100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2017 and 2018
HB0236

 

Introduced , by Rep. La Shawn K. Ford

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
305 ILCS 5/10-12.5 new
750 ILCS 5/510  from Ch. 40, par. 510

    Amends the Illinois Public Aid Code, the Unified Code of Corrections, and the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act. Provides that subject to federal approval, a person's obligation to pay child support pursuant to a court or administrative order is suspended by operation of law during any period that the person is committed to the custody of the Department of Corrections or the Department of Juvenile Justice. Provides that the Department of Corrections and the Department of Juvenile Justice shall share relevant data and collaborate to establish programs to assist committed persons who are obligors under child support orders in cases in which child support enforcement services are provided by the Department of Healthcare and Family Services. Provides for inclusion of information about any child support obligation owed by the defendant and recommendations concerning the payment of that obligation in a presentence report; requires a presentence investigation and report in the case of a misdemeanor defendant who owes a child support obligation.


LRB100 04181 HEP 14187 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB0236LRB100 04181 HEP 14187 b

1    AN ACT concerning public aid.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Public Aid Code is amended by
5adding Section 10-12.5 as follows:
 
6    (305 ILCS 5/10-12.5 new)
7    Sec. 10-12.5. Suspension of child support during a period
8of incarceration.
9    (a) During any period of time in which an obligor is
10committed to the custody of the Department of Corrections or
11the Department of Juvenile Justice, subject to federal
12approval, an obligation to pay child support is suspended by
13operation of law, but not until 60 days after the obligee
14receives notice and an opportunity to request a termination or
15modification of the suspension of the support obligation in
16accordance with subsection (c) of this Section. If the obligee
17requests that the suspension or prohibition of the support
18obligation be terminated or modified and the court terminates
19or modifies the suspension of the support obligation, or if the
20parties have otherwise agreed in a written agreement set forth
21in a court or administrative order for support, then the child
22support obligation shall not be suspended and if the obligor
23wishes to obtain a modification, he or she must petition for a

 

 

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1modification of support in accordance with Section 510 of the
2Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act. The
3Department may provide, by rule, for notice to the obligee
4describing the obligee's rights regarding a prospective
5modification in accordance with Section 510 of the Illinois
6Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act.
7    If an obligor receives a settlement, claim, inheritance,
8lottery prize award, or other lump sum or periodic income of
9$500 or more a month or $5,000 or more as a one-time lump sum,
10during a period in which his or her child support obligation is
11suspended pursuant to this Code, the obligor shall notify the
12obligee, and in IV-D cases also notify the Department, within 7
13days of receiving or becoming aware that he or she is entitled
14to receive this income. If the obligee wishes to obtain a
15modification based on this income, he or she must petition for
16a modification of support in accordance with Section 510 of the
17Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act.
18    (b) Any period of incarceration of obligor shall not be
19considered a period of voluntary unemployment. In the case of
20an incarcerated parent obligated to pay child support greater
21than $0 whose period of incarceration is greater than one year
22and whose period of incarceration begins on or after January 1,
232018, the Department shall:
24        (1) temporarily suspend any support obligation of the
25    obligor and the enforcement of any support obligation of
26    the obligor existing prior to the period of incarceration;

 

 

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1    and
2        (2) temporarily prohibit the accrual of any interest on
3    any support obligation of the obligor existing prior to the
4    period of incarceration during the incarceration.
5    The temporary suspension of the child support obligation
6and of the accrual of interest on any support obligation of the
7obligor existing prior to the period of incarceration shall end
8and both support and accrual of interest on any pre-existing
9unpaid obligation shall resume upon the first charging period
10to occur after the obligor's release from incarceration. Unless
11the terms of the support obligation have been otherwise
12modified, the support terms shall resume at the same level as
13prior to the temporary suspension.
14    (c) If the Department is advised or given notice of the
15obligor's incarceration for a period to exceed one year
16beginning after January 1, 2018, the Department, for cases
17enrolled in the Child Support Enforcement Program established
18by Title IV-D of the Social Security Act, or the obligor parent
19or his or her representative in all other cases, shall provide
20both parties with:
21        (1) notice of any suspension or review, adjustment, or
22    enforcement of a support obligation and of any prohibition
23    on interest accrual on such obligation that is imposed in
24    accordance with paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (b);
25    and
26        (2) an opportunity to request that the suspension or

 

 

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1    prohibition be terminated or modified on the basis that the
2    obligor has sufficient income or resources to continue
3    payment of the support obligation during the obligor's
4    period of incarceration.
5    (d) The Department shall not be liable for failing to act
6upon the provisions established under paragraphs (1) and (2) of
7subsection (b) if the Department has not been advised of the
8obligor's incarceration or if the Department has in place
9proper procedures for considering an obligor's incarceration
10when setting and modifying child support obligations and
11follows those procedures routinely.
12    (e) The Department of Healthcare and Family Services and
13the Department of Corrections shall share relevant data and
14collaborate on the facilitation of identification of
15incarcerated obligors eligible for either temporary suspension
16of a child support obligation or modification of a child
17support obligation and shall provide relevant information and
18assistance to incarcerated obligors eligible for modification
19of support.
 
20    Section 10. The Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of
21Marriage Act is amended by changing Section 510 as follows:
 
22    (750 ILCS 5/510)  (from Ch. 40, par. 510)
23    (Text of Section before amendment by P.A. 99-764)
24    Sec. 510. Modification and termination of provisions for

 

 

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1maintenance, support, educational expenses, and property
2disposition.
3    (a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (f) of
4Section 502 and in subsection (b), clause (3) of Section 505.2,
5the provisions of any judgment respecting maintenance or
6support may be modified only as to installments accruing
7subsequent to due notice by the moving party of the filing of
8the motion for modification. An order for child support may be
9modified as follows:
10        (1) upon a showing of a substantial change in
11    circumstances; and
12        (2) without the necessity of showing a substantial
13    change in circumstances, as follows:
14            (A) upon a showing of an inconsistency of at least
15        20%, but no less than $10 per month, between the amount
16        of the existing order and the amount of child support
17        that results from application of the guidelines
18        specified in Section 505 of this Act unless the
19        inconsistency is due to the fact that the amount of the
20        existing order resulted from a deviation from the
21        guideline amount and there has not been a change in the
22        circumstances that resulted in that deviation; or
23            (B) upon a showing of a need to provide for the
24        health care needs of the child under the order through
25        health insurance or other means. In no event shall the
26        eligibility for or receipt of medical assistance be

 

 

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1        considered to meet the need to provide for the child's
2        health care needs.
3    The provisions of subparagraph (a)(2)(A) shall apply only
4in cases in which a party is receiving child support
5enforcement services from the Department of Healthcare and
6Family Services under Article X of the Illinois Public Aid
7Code, and only when at least 36 months have elapsed since the
8order for child support was entered or last modified.
9    (a-5) An order for maintenance may be modified or
10terminated only upon a showing of a substantial change in
11circumstances. In all such proceedings, as well as in
12proceedings in which maintenance is being reviewed, the court
13shall consider the applicable factors set forth in subsection
14(a) of Section 504 and the following factors:
15        (1) any change in the employment status of either party
16    and whether the change has been made in good faith;
17        (2) the efforts, if any, made by the party receiving
18    maintenance to become self-supporting, and the
19    reasonableness of the efforts where they are appropriate;
20        (3) any impairment of the present and future earning
21    capacity of either party;
22        (4) the tax consequences of the maintenance payments
23    upon the respective economic circumstances of the parties;
24        (5) the duration of the maintenance payments
25    previously paid (and remaining to be paid) relative to the
26    length of the marriage;

 

 

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1        (6) the property, including retirement benefits,
2    awarded to each party under the judgment of dissolution of
3    marriage, judgment of legal separation, or judgment of
4    declaration of invalidity of marriage and the present
5    status of the property;
6        (7) the increase or decrease in each party's income
7    since the prior judgment or order from which a review,
8    modification, or termination is being sought;
9        (8) the property acquired and currently owned by each
10    party after the entry of the judgment of dissolution of
11    marriage, judgment of legal separation, or judgment of
12    declaration of invalidity of marriage; and
13        (9) any other factor that the court expressly finds to
14    be just and equitable.
15    (a-6) In a review under subsection (b-4.5) of Section 504
16of this Act, the court may enter a fixed-term maintenance award
17that bars future maintenance only if, at the time of the entry
18of the award, the marriage had lasted 10 years or less at the
19time the original action was commenced.
20    (b) The provisions as to property disposition may not be
21revoked or modified, unless the court finds the existence of
22conditions that justify the reopening of a judgment under the
23laws of this State.
24    (c) Unless otherwise agreed by the parties in a written
25agreement set forth in the judgment or otherwise approved by
26the court, the obligation to pay future maintenance is

 

 

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1terminated upon the death of either party, or the remarriage of
2the party receiving maintenance, or if the party receiving
3maintenance cohabits with another person on a resident,
4continuing conjugal basis. A payor's obligation to pay
5maintenance or unallocated maintenance terminates by operation
6of law on the date the recipient remarries or the date the
7court finds cohabitation began. The payor is entitled to
8reimbursement for all maintenance paid from that date forward.
9Any termination of an obligation for maintenance as a result of
10the death of the payor party, however, shall be inapplicable to
11any right of the other party or such other party's designee to
12receive a death benefit under such insurance on the payor
13party's life. A party receiving maintenance must advise the
14payor of his or her intention to marry at least 30 days before
15the remarriage, unless the decision is made within this time
16period. In that event, he or she must notify the other party
17within 72 hours of getting married.
18    (c-5) In an adjudicated case, the court shall make specific
19factual findings as to the reason for the modification as well
20as the amount, nature, and duration of the modified maintenance
21award.
22    (d) Unless otherwise provided in this Act, or as agreed in
23writing or expressly provided in the judgment, provisions for
24the support of a child are terminated by emancipation of the
25child, or if the child has attained the age of 18 and is still
26attending high school, provisions for the support of the child

 

 

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1are terminated upon the date that the child graduates from high
2school or the date the child attains the age of 19, whichever
3is earlier, but not by the death of a parent obligated to
4support or educate the child. An existing obligation to pay for
5support or educational expenses, or both, is not terminated by
6the death of a parent. When a parent obligated to pay support
7or educational expenses, or both, dies, the amount of support
8or educational expenses, or both, may be enforced, modified,
9revoked or commuted to a lump sum payment, as equity may
10require, and that determination may be provided for at the time
11of the dissolution of the marriage or thereafter.
12    (e) The right to petition for support or educational
13expenses, or both, under Sections 505 and 513 is not
14extinguished by the death of a parent. Upon a petition filed
15before or after a parent's death, the court may award sums of
16money out of the decedent's estate for the child's support or
17educational expenses, or both, as equity may require. The time
18within which a claim may be filed against the estate of a
19decedent under Sections 505 and 513 and subsection (d) and this
20subsection shall be governed by the provisions of the Probate
21Act of 1975, as a barrable, noncontingent claim.
22    (f) A petition to modify or terminate child support or
23allocation of parental responsibilities shall not delay any
24child support enforcement litigation or supplementary
25proceeding on behalf of the obligee, including, but not limited
26to, a petition for a rule to show cause, for non-wage

 

 

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1garnishment, or for a restraining order.
2(Source: P.A. 99-90, eff. 1-1-16.)
 
3    (Text of Section after amendment by P.A. 99-764)
4    Sec. 510. Modification and termination of provisions for
5maintenance, support, educational expenses, and property
6disposition.
7    (a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (f) of
8Section 502 and in subsection (b), clause (3) of Section 505.2,
9the provisions of any judgment respecting maintenance or
10support may be modified only as to installments accruing
11subsequent to due notice by the moving party of the filing of
12the motion for modification. An order for child support may be
13modified as follows:
14        (1) upon a showing of a substantial change in
15    circumstances, including, subject to federal approval,
16    incarceration prior to January 1, 2018 or for a period of
17    incarceration of less than one year; and
18        (2) without the necessity of showing a substantial
19    change in circumstances, as follows:
20            (A) upon a showing of an inconsistency of at least
21        20%, but no less than $10 per month, between the amount
22        of the existing order and the amount of child support
23        that results from application of the guidelines
24        specified in Section 505 of this Act unless the
25        inconsistency is due to the fact that the amount of the

 

 

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1        existing order resulted from a deviation from the
2        guideline amount and there has not been a change in the
3        circumstances that resulted in that deviation; or
4            (B) upon a showing of a need to provide for the
5        health care needs of the child under the order through
6        health insurance or other means. In no event shall the
7        eligibility for or receipt of medical assistance be
8        considered to meet the need to provide for the child's
9        health care needs.
10    The provisions of subparagraph (a)(2)(A) shall apply only
11in cases in which a party is receiving child support
12enforcement services from the Department of Healthcare and
13Family Services under Article X of the Illinois Public Aid
14Code, and only when at least 36 months have elapsed since the
15order for child support was entered or last modified.
16    The court may grant a petition for modification that seeks
17to apply the changes made to subsection (a) of Section 505 by
18Public Act 99-764 this amendatory Act of the 99th General
19Assembly to an order entered before the effective date of
20Public Act 99-764 this amendatory Act of the 99th General
21Assembly only upon a finding of a substantial change in
22circumstances that warrants application of the changes. The
23enactment of Public Act 99-764 this amendatory Act of the 99th
24General Assembly itself does not constitute a substantial
25change in circumstances warranting a modification.
26    (a-5) An order for maintenance may be modified or

 

 

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1terminated only upon a showing of a substantial change in
2circumstances. In all such proceedings, as well as in
3proceedings in which maintenance is being reviewed, the court
4shall consider the applicable factors set forth in subsection
5(a) of Section 504 and the following factors:
6        (1) any change in the employment status of either party
7    and whether the change has been made in good faith;
8        (2) the efforts, if any, made by the party receiving
9    maintenance to become self-supporting, and the
10    reasonableness of the efforts where they are appropriate;
11        (3) any impairment of the present and future earning
12    capacity of either party;
13        (4) the tax consequences of the maintenance payments
14    upon the respective economic circumstances of the parties;
15        (5) the duration of the maintenance payments
16    previously paid (and remaining to be paid) relative to the
17    length of the marriage;
18        (6) the property, including retirement benefits,
19    awarded to each party under the judgment of dissolution of
20    marriage, judgment of legal separation, or judgment of
21    declaration of invalidity of marriage and the present
22    status of the property;
23        (7) the increase or decrease in each party's income
24    since the prior judgment or order from which a review,
25    modification, or termination is being sought;
26        (8) the property acquired and currently owned by each

 

 

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1    party after the entry of the judgment of dissolution of
2    marriage, judgment of legal separation, or judgment of
3    declaration of invalidity of marriage; and
4        (9) any other factor that the court expressly finds to
5    be just and equitable.
6    (a-6) In a review under subsection (b-4.5) of Section 504
7of this Act, the court may enter a fixed-term maintenance award
8that bars future maintenance only if, at the time of the entry
9of the award, the marriage had lasted 10 years or less at the
10time the original action was commenced.
11    (b) The provisions as to property disposition may not be
12revoked or modified, unless the court finds the existence of
13conditions that justify the reopening of a judgment under the
14laws of this State.
15    (c) Unless otherwise agreed by the parties in a written
16agreement set forth in the judgment or otherwise approved by
17the court, the obligation to pay future maintenance is
18terminated upon the death of either party, or the remarriage of
19the party receiving maintenance, or if the party receiving
20maintenance cohabits with another person on a resident,
21continuing conjugal basis. A payor's obligation to pay
22maintenance or unallocated maintenance terminates by operation
23of law on the date the recipient remarries or the date the
24court finds cohabitation began. The payor is entitled to
25reimbursement for all maintenance paid from that date forward.
26Any termination of an obligation for maintenance as a result of

 

 

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1the death of the payor party, however, shall be inapplicable to
2any right of the other party or such other party's designee to
3receive a death benefit under such insurance on the payor
4party's life. A party receiving maintenance must advise the
5payor of his or her intention to marry at least 30 days before
6the remarriage, unless the decision is made within this time
7period. In that event, he or she must notify the other party
8within 72 hours of getting married.
9    (c-5) In an adjudicated case, the court shall make specific
10factual findings as to the reason for the modification as well
11as the amount, nature, and duration of the modified maintenance
12award.
13    (d) Unless otherwise provided in this Act, or as agreed in
14writing or expressly provided in the judgment, provisions for
15the support of a child are terminated by emancipation of the
16child, or if the child has attained the age of 18 and is still
17attending high school, provisions for the support of the child
18are terminated upon the date that the child graduates from high
19school or the date the child attains the age of 19, whichever
20is earlier, but not by the death of a parent obligated to
21support or educate the child. An existing obligation to pay for
22support or educational expenses, or both, is not terminated by
23the death of a parent. When a parent obligated to pay support
24or educational expenses, or both, dies, the amount of support
25or educational expenses, or both, may be enforced, modified,
26revoked or commuted to a lump sum payment, as equity may

 

 

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1require, and that determination may be provided for at the time
2of the dissolution of the marriage or thereafter.
3    (d-5) During any period of time in which the obligor is
4committed to the custody of the Department of Corrections or
5the Department of Juvenile Justice, subject to federal
6approval, an obligation to pay child support is suspended by
7operation of law, but not until 60 days after the obligee
8receives notice and an opportunity to request a termination or
9modification of the suspension of the support obligation in
10accordance with subsection (d-7) of this Section. If the
11obligee requests that the suspension or prohibition of the
12support obligation be terminated or modified and the court
13terminates or modifies the suspension of the support
14obligation, or if the parties have otherwise agreed in a
15written agreement set forth in the judgment or otherwise
16approved by the court, then the child support obligation shall
17not be suspended and if the obligor wishes to obtain a
18modification, he or she must petition for a modification of
19support in accordance with this Section. The Department of
20Healthcare and Family Services may provide, by rule, for notice
21to the obligee describing the obligee's rights regarding a
22prospective modification in accordance with this Section.
23    If an obligor receives a settlement, claim, inheritance,
24lottery prize award, or other lump sum or periodic income of
25$500 or more a month or $5,000 or more as a one-time lump sum,
26during a period in which his or her child support obligation is

 

 

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1suspended pursuant to Section 10-12.5 of the Illinois Public
2Aid Code, the obligor shall notify the obligee, and in IV-D
3cases also notify the Department of Healthcare and Family
4Services, within 7 days of receiving or becoming aware that he
5or she is entitled to receive this income. If the obligee
6wishes to obtain a modification based on this income, he or she
7must petition for a modification of support in accordance with
8this Section.
9    (d-6) The State shall not consider any period of
10incarceration of an obligor as a period of voluntary
11unemployment that disqualifies the parent from obtaining a
12modification of the support obligation consistent with the
13obligor's ability to pay child support. In the case of an
14incarcerated obligor, the State shall, subject to federal
15approval:
16        (1) temporarily suspend any support obligation of the
17    obligor and the enforcement of any support obligation of
18    the obligor existing prior to the period of incarceration;
19    and
20        (2) temporarily prohibit the accrual of any interest on
21    any support obligation of the obligor existing prior to the
22    period of incarceration during the incarceration.
23    (d-7) The Department of Healthcare and Family Services, for
24cases enrolled in the Child Support Enforcement Program
25established by Title IV-D of the Social Security Act, or the
26obligor or his or her representative in all other cases, shall

 

 

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1provide the obligee with:
2        (1) notice of any suspension or review, adjustment, or
3    enforcement of a support obligation and notice of any
4    prohibition on the accrual of interest on the support
5    obligation that is imposed in accordance with paragraphs
6    (1) and (2) of subsection (d-6); and
7        (2) an opportunity to request that the suspension or
8    prohibition be terminated or modified on the basis that the
9    obligor has sufficient income or resources to continue
10    payment of the support obligation during the obligor's
11    period of incarceration.
12    (e) The right to petition for support or educational
13expenses, or both, under Sections 505 and 513 is not
14extinguished by the death of a parent. Upon a petition filed
15before or after a parent's death, the court may award sums of
16money out of the decedent's estate for the child's support or
17educational expenses, or both, as equity may require. The time
18within which a claim may be filed against the estate of a
19decedent under Sections 505 and 513 and subsection (d) and this
20subsection shall be governed by the provisions of the Probate
21Act of 1975, as a barrable, noncontingent claim.
22    (f) A petition to modify or terminate child support or
23allocation of parental responsibilities shall not delay any
24child support enforcement litigation or supplementary
25proceeding on behalf of the obligee, including, but not limited
26to, a petition for a rule to show cause, for non-wage

 

 

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1garnishment, or for a restraining order.
2    (g) The crime for which the incarcerated obligor was
3convicted, or the prosecution of the incarcerated obligor for
4that crime by a legal representative of the Department of
5Healthcare and Family Services for cases enrolled in the Child
6Support Enforcement Program established by Title IV-D of the
7Social Security Act, shall not disqualify the obligor from
8consideration of modification of a child support obligation,
9nor shall the action of the Department's legal representative
10to bring forth the modification request for consideration be
11considered a conflict of interest for the prosecuting office,
12except in cases in which the crime was committed to avoid a
13child support obligation or was committed against a child of
14the obligor or the obligee.
15(Source: P.A. 99-90, eff. 1-1-16; 99-764, eff. 7-1-17; revised
169-8-16.)
 
17    Section 95. No acceleration or delay. Where this Act makes
18changes in a statute that is represented in this Act by text
19that is not yet or no longer in effect (for example, a Section
20represented by multiple versions), the use of that text does
21not accelerate or delay the taking effect of (i) the changes
22made by this Act or (ii) provisions derived from any other
23Public Act.