Provision of services in interstate IV-D cases

(a) Central registry (1) Definition "Central registry" means a single centralized office within or under cooperative agreement with the IV-D agency which is responsible for receiving, distributing, and responding to automated and manual inquiries on all incoming interstate IV-D cases, including UIFSA petitions and requests for income withholding. (2) Functions There shall be a central registry located within SED which shall: (A) within 10 working days of receipt of an interstate IV-D case from an initiating state, (i) review submitted documentation for completeness, (ii) forward the case to either the SPLS or the appropriate local office of SED for processing, (iii) acknowledge receipt of the case and ensure that any missing documentation has been requested from the initiating state, and (iv) inform the IV-D agency in the initiating state where the case was sent for action; (B) if the documentation received with a case is inadequate and cannot be remedied by the central registry without the assistance of the initiating state, forward the case to the appropriate agency for any action which can be taken pending receipt of necessary documentation from the initiating state; and (C) respond to inquiries from other states within 5 working days of receipt of the request for a case status review. (b) Responding state functions When Connecticut is the responding state, SED shall: (1) serve as the support enforcement agency under UIFSA and provide any necessary services within the applicable timeframes for the given services which shall include paternity and support obligation establishment, in conjunction with the AGO, enforcement of court orders, and collection and monitoring of support payments; (2) perform clerical, administrative and other non-judicial functions on behalf of the family support magistrate division pursuant to UIFSA; (3) maintain a registry of support orders of the Family Support Magistrate Division; (4) maintain a registry of paternity judgments of other states, which registry shall include both paternity acknowledgments and adjudications; (5) serve as the state information agency under UIFSA; (6) provide timely notice to the parties and the IV-D agency in the initiating state of: (A) Hearings to establish or modify a support order, (B) Hearings to contest the registration of a support or income withholding order, and (C) Hearings to contest the direct filing of an income withholding order from another state with a Connecticut employer; (7) Provide a copy of any support order established or modified, or a notice of determination that there should be no change in the amount of the support order, within 14 days of issuance, to each party and the state case registry; (8) Provide the petitioner within 5 days, excluding weekends and holidays with: (A) copies of written notice from an initiating, responding or registering tribunal, (B) copies of written communication from the respondent or respondent's attorney, and (C) notice if jurisdiction over the respondent cannot be obtained; (9) within 10 working days of receipt of new information on a case, notify the IV-D agency in the initiating state by submitting an updated form; (10) within 75 calendar days of receipt of a standardized interstate Child Support Enforcement Transmittal and documentation from the central registry: (A) provide location services in accordance with section 17b-179(m)-2 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies if the request is for location services or the form or documentation does not include adequate location information on the noncustodial parent, (B) if unable to proceed with the case because of inadequate documentation, notify the IV-D agency in the initiating state of the necessary additions or corrections to the form or documentation, and (C) if the documentation received with a case is inadequate and cannot be remedied by SED without the assistance of the initiating state, process the interstate IV-D case to the extent possible pending necessary action by the initiating state; (11) within 10 working days of locating the noncustodial parent in a different jurisdiction within the state, forward the form and documentation to the appropriate jurisdiction and notify the initiating state and central registry of its action; (12) within 10 working days of locating the noncustodial parent in a different state: (A) return the form and documentation, including the new location, to the initiating state, or, if directed by the initiating state, forward the form and documentation to the central registry in the state where the noncustodial parent has been located, and (B) notify the central registry where the case has been sent; (13) If a petition or comparable pleading is received by an inappropriate tribunal of this state, promptly forward the pleadings and the accompanying documents to an appropriate tribunal in this state or another state and notify the petitioner by first class mail where and when the pleading was sent; (14) Accept and process international requests for child support services from any foreign jurisdiction that has enacted a law or established procedures for issuance and enforcement of support orders which are substantially similar to UIFSA, the Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act, or the Revised Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act; (15) notify the central registry in the initiating state when a case is closed; and (16) coordinate genetic testing arrangements with the initiating court. (c) Initiating state functions When Connecticut is the initiating state, SED shall perform the functions assigned to it under UIFSA. SED shall also accept and process requests from BCSE for child support services in foreign nations that have enacted a law or established procedures for issuance and enforcement of support orders which are substantially similar to UIFSA, the Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act, or the Revised Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act. SED shall also perform the following additional functions specified in this subsection. (1) Establishment In cases requiring the establishment of paternity where the putative father resides out of or is absent from the state, BCSE shall first attempt to establish legal paternity in accordance with section 17b-179(m)-4 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies, to the extent provided in section 46b-160 of the Connecticut General Statutes, before proceeding under this section. In other cases when Connecticut is the initiating state, BCSE shall, in cases requiring the establishment of a support order through the UIFSA petition process: (A) complete all required forms for the interstate referral package and refer to the responding state's central registry within 20 calendar days of determining that the noncustodial parent is in another state; (B) provide the petitioner within five days, excluding weekends and holidays with: (i) copies of written notice from an initiating, responding or registering tribunal, (ii) copies of written communication from the respondent or the respondent's attorney, and (iii) notice if jurisdiction over the respondent cannot be obtained; (C) provide the IV-D agency or central registry in the responding state any requested additional information or notify the responding state when the information will be provided within 30 calendar days of receipt of the request for information by submitting an updated form and any necessary additional documentation; (D) notify the IV-D agency in the responding state within 10 working days of receipt of new information on a case by submitting an updated form and any necessary additional documentation; (E) coordinate genetic testing arrangements when ordered by the responding court; and (F) provide a copy of any support order established or modified, or a notice of determination that there should be no change in the amount of the support order, within 14 days of issuance, to each party and the state case registry. (2) Enforcement (A) Responsible agency BCSE shall perform the functions in this subdivision if it determines, pursuant to the intake process, that there is a pre-existing support order which has not already been established on CCSES. SED shall perform such functions if BCSE determines that there is a pre-existing support order which has already been established on CCSES. When BCSE performs the functions in this subdivision, it shall also, where required for the remedy chosen, complete all forms for the interstate referral package and forward the completed package along with all required documentation, such as financial affidavits and certified copies of court orders, to the responding state's central registry within 20 calendar days of determining that the noncustodial parent is in another state. (B) Initiate remedy The responsible agency shall obtain sufficient information and documentation to determine the appropriate remedy, depending on the noncustodial parent's income source, and initiate such remedy as follows: (i) income withholding served on resident agent if the noncustodial parent is employed by a company doing business in Connecticut, (ii) direct income withholding if the noncustodial parent is employed by a company in another state with the UIFSA direct withholding provision; (iii) interstate income withholding or request for enforcement of responding state's own local order if the noncustodial parent is employed by a company not doing business in Connecticut and direct income withholding is not appropriate, (iv) involuntary military allotment if the noncustodial parent is in active military service, (v) withholding served on designated agent if the noncustodial parent is employed by the federal government, (vi) registration of order or request for enforcement of responding state's own local order if the noncustodial parent is self-employed or his or her income source is unknown, or (vii) UIFSA petition to establish a support order if there are no orders entitled to recognition under UIFSA. (C) Provide information The responsible agency shall provide the IV-D agency or central registry in the responding state any requested additional information or notify the responding state when the information will be provided within 30 calendar days of receipt of the request for information by submitting an updated form and any necessary additional documentation. (D) Update information The responsible agency shall notify the IV-D agency in the responding state within 10 working days of receipt of new information on a case by submitting an updated form and any necessary additional documentation. (E) Notify petitioner The responsible agency shall provide the petitioner within five days, excluding weekends and holidays with: (i) copies of written notice from an initiating, responding or registering tribunal, (ii) copies of written communication from the respondent or the respondent's attorney, and (iii) notice if jurisdiction over the respondent cannot be obtained. (F) Coordinate genetic testing The responsible agency shall coordinate genetic testing arrangements when ordered by the responding court. (G) Provide copy of order The responsible agency shall provide a copy of any support order established or modified, or a notice of determination that there should be no change in the amount of the support order, within 14 days of issuance, to each party and the State Case Registry. (H) Update CCSES The responsible agency shall update CCSES upon completion of the responding state action.