Child support.

Section 4201(b)(3) creates a new structured opt-out process: the court must advise the obligee on the record or in writing at the time the order is entered about what Title IV-D services include, the right to decline, and the right to simultaneously request a stay of the earnings assignment order. If the obligee is not present, they have 10 business days from service to submit a written election.

A new provision allows an obligee who opts out to simultaneously obtain a stay of the earnings assignment order (wage garnishment) under Section 5230. If the local child support agency has already issued an earnings assignment before receiving the opt-out, it must terminate that order within five business days.

The court must now transmit the child support order and contact information to the local child support agency within five business days after the expiration of the 10-business-day election window if no timely election has been made, rather than immediately upon entry of the order.

A new provision in Section 4201(b)(4) clarifies that an obligee who opted out may request Title IV-D services at any time in the future by submitting an application, and upon doing so the stay of the earnings assignment order is lifted and the agency may take all enforcement actions.

The automatic 'deemed application' for Title IV-D services in Section 4201(b)(2) now includes an exception: every court order is deemed an application UNLESS the support obligee makes a timely election to decline pursuant to paragraph (3).

Section 4014(c) is removed entirely. This provision had stated that the personal information requirements only applied when the local child support agency was not providing services under Section 17400, and included a transitional rule that once the Statewide Child Support Registry became operational, parties would be required to file and keep updated their information with the registry.

A new provision in Section 4201(b)(3)(D) specifies that an obligee CANNOT opt out if they are required to receive Title IV-D services under state or federal law, including cases involving CalWORKs, Medi-Cal, foster care assistance, or assignment to the state of medical support or arrearages.

The Judicial Council forms deadline is moved from Section 4014(d) (which required forms available no later than 30 days prior to implementation of the Statewide Child Support Registry) to a new Section 4201(b)(6), which sets a fixed deadline of January 1, 2028.

Section 4014(b)(2)(A) renumbers the list of required personal information items from numbered paragraphs (1)-(6) to roman numeral subparagraphs (i)-(vi), and removes the redundant 'file with the court' language in favor of 'submit via a confidential electronic portal.'

The bill now amends both Section 4014 and Section 4201 of the Family Code, whereas the introduced version only amended Section 4201. This adds an entirely new statutory section governing information submission requirements for child support cases.

The new Section 4014 requirements only apply in cases where the local child support agency is NOT already providing child support services under Section 17400, meaning parties already enrolled in county services are exempt from the portal submission requirement.

A new requirement that child support obligors and obligees must submit personal information (residential address, mailing address, SSN or ITIN, telephone number, driver's license or ID number, employer name/address/phone, and any other Judicial Council-prescribed information) via a confidential electronic portal PRIOR to filing the proposed judgment or order, along with a receipt or confirmation from the portal.

The Department of Child Support Services is required to establish a confidential electronic portal. The portal must include: contact information for the local child support agency, description of Title IV-D services (free and fee-based), notification that submittal is deemed an application for services, an opt-out option for the obligee, confidentiality assurances, a domestic violence concern indicator, and any additional program notices or rights advisements.

Information submitted through the portal must be sent to the Statewide Child Support Registry (Section 17391) and to the local child support agency.

The opt-out mechanism for Title IV-D services changed from submitting a voluntary case closure request to the local child support agency (paper-based) to indicating the opt-out within the confidential electronic portal. Terminology also shifted from 'decline to receive' to 'opt out of receiving.'

Section 4201 now requires the court to require every child support obligee to submit personal information via the portal, and that submittal is deemed an application for Title IV-D services. This adds a new affirmative court duty beyond what was in the introduced version.

The Judicial Council must develop forms to implement the new Section 4014, and those forms must be available no later than 30 days prior to implementation of the Statewide Child Support Registry.