S1046 2R

An Act concerning child support and supplementing chapter 17 of Title 2A of the New Jersey Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. a. Unless otherwise provided in a court order or judgment, the obligation to pay child support shall terminate by operation of law without order by the court on the date that a child ²[who is less than 19 years of age]² marries, dies, or enters the military service. ²[A] In addition, a² child support obligation shall ²[also]² terminate by operation of law without order by the court when a child reaches 19 years of age unless:

(1) another age for the termination of the obligation to pay child support ², which shall not extend beyond the date the child reaches 23 years of age,² is specified in a court order;

(2) ²[the parents of the child consent and the court approves the continuation of support until another predetermined date; ¹[or]¹

(3)] a written request seeking the continuation of child support is submitted to² the court ²[extends the obligation to pay child support based on an application]² by a ²custodial² parent ²[or ¹[the child] guardian¹ filed]² prior to the child ²[attaining] reaching² the age of 19 ²in accordance with subsection b. of this section² ¹; or

²[(4)] (3)² the child receiving support is in an out-of-home placement through the Division of Child Protection and Permanency in the Department of Children and Families¹.

b. ²[A] (1) In response to a notice of proposed termination of child support issued in accordance with subsection d. of this section, a custodial² parent ²[or ¹[child may petition the court for] guardian]² may submit a written request ², on a form and within timeframes promulgated by the Administrative Office of the Courts, with supporting documentation² to the court ²[with supporting documentation]² , including a projected future date when support will terminate, ²[if appropriate,]² seeking¹ the continuation of child support beyond ²the date the child reaches² 19 years of age in the following circumstances:

²[(1)] (a)² the child is still enrolled in high school or other secondary educational program;

²[(2)] (b)²the child is ²[participating full-time] a student² in a post-secondary education program ²[;

(3)] and is enrolled for the number of hours or courses the school considers to be full-time attendance during some part of each of any five calendar months of the year; or

(c)²the child has a physical or mental disability ², as determined by a federal or State government agency,² that existed prior to the child reaching the age of 19 and requires continued ²child² support ²[; or

(4) other] .

(2) A custodial parent may file a motion with the court seeking to extend the obligation to pay child support beyond the date the child reaches 19 years of age due to² exceptional circumstances as may be approved by the court.

c. If the court ¹[grants an order for] ²[orders¹ the continuation of the obligation to pay child support ¹based on the written request of the parent or guardian¹, it shall include in its order a future date upon which the child support obligation will terminate or a date upon which the court will review the circumstances of the parties and children. ¹Notice of the continuation of the obligation and the future termination date, when ordered, shall be provided to the parties] finds that the request form and supporting documentation submitted by the custodial parent establish sufficient proof to continue the child support beyond the date a child reaches 19 years of age pursuant to paragraph (1) of subsection b. of this section, the child support obligation shall not be terminated by operation of law when the child reaches the age of 19, and the court shall issue an order establishing the prospective date of child support termination. A copy of the court order shall be provided to both parents of the child. A parent responsible for paying child support who disagrees with the court’s decision to continue child support beyond the date the child reaches 19 years of age or who otherwise desires to modify or terminate the child support obligation may, at any time, file a motion with the court seeking relief from that obligation².¹

d. For ²child² support orders that are ²[being supervised] administered² by the Probation Division of the Superior Court, ²[no less than 90 days prior to the termination of child support pursuant to this section]² the Probation Division and the State IV-D agency shall cooperatively provide both parents with at least ²[one notice] two notices² of a proposed termination ²of child support² , which shall include ²[instructions for seeking] information and the request form to facilitate² the continuation of child support ²[in appropriate circumstances] for a child beyond the date the child reaches 19 years of age. The first notice shall be sent at least 180 days prior to the proposed termination date, and the second notice shall be sent at least 90 days prior to the proposed termination date. The second notice shall not be required whenever a custodial parent’s request for continuation is pending or a new date of child support termination has been established. In addition, all orders and judgments that include a child support obligation entered after the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall contain information regarding the termination of child support obligations as provided in P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

e. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, the obligation to pay child support shall terminate by operation of law when a child reaches 23 years of age. The Probation Division and the State IV-D agency shall cooperatively provide both parents with a notice of termination at least 90 days prior to the termination date. Nothing in this section shall be construed to:

(1) prevent a child who is beyond 23 years of age from seeking a court order requiring the payment of other forms of financial maintenance or reimbursement from a parent as authorized by law to the extent that such financial maintenance or reimbursement is not payable or enforceable as child support as defined in section 3 of P.L.1998, c.1 (C.2A:17-56.52); or

(2) prevent the court, upon application of a parent or child, from converting, due to exceptional circumstances including, but not limited to, a mental or physical disability, a child support obligation to another form of financial maintenance for a child who has reached the age of 23² .

2. a. Whenever there is an unallocated child support order for two or more children and the obligation to pay ²child² support for one of the children is terminated by operation of law pursuant to section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the amount of the child support obligation in effect immediately prior to the date of the termination shall remain in effect for the other children ²[until the court subsequently modifies the child support amount]². Either party may file an application with the court to adjust the remaining child support amount to reflect the reduction in the number of dependent children. For the purposes of this section, “unallocated” means a child support amount for the benefit of multiple children that does not specify the amount of ²child² support for each child.

b. Whenever there is an allocated child support order for two or more children and the obligation to pay ²child² support for one of the children is terminated by operation of law pursuant to section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the amount of the child support obligation shall be adjusted to reflect only the amount allotted for the remaining child or children. Either party may file an application with the court to adjust the remaining ²child² support amount to reflect the reduction in the number of dependent children. For the purposes of this section, “allocated” means a child support amount for the benefit of multiple children that specifies the amount of support for each child as ordered by the court.

3. If a child support obligation is terminated by operation of law pursuant to section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), any arrearages that have accrued prior to the date of the termination shall remain due and enforceable. If the person responsible for paying ²child² support for a child owes child support arrearages at the time a ²child² support obligation is terminated and there are no other children being supported under the same order, the amount to be paid to satisfy the arrearage shall be the sum of the recurring child support obligation in effect immediately prior to the effective date of the termination plus any arrears repayment obligation in effect immediately prior to the effective date of the termination, unless otherwise ordered by the court.

For ²child² support orders that are being ²[supervised] administered² by the Probation Division of the Superior Court, the Probation Division shall continue to enforce and collect the arrearages until they are paid in full or the court, in accordance with State and federal law and regulations and the Rules of Court, as applicable, terminates the Probation Division's supervision of the support order.

4. The provisions of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall not apply to child support provisions contained in orders or judgments entered by a foreign jurisdiction and registered in New Jersey for modification or enforcement pursuant to the “Uniform Interstate Family Support Act,” P.L.1998, c.2 (C.2A:4-30.65 et seq.) ²or any succeeding law that is substantially similar² , or a law or procedure substantially similar to the "Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act," originally adopted in New Jersey as P.L.1952, c.197 (C.2A:4-30.1 et seq.) but subsequently repealed, or the "Revised Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act," originally adopted in New Jersey as P.L.1981, c.243 (C.2A:4-30.24 et seq.) but also subsequently repealed.

5. Nothing in P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall:

a. require or relieve a parent from paying support or other costs while a child is enrolled full-time in a post-secondary education program;

b. prohibit the State IV-D agency or the Probation Division of the Superior Court from seeking to close a Title IV-D case or terminate its supervision of a child support order in accordance with procedures as provided under State or federal law and regulations or the Rules of Court;

c. prohibit any party from filing an application with the court seeking the termination of an order to pay child support for any cause other than those provided under P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill); or

d. prohibit the parties from consenting to a specific termination date ²for child support that does not exceed the date a child reaches 23 years of age, or to any other financial arrangements for a child that are not designated as child support,² subject to the approval of the court.

¹6. Nothing in P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall be construed to prevent a parent ²[or guardian]² responsible for paying child support from petitioning the court for the termination of child support or for emancipation of a child prior to the ²[age of] child reaching² 19 ²years of age² for good cause, or from petitioning the court to contest the extension of child support ²for a child² beyond the ²[age of] the date the child reaches² 19 ²years of age² as provided in P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).¹

¹[6.] 7.¹The Supreme Court may adopt Rules of Court appropriate or necessary to effectuate the purposes of this act.

¹[7.] 8.¹ The Commissioner of Human Services may adopt rules and regulations pursuant to the “Administrative Procedure Act,” P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.) to effectuate the purposes of this act.

¹[8.] 9.¹This act shall take effect ²[180 days] on the first day of the 13th month² after enactment and shall be applicable to all child support orders issued prior to, on, or after the effective date. ²The Department of Human Services and the Administrative Office of the Courts shall cooperate to take any appropriate anticipatory administrative action, including action concerning the notice requirements of subsection d. of section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), in advance of the effective date as shall be necessary for the implementation of this act.²