the receipt of the person's request. If, prior to the hearing, the person pays the full amount …

(a) The court shall order a licensing authority to deny, refuse to renew, suspend or restrict a license if it finds that: (1) All appropriate enforcement methods have been exhausted or are not available; (2) The person is the holder of a license or has an application pending for …

(a) The Bureau for Child Support enforcement shall provide the licensing authority with a copy of the order requiring the denial, nonrenewal, suspension or restriction of a license. (b) Upon receipt of an order requiring the suspension or restriction of a license for nonpayment o…

The denial, nonrenewal, suspension or restriction of a license ordered by the court shall continue until the Bureau for Child Support enforcement files with the licensing authority either a court order restoring the license or a Bureau for Child Support enforcement certification …

(a) Each licensing authority shall require license applicants to certify on the license application form, under penalty of false swearing, that the applicant does not have a child support obligation, the applicant does have such an obligation but any arrearage amount does not equ…

If a person who has been admitted to the practice of law in this state by order of the Supreme Court of Appeals is determined to be in default under a support order or has failed to comply with a subpoena or warrant in a paternity or child support proceeding, such that his or her…

The provisions of this article apply to all orders issued before or after the enactment of this article. All child support, medical support and health insurance provisions in existence on or before the effective date of this article shall be included in determining whether a case…

The provisions of this article have been enacted to conform to the mandates of the federal "Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996." If a court of competent jurisdiction should determine, or if it is otherwise determined that the federal governmen…

This article may be cited as the uniform interstate family support act.

As used in this article: (1) "Child" means an individual, whether over or under the age of majority, who is or is alleged to be owed a duty of support by the individual's parent or who is or is alleged to be the beneficiary of a support order directed to the parent. (2) "Child su…

(a) The family court is the tribunal of this state. (b) The Bureau for Child Support Enforcement is the support enforcement agency of this state.

(a) Remedies provided by this article are cumulative and do not affect the availability of remedies under other law or the recognition of a support order on the basis of comity. (b) This article does not: (1) Provide the exclusive method of establishing or enforcing a support ord…

(a) A tribunal of this state shall apply parts I through VI [§48-16-101 et seq. through §48-16-601 et seq.] and, as applicable, part VII [§48-16-701 et seq.], to a support proceeding involving: (1) A foreign support order; (2) A foreign tribunal; or (3) An obligee, obligor, or ch…