PARENTS Act of 2021

Bill: 117-s-503
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Cornyn, John [R-TX]
Introduced: 2021-03-01
Policy area: Families
Subjects: Child safety and welfare

Family relationships

Family services

Separation, divorce, custody, support

State and local finance
Latest action: action_date: 2021-07-28
text: Held at the desk.

Summaries:
action_date: 2021-03-01
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p><b>Providing Adequate Resources to Enhance Needed Time with Sons and daughters Act of 2021 or the PARENTS Act of 2021</b></p> <p>This bill expands the use of federal incentive payments to states under the Child Support Enforcement Program to include establishing agreements for how much time a child spends with each parent as agreed to by the parents under a child support or medical support order.<br> <br> Generally, the incentive payments program provides funding based on a state's performance measures related to (1) establishing paternity, (2) the number of cases with child support orders in place, (3) the collection of current and past-due support payments, and (4) cost-effectiveness.</p>

action_date: 2021-07-27
action_desc: Passed Senate
text: <p><b>Providing Adequate Resources to Enhance Needed Time with Sons and daughters Act of 2021 or the PARENTS Act of 2021</b></p> <p>This bill expands the use of federal incentive payments to states under the Child Support Enforcement Program to include establishing agreements for how much time a child spends with each parent as agreed to by the parents under a child support or medical support order.<br> <br> Generally, the incentive payments program provides funding based on a state's performance measures related to (1) establishing paternity, (2) the number of cases with child support orders in place, (3) the collection of current and past-due support payments, and (4) cost-effectiveness.</p>

tv_txt: II 117th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 503 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES March 1, 2021 Mr. Cornyn (for himself, Mr. Menendez , and Mr. Cardin ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance A BILL To amend part D of title IV of the Social Security Act to allow States to use incentive payments available under the child support enforcement program to improve parent-child relationships, increase child support collections, and improve outcomes for children by supporting parenting time agreements for noncustodial parents in uncontested agreements, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Providing Adequate Resources to Enhance Needed Time with Sons and daughters Act of 2021 or the PARENTS Act of 2021 . 2. Expanding permitted uses of incentive payments Section 458 of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 658a ) is amended— (1) in subsection (f)— (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ; or and inserting a semicolon; (B) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3); and (C) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following new paragraph: (2) to develop, implement, and evaluate procedures for establishing a parenting time agreement when establishing an initial or modified child support order or a medical support order (including procedures for carrying out a parenting time agreement made prior to the establishment or modification of any such order); or ; and (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection: (g) Definitions of parenting time agreement and noncustodial parent (1) Parenting time agreement For purposes of subsection (f)(2), the term parenting time agreement means an agreement governing how much time a child spends with the child's custodial parent and the child's noncustodial parent that is mutually agreed to by the parents and is not contested by either parent in any forum. (2) Noncustodial parent For purposes of paragraph (1), the term noncustodial parent means the parent of a child that the child does not live with for the majority of the child's time. .

tv_txt: 117th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 503 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES AN ACT To amend part D of title IV of the Social Security Act to allow States to use incentive payments available under the child support enforcement program to improve parent-child relationships, increase child support collections, and improve outcomes for children by supporting parenting time agreements for noncustodial parents in uncontested agreements, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Providing Adequate Resources to Enhance Needed Time with Sons and daughters Act of 2021 or the PARENTS Act of 2021 . 2. Expanding permitted uses of incentive payments Section 458 of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 658a ) is amended— (1) in subsection (f)— (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ; or and inserting a semicolon; (B) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3); and (C) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following new paragraph: (2) to develop, implement, and evaluate procedures for establishing a parenting time agreement when establishing an initial or modified child support order or a medical support order (including procedures for carrying out a parenting time agreement made prior to the establishment or modification of any such order); or ; and (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection: (g) Definitions of parenting time agreement and noncustodial parent (1) Parenting time agreement For purposes of subsection (f)(2), the term parenting time agreement means an agreement governing how much time a child spends with the child's custodial parent and the child's noncustodial parent that is mutually agreed to by the parents and is not contested by either parent in any forum. (2) Noncustodial parent For purposes of paragraph (1), the term noncustodial parent means the parent of a child that the child does not live with for the majority of the child's time. .

Passed the Senate July 27, 2021. Secretary