IIB
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4678
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
SEPTEMBER 8, 2000
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance
AN ACT
To provide more child support money to families leaving
welfare, to simplify the rules governing the assignment
and distribution of child support collected by States on
behalf of children, to improve the collection of child sup-
port, to promote marriage, and for other purposes.
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Child Support Dis-
tribution Act of 2000’’.
SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS.
The table of contents for this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title.
Sec. 2. Table of contents.
TITLE I—DISTRIBUTION OF CHILD SUPPORT
Sec. 101. Distribution of child support collected by States on behalf of children
receiving certain welfare benefits.
TITLE II—REVIEW AND ADJUSTMENT OF CHILD SUPPORT
ORDERS
Sec. 201. Mandatory review and modification of child support orders for TANF
recipients.
TITLE III—DEMONSTRATION OF EXPANDED INFORMATION AND
ENFORCEMENT
Sec. 301. Guidelines for involvement of public non-IV-D child support enforce-
ment agencies in child support enforcement.
Sec. 302. Demonstrations involving establishment and enforcement of child sup-
port obligations by public non-IV-D child support enforcement
agencies.
Sec. 303. GAO report to Congress on private child support enforcement agen-
cies.
Sec. 304. Effective date.
TITLE IV—EXPANDED ENFORCEMENT
Sec. 401. Decrease in amount of child support arrearage triggering passport
denial.
Sec. 402. Use of tax refund intercept program to collect past-due child support
on behalf of children who are not minors.
Sec. 403. Garnishment of compensation paid to veterans for service-connected
disabilities in order to enforce child support obligations.
TITLE V—FATHERHOOD PROGRAMS
Subtitle A—Fatherhood Grant Program
Sec. 501. Fatherhood grants.
Subtitle B—Fatherhood Projects of National Significance
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Sec. 511. Fatherhood projects of national significance.
TITLE VI—MISCELLANEOUS
Sec. 601. Change dates for abstinence evaluation.
Sec. 602. Report on undistributed child support payments.
Sec. 603. Use of new hire information to assist in administration of unemploy-
ment compensation programs.
Sec. 604. Immigration provisions.
Sec. 605. Correction of errors in conforming amendments in the Welfare-To-
Work and Child Support Amendments of 1999.
Sec. 606. Elimination of set-aside of welfare-to-work funds for successful per-
formance bonus.
Sec. 607. Increase in payment rate to States for expenditures for short term
training of staff of certain child welfare agencies.
TITLE VII—EFFECTIVE DATE
Sec. 701. Effective date.
TITLE I—DISTRIBUTION OF
CHILD SUPPORT
SEC. 101. DISTRIBUTION OF CHILD SUPPORT COLLECTED
BY STATES ON BEHALF OF CHILDREN RE-
CEIVING CERTAIN WELFARE BENEFITS.
(a) MODIFICATION OF RULE REQUIRING ASSIGN-
MENT OF SUPPORT RIGHTS AS A CONDITION OF RECEIV-
ING TANF.—Section 408(a)(3) of the Social Security Act
(42 U.S.C. 608(a)(3)) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(3) NO ASSISTANCE FOR FAMILIES NOT AS-
SIGNING
CERTAIN
SUPPORT
RIGHTS
TO
THE
STATE.—A State to which a grant is made under
section 403 shall require, as a condition of providing
assistance to a family under the State program
funded under this part, that a member of the family
assign to the State any rights the family member
may have (on behalf of the family member or of any
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other person for whom the family member has ap-
plied for or is receiving such assistance) to support
from any other person, not exceeding the total
amount of assistance so provided to the family,
which accrues during the period that the family re-
ceives assistance under the program.’’.
(b) INCREASING CHILD SUPPORT PAYMENTS
TO
FAMILIES AND SIMPLIFYING CHILD SUPPORT DISTRIBU-
TION RULES.—
(1) DISTRIBUTION RULES.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—Section 457(a) of such
Act (42 U.S.C. 657(a)) is amended to read as
follows:
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsections (d) and
(e), the amounts collected on behalf of a family as support
by a State pursuant to a plan approved under this part
shall be distributed as follows:
‘‘(1) FAMILIES RECEIVING ASSISTANCE.—In the
case of a family receiving assistance from the State,
the State shall—
‘‘(A) pay to the Federal Government the
Federal share of the amount collected, subject
to paragraph (3)(A);
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‘‘(B) retain, or pay to the family, the State
share of the amount collected, subject to para-
graph (3)(B); and
‘‘(C) pay to the family any remaining
amount.
‘‘(2) FAMILIES THAT FORMERLY RECEIVED AS-
SISTANCE.—In the case of a family that formerly re-
ceived assistance from the State:
‘‘(A) CURRENT SUPPORT.—To the extent
that the amount collected does not exceed the
current support amount, the State shall pay the
amount to the family.
‘‘(B) ARREARAGES.—To the extent that
the amount collected exceeds the current sup-
port amount, the State—
‘‘(i) shall first pay to the family the
excess amount, to the extent necessary to
satisfy support arrearages not assigned
pursuant to section 408(a)(3);
‘‘(ii) if the amount collected exceeds
the amount required to be paid to the fam-
ily under clause (i), shall—
‘‘(I) pay to the Federal Govern-
ment, the Federal share of the excess
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amount described in this clause, sub-
ject to paragraph (3)(A); and
‘‘(II) retain, or pay to the family,
the State share of the excess amount
described in this clause, subject to
paragraph (3)(B); and
‘‘(iii) shall pay to the family any re-
maining amount.
‘‘(3) LIMITATIONS.—
‘‘(A) FEDERAL
REIMBURSEMENTS.—The
total of the amounts paid by the State to the
Federal Government under paragraphs (1) and
(2) of this subsection with respect to a family
shall not exceed the Federal share of the
amount assigned with respect to the family pur-
suant to section 408(a)(3).
‘‘(B) 
STATE
REIMBURSEMENTS.—The
total of the amounts retained by the State
under paragraphs (1) and (2) of this subsection
with respect to a family shall not exceed the
State share of the amount assigned with respect
to the family pursuant to section 408(a)(3).
‘‘(4) FAMILIES THAT NEVER RECEIVED ASSIST-
ANCE.—In the case of any other family, the State
shall pay the amount collected to the family.
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‘‘(5) 
FAMILIES
UNDER
CERTAIN
AGREE-
MENTS.—Notwithstanding paragraphs (1) through
(4), in the case of an amount collected for a family
in accordance with a cooperative agreement under
section 454(33), the State shall distribute the
amount collected pursuant to the terms of the agree-
ment.
‘‘(6) STATE FINANCING OPTIONS.—To the ex-
tent that the State share of the amount payable to
a family for a month pursuant to paragraph (2)(B)
of this subsection exceeds the amount that the State
estimates (under procedures approved by the Sec-
retary) would have been payable to the family for
the month pursuant to former section 457(a)(2) (as
in effect for the State immediately before the date
this subsection first applies to the State) if such
former section had remained in effect, the State may
elect to use the grant made to the State under sec-
tion 403(a) to pay the amount, or to have the pay-
ment considered a qualified State expenditure for
purposes of section 409(a)(7), but not both.
‘‘(7) STATE OPTION TO PASS THROUGH ADDI-
TIONAL SUPPORT WITH FEDERAL FINANCIAL PAR-
TICIPATION.—
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‘‘(A) 
IN
GENERAL.—Notwithstanding
paragraphs (1) and (2), a State shall not be re-
quired to pay to the Federal Government the
Federal share of an amount collected on behalf
of a family that is not a recipient of assistance
under the State program funded under part A,
to the extent that the State pays the amount to
the family.
‘‘(B) RECIPIENTS
OF
TANF
FOR
LESS
THAN 5 YEARS.—
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—Notwithstanding
paragraphs (1) and (2), a State shall not
be required to pay to the Federal Govern-
ment the Federal share of an amount col-
lected on behalf of a family that is a recipi-
ent of assistance under the State program
funded under part A and that has received
the assistance for not more than 5 years
after the date of the enactment of this
paragraph, to the extent that—
‘‘(I) the State pays the amount
to the family; and
‘‘(II) subject to clause (ii), the
amount is disregarded in determining
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the amount and type of the assistance
provided to the family.
‘‘(ii) LIMITATION.—Of the amount
disregarded as described in clause (i)(II),
the maximum amount that may be taken
into account for purposes of clause (i) shall
not exceed $400 per month, except that, in
the case of a family that includes two or
more children, the State may elect to in-
crease the maximum amount to not more
than $600 per month.’’.
(B) APPROVAL
OF
ESTIMATION
PROCE-
DURES.—Not later than October 1, 2001, the
Secretary of Health and Human Services, in
consultation with the States (as defined for
purposes of part D of title IV of the Social Se-
curity Act), shall establish the procedures to be
used to make the estimate described in section
457(a)(6) of such Act.
(2) CURRENT
SUPPORT
AMOUNT
DEFINED.—
Section 457(c) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 657(c)) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(5) CURRENT SUPPORT AMOUNT.—The term
‘current support amount’ means, with respect to
amounts collected as support on behalf of a family,
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the amount designated as the monthly support obli-
gation of the noncustodial parent in the order re-
quiring the support.’’.
(c) BAN ON RECOVERY OF MEDICAID COSTS FOR
CERTAIN BIRTHS.—Section 454 of such Act (42 U.S.C.
654) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph
(32);
(2) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (33) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (33) the fol-
lowing:
‘‘(34) provide that the State shall not use the
State program operated under this part to collect
any amount owed to the State by reason of costs in-
curred under the State plan approved under title
XIX for the birth of a child for whom support rights
have been assigned pursuant to section 408(a)(3),
471(a)(17), or 1912.’’.
(d) STATE OPTION TO DISCONTINUE CERTAIN SUP-
PORT ASSIGNMENTS.—Section 457(b) of such Act (42
U.S.C. 657(b)) is amended by striking ‘‘shall’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘may’’.
(e) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—
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(1) Section 409(a)(7)(B)(i)(I)(aa) of such Act
(42 U.S.C. 609(a)(7)(B)(i)(I)(aa)) is amended by
striking ‘‘457(a)(1)(B)’’ and inserting ‘‘457(a)(1)’’.
(2) Section 404(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C.
604(a)) is amended—
(A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of para-
graph (1);
(B) by striking the period at the end of
paragraph (2) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(3) to fund payment of an amount pursuant to
clause (i) or (ii) of section 457(a)(2)(B), but only to
the extent that the State properly elects under sec-
tion 457(a)(6) to use the grant to fund the pay-
ment.’’.
(3) Section 409(a)(7)(B)(i) of such Act (42
U.S.C. 609(a)(7)(B)(i)) is amended by adding at the
end the following:
‘‘(V) 
PORTIONS
OF
CERTAIN
CHILD
SUPPORT
PAYMENTS
COL-
LECTED ON BEHALF OF AND DISTRIB-
UTED TO FAMILIES NO LONGER RE-
CEIVING
ASSISTANCE.—Any amount
paid by a State pursuant to clause (i)
or (ii) of section 457(a)(2)(B), but
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only to the extent that the State prop-
erly elects under section 457(a)(6) to
have the payment considered a quali-
fied State expenditure.’’.
(f) EFFECTIVE DATE.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The amendments made by
this section shall take effect on October 1, 2005,
and shall apply to payments under parts A and D
of title IV of the Social Security Act for calendar
quarters beginning on or after such date, and with-
out regard to whether regulations to implement such
amendments (in the case of State programs operated
under such part D) are promulgated by such date.
(2) STATE OPTION TO ACCELERATE EFFECTIVE
DATE.—In addition, a State may elect to have the
amendments made by this section apply to the State
and to amounts collected by the State, on and after
such date as the State may select that is after the
date of the enactment of this Act and before October
1, 2005.
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TITLE II—REVIEW AND ADJUST-
MENT OF CHILD SUPPORT
ORDERS
SEC. 201. MANDATORY REVIEW AND MODIFICATION OF
CHILD SUPPORT ORDERS FOR TANF RECIPI-
ENTS.
(a) 
REVIEW
EVERY
YEARS.—Section
466(a)(10)(A)(i) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
666(a)(10)(A)(i)) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘or,’’ and inserting ‘‘or’’; and
(2) by striking ‘‘upon the request of the State
agency under the State plan or of either parent,’’.
(b) REVIEW UPON LEAVING TANF.—
(1) NOTICE
OF
CERTAIN
FAMILIES
LEAVING
TANF.—Section 402(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C.
602(a)) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing:
‘‘(8) CERTIFICATION
THAT
THE
CHILD
SUP-
PORT ENFORCEMENT PROGRAM WILL BE PROVIDED
NOTICE OF CERTAIN FAMILIES LEAVING TANF PRO-
GRAM.—A certification by the chief executive officer
of the State that the State has established proce-
dures to ensure that the State agency administering
the child support enforcement program under the
State plan approved under part D will be provided
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notice of the impending discontinuation of assistance
to an individual under the State program funded
under this part if the individual has custody of a
child whose other parent is alive and not living at
home with the child.’’.
(2) REVIEW.—Section 466(a)(10) of such Act
(42 U.S.C. 666(a)(10)) is amended—
(A) in the paragraph heading, by striking
‘‘UPON REQUEST’’;
(B) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘this
paragraph’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraph (A) or
(B)’’; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(D) REVIEW UPON LEAVING TANF.—On
receipt of a notice issued pursuant to section
402(a)(8), the State child support enforcement
agency shall—
‘‘(i) examine the case file involved;
‘‘(ii) determine what actions (if any)
are needed to locate any noncustodial par-
ent, establish paternity or a support order,
or enforce a support order in the case;
‘‘(iii) immediately take the actions;
and
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‘‘(iv) if there is a support order in the
case which the State has not reviewed dur-
ing the 1-year period ending with receipt
of the notice, notwithstanding subpara-
graph (B), review and, if appropriate, ad-
just the order in accordance with subpara-
graph (A).’’.
TITLE III—DEMONSTRATIONS OF
EXPANDED 
INFORMATION
AND ENFORCEMENT
SEC. 301. GUIDELINES FOR INVOLVEMENT OF PUBLIC NON-
IV-D CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT AGEN-
CIES IN CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than October 1, 2001,
the Secretary, in consultation with States, local govern-
ments, and individuals or companies knowledgable about
involving public non-IV-D child support enforcement agen-
cies in child support enforcement, shall develop rec-
ommendations which address the participation of public
non-IV-D child support enforcement agencies in the estab-
lishment and enforcement of child support obligations.
The matters addressed by the recommendations shall in-
clude substantive and procedural rules which should be
followed with respect to privacy safeguards, data security,
due process rights, administrative compatibility with State
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and Federal automated systems, eligibility requirements
(such as registration, licensing, and posting of bonds) for
access to information and use of enforcement mechanisms,
recovery of costs by charging fees, penalties for violations
of the rules, treatment of collections for purposes of sec-
tion 458 of such Act, and avoidance of duplication of ef-
fort.
(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this title:
(1) CHILD
SUPPORT.—The term ‘‘child sup-
port’’ has the meaning given in section 459(i)(2) of
the Social Security Act.
(2) PUBLIC
NON-IV-D
CHILD
SUPPORT
EN-
FORCEMENT AGENCY.—The term ‘‘public non-IV-D
child support enforcement agency’’ means an agency,
of a political subdivision of a State, which is prin-
cipally responsible for the operation of a child sup-
port registry or for the establishment or enforcement
of an obligation to pay child support other than pur-
suant to the State plan approved under part D of
title IV of such Act, or a clerk of court office of a
political subdivision of a State.
(3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
(4) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ shall have the
meaning given in section 1101(a)(1) of the Social
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Security Act for purposes of part D of title IV of
such Act.
SEC. 302. DEMONSTRATIONS INVOLVING ESTABLISHMENT
AND ENFORCEMENT OF CHILD SUPPORT OB-
LIGATIONS BY PUBLIC NON-IV-D CHILD SUP-
PORT ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES.
(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to de-
termine the extent to which public non-IV-D child support
enforcement agencies may contribute effectively to the es-
tablishment and enforcement of child support obligations.
(b) APPLICATIONS.—
(1) CONSIDERATION.—The Secretary shall con-
sider all applications received from States desiring to
conduct demonstration projects under this section.
(2) PREFERENCES.—In considering which ap-
plications to approve under this section, the Sec-
retary shall give preference to applications submitted
by States that had a public non-IV-D child support
enforcement agency as of January 1, 2000.
(3) APPROVAL.—
(A) TIMING; LIMITATION ON NUMBER OF
PROJECTS.—On July 1, 2002, the Secretary
may approve not more than 10 applications for
projects providing for the participation of a
public non-IV-D child support enforcement
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agency in the establishment and enforcement of
child support obligations, and, if the Secretary
receives at least five such applications that meet
such requirements as the Secretary may estab-
lish, shall approve not less than five such appli-
cations.
(B) REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary may
not approve an application for a project
unless—
(i) the applicant and the Secretary
have entered into a written agreement
which addresses at a minimum, privacy
safeguards, data security, due process
rights, automated systems, liability, over-
sight, and fees, and the applicant has
made a commitment to conduct the project
in accordance with the written agreement
and such other requirements as the Sec-
retary may establish;
(ii) the project includes a research
plan (but such plan shall not be required
to use random assignment) that is focused
on assessing the costs and benefits of the
project; and
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(iii) the project appears likely to con-
tribute significantly to the achievement of
the purpose of this title.
(c) DEMONSTRATION AUTHORITY.—On approval of
an application submitted by a State under this section—
(1) the State agency responsible for admin-
istering the State plan under part D of title IV of
the Social Security Act may, subject to the privacy
safeguards of section 454(26) of such Act, provide
to any public non-IV-D child support enforcement
agency participating in the demonstration project all
information in the State Directory of New Hires and
any information obtained through information com-
parisons under section 453(j)(3) of such Act about
an individual with respect to whom the public non-
IV-D agency is seeking to establish or enforce a
child support obligation, if the public non-IV-D
agency meets such requirements as the State may
establish and has entered into an agreement with
the State under which the public non-IV-D agency
has made a binding commitment to carry out estab-
lishment and enforcement activities with respect to
the child support obligation subject to the same data
security, privacy protection, and due process require-
ments applicable to the State agency and in accord-
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ance with procedures approved by the head of the
State agency;
(2) the State agency may charge and collect
fees from any such public non-IV-D agency to re-
cover costs incurred by the State agency in providing
information and services to the public non-IV-D
agency under the demonstration project;
(3) if a public non-IV-D child support enforce-
ment agency has agreed to collect past-due support
(as defined in section 464(c) of such Act) owed by
a named individual, and the State agency has sub-
mitted a notice to the Secretary of the Treasury
pursuant to section 464 of such Act on behalf of the
public non-IV-D agency, then the Secretary of the
Treasury shall consider the State agency to have
agreed to collect such support for purposes of such
section 464, and the State agency may collect from
the public non-IV-D agency any fee which the State
is required to pay for the cost of applying the offset
procedure in the case;
(4) for so long as a public non-IV-D child sup-
port enforcement agency is participating in the dem-
onstration project, the public non-IV-D agency shall
be considered part of the State agency for purposes
of section 469A of such Act; and
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(A) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller Gen-
eral of the United States shall submit to the
Congress a report on the audit required by
paragraph (1).
(B) TIMING.—The report required by sub-
paragraph (A) shall be so submitted not later
than October 1, 2004.
(f) SECRETARIAL REPORT TO THE CONGRESS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall submit
to the Congress a report on the demonstration
projects conducted under this section, which shall in-
clude the results of any research or evaluation con-
ducted pursuant to this title, and shall include policy
recommendations regarding the establishment and
enforcement of child support obligations by the
agencies involved.
(2) TIMING.—The report required by paragraph
(1) shall be so submitted not later than October 1,
2005.
SEC. 303. GAO REPORT TO CONGRESS ON PRIVATE CHILD
SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than October 1, 2001,
the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit
to the Congress a report on the activities of private child
support enforcement agencies that shall be designed to
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help the Congress determine whether the agencies are pro-
viding a needed service in a fair manner using accepted
debt collection practices and at a reasonable fee.
(b) MATTERS TO BE ADDRESSED.—Among the mat-
ters addressed by the report required by subsection (a)
shall be the following:
(1) The number of private child support en-
forcement agencies.
(2) The types of debt collection activities con-
ducted by the private agencies.
(3) The fees charged by the private agencies.
(4) The methods used by the private agencies
to collect fees from custodial parents.
(5) The nature and degree of cooperation the
private agencies receive from State agencies respon-
sible for administering State plans under part D of
title IV of the Social Security Act.
(6) The extent to which the conduct of the pri-
vate agencies is subject to State or Federal regula-
tion, and if so, the extent to which the regulations
are effectively enforced.
(7) The amount of child support owed but un-
collected and changes in this amount in recent years.
(8) The average period of time required for the
completion of successful enforcement actions yielding
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collections of past-due child support by both the
child support enforcement programs operated pursu-
ant to State plans approved under part D of title IV
of the Social Security Act and, to the extent known,
by private child support enforcement agencies.
(9) The types of Federal and State child sup-
port enforcement remedies and resources currently
available to private child support enforcement agen-
cies, and the types of such remedies and resources
now restricted to use by State agencies admin-
istering State plans referred to in paragraph (8).
(c) PRIVATE CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT AGEN-
CY DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘private child
support enforcement agency’’ means a person or any other
non-public entity which seeks to establish or enforce an
obligation to pay child support (as defined in section
459(i)(2) of the Social Security Act).
SEC. 304. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This title shall take effect on the date of the enact-
ment of this Act.
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TITLE IV—EXPANDED
ENFORCEMENT
SEC. 401. DECREASE IN AMOUNT OF CHILD SUPPORT AR-
REARAGE TRIGGERING PASSPORT DENIAL.
Section 452(k) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
652(k)) is amended by striking ‘‘$5,000’’ and inserting
‘‘$2,500’’.
SEC. 402. USE OF TAX REFUND INTERCEPT PROGRAM TO
COLLECT PAST-DUE CHILD SUPPORT ON BE-
HALF OF CHILDREN WHO ARE NOT MINORS.
Section 464 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
664) is amended—
(1) in subsection (a)(2)(A), by striking ‘‘(as
that term is defined for purposes of this paragraph
under subsection (c))’’; and
(2) in subsection (c)—
(A) in paragraph (1)—
(i) by striking ‘‘(1) Except as pro-
vided in paragraph (2), as used in’’ and in-
serting ‘‘In’’; and
(ii) by inserting ‘‘(whether or not a
minor)’’ after ‘‘a child’’ each place it ap-
pears; and
(B) by striking paragraphs (2) and (3).
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SEC. 403. GARNISHMENT OF COMPENSATION PAID TO VET-
ERANS FOR SERVICE-CONNECTED DISABIL-
ITIES IN ORDER TO ENFORCE CHILD SUP-
PORT OBLIGATIONS.
Section 459(h) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
659(h)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (1)(A)(ii)(V), by striking all
that follows ‘‘Armed Forces’’ and inserting a semi-
colon; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(3) LIMITATIONS
WITH
RESPECT
TO
COM-
PENSATION PAID TO VETERANS FOR SERVICE-CON-
NECTED DISABILITIES.—Notwithstanding any other
provision of this section:
‘‘(A) Compensation described in paragraph
(1)(A)(ii)(V) shall not be subject to withholding
pursuant to this section—
‘‘(i) for payment of alimony; or
‘‘(ii) for payment of child support if
the individual is fewer than 60 days in ar-
rears in payment of the support.
‘‘(B) Not more than 50 percent of any
payment of compensation described in para-
graph (1)(A)(ii)(V) may be withheld pursuant
to this section.’’.
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TITLE V—FATHERHOOD
PROGRAMS
Subtitle A—Fatherhood Grant
Program
SEC. 501. FATHERHOOD GRANTS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Part A of title IV of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601–619) is amended by inserting
after section 403 the following:
‘‘SEC. 403A. FATHERHOOD PROGRAMS.
‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to
make grants available to public and private entities for
projects designed to—
‘‘(1) promote marriage through such activities
as—
‘‘(A) counseling, mentoring, disseminating
information about the advantages of marriage,
enhancing relationship skills, teaching how to
control aggressive behavior, disseminating infor-
mation on the causes and treatment of domestic
violence and child abuse, and other methods;
and
‘‘(B) sustaining marriages through mar-
riage preparation programs, premarital coun-
seling, and marital inventories, and through di-
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vorce education and reduction programs, includ-
ing mediation and counseling;
‘‘(2) promote successful parenting through such
activities as counseling, mentoring, disseminating in-
formation about good parenting practices including
prepregnancy family planning, training parents in
money management, encouraging child support pay-
ments, encouraging regular visitation between fa-
thers and their children, and other methods; and
‘‘(3) help fathers and their families avoid or
leave cash welfare provided by the program under
part A and improve their economic status by pro-
viding such activities as work first services, job
search, job training, subsidized employment, career-
advancing education, job retention, job enhancement,
and other methods.
‘‘(b) FATHERHOOD GRANTS.—
‘‘(1) APPLICATIONS.—An entity desiring a
grant to carry out a project described in subsection
(a) may submit to the Secretary an application that
contains the following:
‘‘(A) A description of the project and how
the project will be carried out.
‘‘(B) A description of how the project will
address all three of the purposes of this section.
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‘‘(C) A written commitment by the entity
that the project will allow an individual to par-
ticipate in the project only if the individual is—
‘‘(i) a father of a child who is, or
within the past 24 months has been, a re-
cipient of assistance or services under a
State program funded under this part;
‘‘(ii) a father, including an expectant
or married father, whose income (net of
court-ordered child support) is less than
150 percent of the poverty line (as defined
in section 673(2) of the Omnibus Budget
Reconciliation Act of 1981, including any
revision required by such section, applica-
ble to a family of the size involved);
‘‘(iii) a parent referred to in para-
graph (3)(A)(iii); or
‘‘(iv) at risk of parenthood outside
marriage, but not more than 25 percent of
the participants in the project may qualify
for participation under this clause.
‘‘(D) A written commitment by the entity
that the entity will provide for the project, from
funds obtained from non-Federal sources,
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amounts (including in-kind contributions) equal
in value to—
‘‘(i) 20 percent of the amount of any
grant made to the entity under this sub-
section; or
‘‘(ii) such lesser percentage as the
Secretary deems appropriate (which shall
be not less than 10 percent) of such
amount, if the application demonstrates
that there are circumstances that limit the
ability of the entity to raise funds or ob-
tain resources.
‘‘(E) A written commitment by the entity
that the entity will make available to each indi-
vidual participating in the project education
about the causes of domestic violence and child
abuse and local programs to prevent and treat
abuse, education about alcohol, tobacco, and
other drugs and the effects of abusing such
substances, and information about sexually
transmitted diseases and their transmission, in-
cluding HIV/AIDS and human papillomavirus
(HPV).
‘‘(2) CONSIDERATION
OF
APPLICATIONS
BY
INTERAGENCY PANEL.—
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‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is estab-
lished a panel to be known as the ‘Fatherhood
Grants Recommendations Panel’ (in this sub-
paragraph referred to as the ‘Panel’).
‘‘(B) MEMBERSHIP.—
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Panel shall be
composed of 10 members, as follows:
‘‘(I) Two members of the Panel
shall be appointed by the Secretary.
‘‘(II) Two members of the Panel
shall be appointed by the Secretary of
Labor.
‘‘(III) Two members of the Panel
shall be appointed by the Chairman of
the Committee on Ways and Means of
the House of Representatives.
‘‘(IV) One member of the Panel
shall be appointed by the ranking mi-
nority member of the Committee on
Ways and Means of the House of
Representatives.
‘‘(V) Two members of the Panel
shall be appointed by the Chairman of
the Committee on Finance of the Sen-
ate.
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‘‘(VI) One member of the Panel
shall be appointed by the ranking mi-
nority member of the Committee on
Finance of the Senate.
‘‘(ii) QUALIFICATIONS.—An individual
shall not be eligible to serve on the Panel
unless the individual has experience in pro-
grams for fathers, programs for the poor,
programs for children, program adminis-
tration, program research, or programs of
domestic violence prevention and treat-
ment.
‘‘(iii) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.—An
individual shall not be eligible to serve on
the Panel if such service would pose a con-
flict of interest for the individual.
‘‘(iv) TIMING
OF
APPOINTMENTS.—
The appointment of members to the Panel
shall be completed not later than April 1,
2001.
‘‘(C) DUTIES.—
‘‘(i) 
REVIEW
AND
MAKE
REC-
OMMENDATIONS
ON
PROJECT
APPLICA-
TIONS.—The Panel shall review all applica-
tions submitted pursuant to paragraph (1),
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and make recommendations to the Sec-
retary regarding which applicants should
be awarded grants under this subsection,
with due regard for the provisions of para-
graph (3), but shall not recommend that a
project be awarded such a grant if the ap-
plication describing the project does not at-
tempt to meet the requirement of para-
graph (1)(B).
‘‘(ii) TIMING.—The Panel shall make
such recommendations not later than Octo-
ber 1, 2001.
‘‘(D) TERM
OF
OFFICE.—Each member
appointed to the Panel shall serve for the life
of the Panel.
‘‘(E) PROHIBITION ON COMPENSATION.—
Members of the Panel may not receive pay, al-
lowances, or benefits by reason of their service
on the Panel.
‘‘(F) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Each member
of the Panel shall receive travel expenses, in-
cluding per diem in lieu of subsistence, in ac-
cordance with sections 5702 and 5703 of title
5, United States Code.
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‘‘(G) MEETINGS.—The Panel shall meet as
often as is necessary to complete the business
of the Panel.
‘‘(H) CHAIRPERSON.—The Chairperson of
the Panel shall be designated by the Secretary
at the time of appointment.
‘‘(I) STAFF OF FEDERAL AGENCIES.—The
Secretary may detail any personnel of the De-
partment of Health and Human Services and
the Secretary of Labor may detail any per-
sonnel of the Department of Labor to the Panel
to assist the Panel in carrying out its duties
under this paragraph.
‘‘(J) OBTAINING
OFFICIAL
DATA.—The
Panel may secure directly from any department
or agency of the United States information nec-
essary to enable it to carry out this paragraph.
On request of the Chairperson of the Panel, the
head of the department or agency shall furnish
that information to the Panel.
‘‘(K) MAILS.—The Panel may use the
United States mails in the same manner and
under the same conditions as other departments
and agencies of the United States.
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‘‘(L) TERMINATION.—The Panel shall ter-
minate on October 1, 2001.
‘‘(3) RULES GOVERNING GRANTS.—
‘‘(A) GRANT AWARDS.—
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary
shall award matching grants, on a competi-
tive basis, among entities submitting appli-
cations therefor which meet the require-
ments of paragraph (1), in amounts that
take into account the written commitments
referred to in paragraph (1)(D).
‘‘(ii) TIMING.—On October 1, 2001,
the Secretary shall award not more than
$140,000,000 in matching grants after
considering 
the 
recommendations 
sub-
mitted pursuant to paragraph (2)(C)(i).
‘‘(iii) NONDISCRIMINATION.—The pro-
visions of this section shall be applied and
administered so as to ensure that mothers,
expectant mothers, and married mothers
are eligible for benefits and services under
projects awarded grants under this section
on the same basis as fathers, expectant fa-
thers, and married fathers.
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‘‘(B) 
PREFERENCES.—In 
determining
which entities to which to award grants under
this subsection, the Secretary shall give pref-
erence to an entity—
‘‘(i) to the extent that the application
submitted by the entity sets forth clear
and practical methods to encourage and
sustain marriage;
‘‘(ii) to the extent that the application
submitted by the entity describes actions
that the entity will take that are designed
to encourage or facilitate the payment of
child support, including but not limited
to—
‘‘(I) obtaining a written commit-
ment by the agency responsible for
administering the State plan approved
under part D for the State in which
the project is to be carried out that
the State will voluntarily cancel child
support arrearages owed to the State
by the father as a result of the father
providing various supports to the fam-
ily such as maintaining a regular child
support payment schedule, living with
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his children, or marrying the mother
of his children, unless the father has
been convicted of a crime involving
domestic violence or child abuse;
‘‘(II) obtaining a written commit-
ment by the entity that the entity will
help participating fathers who cooper-
ate with the agency in improving their
credit rating; and
‘‘(III) helping fathers arrange
and maintain a consistent schedule of
visits with their children, unless it
would be unsafe;
‘‘(iii) to the extent that the applica-
tion includes written agreements of co-
operation with other private and govern-
mental agencies, including the State or
local program funded under this part, the
local Workforce Investment Board, the
State or local program funded under part
D, community-based domestic violence pro-
grams, and the State or local program
funded under part E, which should include
a description of the services each such
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agency will provide to fathers participating
in the project described in the application;
‘‘(iv) to the extent that the application
describes a project that will enroll a high
percentage of project participants within 6
months before or after the birth of the
child; or
‘‘(v) to the extent that the application
sets forth clear and practical methods by
which fathers will be recruited to partici-
pate in the project.
‘‘(C) MINIMUM
PERCENTAGE
OF
RECIPI-
ENTS OF GRANT FUNDS TO BE NONGOVERN-
MENTAL (INCLUDING FAITH-BASED) ORGANIZA-
TIONS.—Not less than 75 percent of the enti-
ties awarded grants under this subsection in
each fiscal year (other than entities awarded
such grants pursuant to the preferences re-
quired by subparagraph (B)) shall be awarded
to—
‘‘(i) nongovernmental (including faith-
based) organizations; or
‘‘(ii) governmental organizations that
pass through to organizations referred to
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in clause (i) at least 50 percent of the
amount of the grant.
‘‘(D) DIVERSITY OF PROJECTS.—
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—In determining
which entities to which to award grants
under this subsection, the Secretary shall
attempt to achieve a balance among enti-
ties of differing sizes, entities in differing
geographic areas, entities in urban versus
rural areas, and entities employing dif-
fering methods of achieving the purposes
of this section.
‘‘(ii) REPORT
TO
THE
CONGRESS.—
Within 90 days after each award of grants
under subparagraph (A)(ii), the Secretary
shall submit to the Committee on Ways
and Means of the House of Representa-
tives and the Committee on Finance of the
Senate a brief report on the diversity of
projects selected to receive funds under the
grant program. The report shall include a
comparison of funding for projects located
in urban areas, projects located in subur-
ban areas, and projects located in rural
areas.
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‘‘(I) when any other individual is
on layoff from the same or any sub-
stantially equivalent job; or
‘‘(II) if the employer has termi-
nated the employment of any regular
employee or otherwise caused an in-
voluntary reduction of its workforce in
order to fill the vacancy so created
with such an adult.
‘‘(ii) GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE.—
‘‘(I) IN
GENERAL.—Complaints
alleging violations of clause (i) in a
State may be resolved—
‘‘(aa) if the State has estab-
lished 
a 
grievance 
procedure
under section 403(a)(5)(I)(iv),
pursuant to the grievance proce-
dure; or
‘‘(bb) otherwise, pursuant to
the grievance procedure estab-
lished by the State under section
407(f)(3).
‘‘(II) FORFEITURE OF GRANT IF
GRIEVANCE
PROCEDURE
NOT
AVAIL-
ABLE.—If a complaint referred to in
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subclause (I) is made against an enti-
ty to which a grant has been made
under this section with respect to a
project, and the complaint cannot be
brought to, or cannot be resolved
within 90 days after being brought, by
a grievance procedure referred to in
subclause (I), then the entity shall im-
mediately return to the Secretary all
funds provided to the entity under
this section for the project, and the
Secretary shall immediately rescind
the grant.
‘‘(C) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—This sec-
tion shall not be construed to require the par-
ticipation of a father in a project funded under
this section to be discontinued by the project on
the basis of changed economic circumstances of
the father.
‘‘(D) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION ON MAR-
RIAGE.—This section shall not be construed to
authorize the Secretary to define marriage for
purposes of this section.
‘‘(E) PENALTY
FOR
MISUSE
OF
GRANT
FUNDS.—If the Secretary determines that an
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entity to which a grant is made under this sub-
section has used any amount of the grant in
violation of subparagraph (A), the Secretary
shall require the entity to remit to the Sec-
retary an amount equal to the amount so used,
plus all remaining grant funds, and the entity
shall thereafter be ineligible for any grant
under this subsection.
‘‘(F) REMITTANCE
OF
UNUSED
GRANT
FUNDS.—Each entity to which a grant is
awarded under this subsection shall remit to
the Secretary all funds paid under the grant
that remain at the end of the fifth fiscal year
ending after the initial grant award.
‘‘(5) AUTHORITY OF AGENCIES TO EXCHANGE
INFORMATION.—Each agency administering a pro-
gram funded under this part or a State plan ap-
proved under part D may share the name, address,
telephone number, and identifying case number in-
formation in the State program funded under this
part, of fathers for purposes of assisting in deter-
mining the eligibility of fathers to participate in
projects receiving grants under this section, and in
contacting fathers potentially eligible to participate
in the projects, subject to all applicable privacy laws.
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‘‘(6) EVALUATION.—The Secretary, in consulta-
tion with the Secretary of Labor, shall, directly or
by grant, contract, or interagency agreement, con-
duct an evaluation of projects funded under this sec-
tion (other than under subsection (c)(1)). The eval-
uation shall assess, among other outcomes selected
by the Secretary, effects of the projects on marriage,
parenting, employment, earnings, payment of child
support, and incidence of domestic violence and child
abuse. In selecting projects for the evaluation, the
Secretary should include projects that, in the Sec-
retary’s judgment, are most likely to impact the
matters described in the purposes of this section. In
conducting the evaluation, random assignment
should be used wherever possible.
‘‘(7) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall pre-
scribe such regulations as may be necessary to carry
out this subsection.
‘‘(8) LIMITATION ON APPLICABILITY OF OTHER
PROVISIONS OF THIS PART.—Sections 404 through
410 shall not apply to this section or to amounts
paid under this section, and shall not be applied to
an entity solely by reason of receipt of funds pursu-
ant to this section. A project shall not be considered
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a State program funded under this part solely by
reason of receipt of funds paid under this section.
‘‘(9) FUNDING.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—
‘‘(i) INTERAGENCY
PANEL.—Of the
amounts made available pursuant to sec-
tion 403(a)(1)(E) to carry out this section
for fiscal year 2001, a total of $150,000
shall be made available for the interagency
panel established by paragraph (2) of this
subsection.
‘‘(ii) GRANTS.—Of the amounts made
available pursuant to section 403(a)(1)(E)
to carry out this section for fiscal years
2002 
through 
2005, 
a 
total 
of
$140,000,000 shall be made available for
grants under this subsection.
‘‘(iii) EVALUATION.—Of the amounts
made 
available 
pursuant 
to 
section
403(a)(1)(E) to carry out this section for
fiscal years 2001 through 2006, a total of
$6,000,000 shall be made available for the
evaluation required by paragraph (6) of
this subsection.
‘‘(B) AVAILABILITY.—