H. R. 3694

One Hundred Third Congress

of the

United States of America

AT THE SECOND SESSION

Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,

the twenty-fifth day of January, one thousand nine hundred and ninety-four

An Act

To amend title 5, United States Code, to permit the garnishment of an annuity

under the Civil Service Retirement System or the Federal Employees’ Retirement

System, if necessary to satisfy a judgment against an annuitant for physically,

sexually, or emotionally abusing a child.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of

the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Child Abuse Accountability

Act’’.

SEC. 2. GARNISHMENT AUTHORITY.

(a) CIVIL SERVICE RETIREMENT SYSTEM.—(1) Section 8345(j)(1)

of title 5, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:

‘‘(j)(1) Payments under this subchapter which would otherwise

be made to an employee, Member, or annuitant based on service

of that individual shall be paid (in whole or in part) by the Office

to another person if and to the extent expressly provided for in

the terms of—

‘‘(A) any court decree of divorce, annulment, or legal separation, or the terms of any court order or court-approved property

settlement agreement incident to any court decree of divorce,

annulment, or legal separation; or

‘‘(B) any court order or other similar process in the nature

of garnishment for the enforcement of a judgment rendered

against such employee, Member, or annuitant, for physically,

sexually, or emotionally abusing a child.

In the event that the Office is served with more than 1 decree,

order, or other legal process with respect to the same moneys

due or payable to any individual, such moneys shall be available

to satisfy such processes on a first-come, first-served basis, with

any such process being satisfied out of such moneys as remain

after the satisfaction of all such processes which have been previously served.’’.

(2) Section 8345(j)(2) of title 5, United States Code, is amended

by inserting ‘‘other legal process,’’ after ‘‘order,’’.

(3) Section 8345(j)(3) of title 5, United States Code, is amended

to read as follows:

‘‘(3) For the purpose of this subsection—

‘‘(A) the term ‘court’ means any court of any State, the

District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam,

the Northern Mariana Islands, or the Virgin Islands, and any

Indian court;
H. R. 3694—2

‘‘(B) the term ‘judgment rendered for physically, sexually,

or emotionally abusing a child’ means any legal claim perfected

through a final enforceable judgment, which claim is based

in whole or in part upon the physical, sexual, or emotional

abuse of a child, whether or not that abuse is accompanied

by other actionable wrongdoing, such as sexual exploitation

or gross negligence; and

‘‘(C) the term ‘child’ means an individual under 18 years

of age.’’.

(b) FEDERAL EMPLOYEES’ RETIREMENT SYSTEM.—(1) Section

8467(a) of title 5, United States Code, is amended to read as

follows:

‘‘(a) Payments under this chapter which would otherwise be

made to an employee, Member, or annuitant (including an employee,

Member, or annuitant as defined in section 8331) based on service

of that individual shall be paid (in whole or in part) by the Office

or the Executive Director, as the case may be, to another person

if and to the extent expressly provided for in the terms of—

‘‘(1) any court decree of divorce, annulment, or legal separation, or the terms of any court order or court-approved property

settlement agreement incident to any court decree of divorce,

annulment, or legal separation; or

‘‘(2) any court order or other similar process in the nature

of garnishment for the enforcement of a judgment rendered

against such employee, Member, or annuitant, for physically,

sexually, or emotionally abusing a child.

In the event that the Office or the Executive Director, as the

case may be, is served with more than 1 decree, order, or other

legal process with respect to the same moneys due or payable

to any individual, such moneys shall be available to satisfy such

processes on a first-come, first-served basis, with any such process

being satisfied out of such moneys as remain after the satisfaction

of all such processes which have been previously served.’’. (2) Section 8467(b) of title 5, United States Code, is amended

by inserting ‘‘other legal process,’’ after ‘‘order,’’. (3) Section 8467 of title 5, United States Code, is amended

by adding at the end the following: ‘‘(c) For the purpose of this section—

‘‘(1) the term ‘judgment rendered for physically, sexually,

or emotionally abusing a child’ means any legal claim perfected

through a final enforceable judgment, which claim is based

in whole or in part upon the physical, sexual, or emotional

abuse of a child, whether or not that abuse is accompanied

by other actionable wrongdoing, such as sexual exploitation

or gross negligence; and

‘‘(2) the term ‘child’ means an individual under 18 years

of age.’’.

(4) Section 8437(e)(3) of title 5, United States Code, is amended

by striking the period at the end of the first sentence and inserting

the following: ‘‘or relating to the enforcement of a judgment for

physically, sexually, or emotionally abusing a child as provided

under section 8467(a).’’.
H. R. 3694—3

SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.

The amendments made by this Act shall take effect on the

date of enactment of this Act, and shall apply with respect to

any decree, order, or other legal process, or notice of agreement

received by the Office of Personnel Management or the Executive

Director of the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board on

or after such date of enactment.

Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Vice President of the United States and

President of the Senate.