Code of Maine Rules › 10 - DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES › 144 - DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES - GENERAL › Chapter 351 - Maine Child Support Enforcement Manual › Chapter 2 - DEFINITIONS

Current through 2024-29, July 17, 2024
As used in this Manual, unless the context otherwise
				  indicates, the following terms have the following meanings:
Administrative Decision:
An administrative
				  decision issued by the Department that establishes or modifies a responsible
				  parent's child support obligation or which adjudicates an appeal of agency
				  action.
AFDC:
Aid to Families with Dependent
				  Children.
Alternative Method of Support Enforcement ("Alternative
				  Method"):
Title 19-A, Article 3, of the
Maine Revised
				  Statutes
(
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §§2251 -
				  2453 ).
Amendment Hearing:
A hearing to determine
				  whether to modify an administrative decision prospectively to change either or
				  both the amount of a current child support obligation and/or health insurance
				  obligation.
Appeal Hearing:
A hearing on the merits of the
				  Division's action.
Applicant:
An individual, state, political
				  subdivision or instrumentality of a state, that seeks support enforcement
				  services from the Department.
Arrears:
A delinquency pursuant to an obligation
				  determined under a court order, or an order of an administrative process
				  established under State law, for support and maintenance of a child, which is
				  owed to or on behalf of the child, or for the non-custodial parent's spouse (or
				  former spouse) with whom the child is living, but only if a support obligation
				  has been established with respect to the spouse, and the support obligation
				  established with respect to the child is being enforced by the Department. May
				  also be referred to as
Overdue Support
.
Assignment:
Any assignment of rights to support
				  required under
				  42 U.S.C. §
										654(5)(A) (TANF), or
				  42 U.S.C. §
										671(a)(17) (Foster Care), or
				  any assignment of rights to medical support and to payment for medical care
				  from any third party as required under
				  42 C.F.R. §
										433.146 (Medicaid).
Assigned Support Obligation:
Any support
				  obligation which has been assigned to the State as required under
				  42 U.S.C. §
										654(5)(A) (TANF), or
				  42 U.S.C. §
										671(a)(17) (Foster Care), or
				  any medical support obligation or payment for medical care from any third party
				  which has been assigned to the State as required under
				  42 C.F.R. §
										433.146 (Medicaid).
Assisted Reproduction:
A method of causing
				  pregnancy other than sexual intercourse. After July 1, 2016, See
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §1832(3).
Child Support Debt Due the Department:
The debt
				  referred to by
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §2301, which may include assigned past
				  necessary support, and may exceed the amount of TANF public assistance
				  expended. The Department may establish/enforce/collect the debt for the State
				  of Maine, another State or territory of the United States, another State or
				  territory's IV-D agency, or a non-TANF client of the Department, and the
				  Department must distribute pursuant to
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §2401. May also be referred to as "debt
				  due the department," "debt for public assistance," "debt for TANF public
				  assistance," or "TANF debt."
Collection-of-Support-Debt Mechanism:
Any and
				  every means by which a child support debt can be collected (See 14.1[A])
Compliance with a Support Order:
The support
				  obligor is no more than 60 days past-due in making payments in full for current
				  support, in making periodic payments on a support arrearage pursuant to a
				  written agreement with the Department or in making periodic payments as set
				  forth in the support order and has obtained or maintained health insurance
				  coverage if required by a support order.
Court Order:
Court order or judgment for the
				  support of dependent child(ren) issued by any court of the State of Maine or
				  another state, jurisdiction, territory or possession of the United States, the
				  District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or foreign government
				  with which Maine has a reciprocal agreement, including an order in a final
				  decree of divorce and an order established under URESA, RURESA or UIFSA.
Court of Proper Jurisdiction:
The court that
				  issued the original court order of support or in which the support order has
				  been registered.
Current Support
: Current support is money that a
				  tribunal orders a non-custodial parent or other obligor to pay periodically to
				  the custodial parent or other obligee to help pay the living expenses of the
				  obligee's family. Current support may include child support, accompanying
				  spousal support and/or medical support. If not paid on the date due, current
				  support becomes an enforceable debt.
Custodial Parent:
An individual who is the
				  dependent child's legal primary residential care provider. May be abbreviated
				  in this manual as "CP."
Debt Accrued or Accruing:
As referred to in
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §2352, the ability of the Department to
				  enforce the child support debt continually accruing following the successful
				  service of the Notice of Debt, as well as and in addition to debt accrued as
				  stated on the face of the Notice. Each accrual becomes a judgment due and
				  payable at the time the accrual occurs.
Decision:
An administrative decision that
				  establishes or modifies a responsible parent's child support obligation or
				  which decides the merits of an appeal of agency action under
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §2451.
De Facto
Parent:
After July 1,
				  2016, a person adjudicated to be a parent by meeting the criteria found in
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §1891. Adjudication as a
de
				  facto
parent establishes parentage, and the court may concurrently or
				  subsequently determine parental rights and responsibilities and financial
				  support obligations.
Default Decision:
An administrative decision
				  that establishes or modifies a child support obligation in a proceeding in
				  which the responsible parent either did not request a hearing or did not appear
				  at the hearing.
Department:
The Maine Department of Health and
				  Human Services.
Division:
The Division of Support Enforcement
				  and Recovery, Office for Family Independence, Maine Department of Health and
				  Human Services.
Donor:
A person who contributes a gamete or
				  gametes or an embryo or embryos to another person for assisted reproduction or
				  gestation.
Gamete:
A cell containing a haploid complement
				  of deoxyribonucleic acid that has the potential to form an embryo when combined
				  with another gamete.
Genetic Parent:
A person whom genetic testing
				  results disclose as having at least a 99% probability of paternity/maternity,
				  using a prior probability of .50, as calculated by using the
				  paternity/maternity index obtained in the testing, and a paternity/maternity
				  index of at least 100 to 1.
Hearing Officer:
Any person designated and
				  authorized by the Commissioner to act as presiding officer at an administrative
				  hearing to establish or modify a responsible parent's child support obligation
				  or at a hearing concerning an appeal of agency action under
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §2451.
His:
His or Her
Liquidated Debt:
A support obligation which has
				  been made certain as to the amount due by legal or administrative adjudication,
				  by agreement of the parties or by operation of law. Examples of the ways in
				  which a support debt can be liquidated are:
(1) Service of a Notice of Debt (
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §2352 ) to which there is no response or
				  the administrative review of which is decided adversely to the responsible
				  parent;
(2) Service of an administrative decision that establishes or
				  modifies a child support obligation;
(3) a civil judgment issued/rendered/docketed by a court of
				  competent jurisdiction; or
(4) by a written agreement or promissory note signed by the
				  responsible parent acknowledging the existence of a support debt in a specific
				  amount, which has accrued pursuant to a support obligation established under
				  the law of this or another state.
Marriage:
The legally recognized union of two
				  people. Gender-specific terms relating to the marital relationship or familial
				  relationships are construed to be gender-neutral.
Medical Support:
Amounts due an obligee under a
				  court or administrative order for the payment of medical expenses of a
				  dependent child, including reimbursement for qualified medical expenses awarded
				  at an administrative hearing; and an obligation to provide and maintain health
				  insurance coverage, including, if necessary, obtaining public health care
				  coverage, for the medical, hospital, and dental expenses of a dependent
				  child.
Non-Custodial Parent:
The parent who is not the
				  child's primary residential care provider. This is most often the parent from
				  whom current support is sought to be established or modified in the proceeding
				  or with respect to whom a debt for public assistance is sought to be
				  established in a proceeding. May be abbreviated in this manual as "NCP."
Non-TANF Client:
An individual receiving support
				  enforcement services from the Department or from any other state's IV-D agency
				  or instrumentality thereof, who does not receive public assistance from the
				  TANF, IV-E Foster Care, or Medicaid Programs. Sometimes referred to as a
				  "Non-Welfare Client."
Non-TANF Medicaid Recipient:
An individual who
				  has been determined eligible for or is receiving Medicaid under Title XIX of
				  the
Social Security Act
but is not receiving, nor deemed to be
				  receiving, TANF under Title IV-A of the
Social Security
				  Act
.
Notice of Debt:
Informs the responsible parent
				  of debt accrued or accruing under an order of support, subject to the
				  requirements of
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §2352.
Notice of Hearing:
Informs parties of a hearing
				  to establish or modify a child support obligation, establish a debt for past
				  support, including medical expenses, and/or to establish an obligation to
				  provide health insurance. See
				  19-A
				  M.R.S. §2304.
Notice of Review Hearing:
Informs parties of a
				  hearing regarding an appeal of agency action. See
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §2451.
Obligee:
Any person to whom a duty of support is
				  owed.
Obligor:
Any person owing a duty of support. May
				  also be referred to in context as the "
Responsible Parent
."
OCSE:
Office of Child Support Enforcement, U.S.
				  Department of Health and Human Services.
OFI:
The Office for Family Independence, Maine
				  Department of Health and Human Services.
Other Order of Administrative Process:
An
				  administrative order, decision or judgment of a state (other than the State of
				  Maine), territory or possession of the United States, the District of Columbia
				  or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
Overdue Support
: See Arrears.
Parent:
After July 1, 2016, a person who has
				  established a parent-child relationship with a child under Title 19-A, Ch. 61,
				  or, in the absence of such a person, the legal guardian of the child.
Parentage:
After July 1, 2016, the legal
				  relationship between a child and a parent as established under Title 19-A, Ch.
				  61.
Past-due Support:
The amount of support
				  determined under a court order or an order of an administrative process
				  established under State law for support and maintenance of a child, or of a
				  child and the parent with whom the child is living, which has not been
				  paid.
Paternity Proceeding:
A proceeding initiated by
				  the Division, seeking an order of relief pursuant to
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §1606. This proceeding seeks to
				  establish paternity and support obligations.
Payee
: In the context of collection and
				  distribution of support payments, the person designated by a Court or
				  administrative process to receive child support payments. Such persons may
				  include, but are not limited to, the custodial parent, legal guardian,
				  caretaker relative having custody of or responsibility for the child or
				  children, conservator representing the custodial parent and child directly with
				  a legal and fiduciary duty, or alternate caretaker designated in a record by
				  the custodial parent.
Payor of Public Assistance:
The Department, or
				  such other U.S. state, territory, possession or commonwealth or political
				  sub-division or instrumentality thereof, or the District of Columbia, on behalf
				  of which the Division is acting, which has paid and/or is paying TANF public
				  assistance for the dependent child(ren) of the responsible parent.
Person:
Any individual, trust, estate,
				  partnership, association, company, corporation, political subdivision of the
				  State or instrumentality of the State.
Pre-offset Notice:
The notification to the
				  obligor and his or her spouse, if applicable, that past-due child support may
				  be obtained from state tax refunds pursuant to
				  36 M.R.S.
				  §5276-A, or from federal tax refunds
				  pursuant to
				  45 C.F.R.
				  §§
										302.60 and
				  303.72.
Presumed Parent:
A person who, after July 1,
				  2016 and pursuant to
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §1881, is recognized as the parent of
				  the child.
Proceeding(s):
An administrative or judicial
				  hearing, review or other action.
Public Assistance:
Money payments and medical
				  care furnished to or on behalf of dependent children by the State, including
				  Medicaid, TANF and state supplemental income benefits provided under
				  22 M.R.S.
				  §3271.
Qualified medical expenses:
Necessary medical
				  expenses incurred for care provided to a dependent child, and/or for birth
				  related expenses, which have been paid by the obligee, the Department, or
				  another payor of public assistance, and for which the obligee, the Department,
				  or other payor of public assistance was not reimbursed by the obligor or his or
				  her insurer, the child's(ren's) insurer or the obligee's insurer.
Recipient:
Unless otherwise defined or given
				  another meaning by its context, a recipient of TANF, Medicaid or Foster Care
				  payments.
Record:
Information that is inscribed on a
				  tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is
				  retrievable in perceivable form.
Responsible parent:
The natural, legal or
				  adoptive parent of a dependent child. In context, the parent responsible for
				  paying a child support obligation (See "
Obligor
," this
				  Chapter).
Review Affidavit:
An affirmation, signed under
				  oath, served upon the other party along with a request for administrative
				  review, stating the grounds upon which the request is based. If the party
				  requesting a review is a responsible parent, a statement affirmed under the
				  penalty for unsworn falsification may be used instead of an affidavit. See
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §2451.
RURESA:
Revised Uniform Reciprocal
				  Enforcement of Support Act
.
Service by Mail:
Whenever service of an
				  administrative decision is permitted by United States Postal Service mail, the
				  decision shall be mailed to the last known address of each parent. Service by
				  mail is complete upon mailing and the parents are presumed to have received the
				  decision within three (3) days of mailing.
Sign:
To authenticate or adopt a record by
				  executing or adopting a tangible symbol, such as a hand-written signature, or
				  to attach to or logically associate with the record an electronic symbol, sound
				  or process.
Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI):
A
				  benefit under Title II of the Social Security Act paid to individuals who can
				  no longer work because of a medical condition that is expected to last at least
				  one (1) year or may result in death. SSDI is funded by and based upon the
				  worker's income tax contributions to the Social Security Trust Fund.
Social Security Retirement (SSR):
A benefit
				  under Title II of the Social Security Act paid to eligible, retired workers as
				  early as age 62 and is funded primarily by employment taxes.
State:
The State of Maine.
Subsequent Debt:
Debts accrued or accruing which
				  were not included in a previous Notice of Debt. In the case of an ongoing
				  support debt, the debt continues to accrue after the liquidation by the Notice
				  of Debt. Any subsequent debt is continually added to the original adjudication
				  to determine the total amount accrued and accruing. The absence of subsequent
				  Notices of Debt does not invalidate the ongoing debt accrued and accruing since
				  the original Notice of Debt was liquidated, even when/if the order is later
				  modified or reduced to zero.
Supplemental Security Income (SSI):
A benefit
				  under Title XVI of the Social Security Act that is awarded to individuals with
				  low income and limited resources who are 65 or older, blind, or disabled. SSI
				  benefits are also available to disabled children whose income and resources
				  fall within the eligibility requirements. SSI is a form of public assistance,
				  funded by general tax revenues, intended to protect the recipient from
				  poverty.
Support guidelines:
The child support table and
				  the criteria for application of the table established by the Department
				  pursuant to
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §2011.
Support Obligation:
The amount due an obligee or
				  payor of public assistance for child and/or spousal support, including amounts
				  due for medical support, under a court order, an administrative decision, or
				  other order of administrative process, or a court order or order of
				  administrative process of a foreign country (as and where enforceable),
				  including any arrearages accrued thereunder.
Support Order:
A judgment, decree or order,
				  whether temporary, final or subject to modification, issued by a court or an
				  administrative agency of competent jurisdiction for the support and maintenance
				  of a child (including a child who has attained the age of majority under the
				  law of the issuing state), or a child and the parent with whom the child is
				  living, that provides for monetary support, health care, arrearages or
				  reimbursement and may include related costs and fees, interest and penalties,
				  income withholding, attorney's fees and other relief.
TANF:
Temporary Assistance for Needy
				  Families
Title IV-A or IV-A:
Title IV-A of the
Social Security Act
(
				  42
				  U.S.C. §§
										601
et
				  seq
.), which concerns the federal/state TANF Program.
Title IV-D or IV-D:
Title IV-D of the
Social Security Act
(
				  42 U.S.C. §§
										651
et seq
.), which concerns
				  the federal/state child support enforcement program.
Title IV-D Agency or IV-D Agency:
An agency
				  authorized to provide child support enforcement services under Title IV-D of
				  the
Social Security Act
.
Title IV-E Agency or IV-E Agency:
An agency
				  authorized to provide foster care and adoption services under Title IV-E of the
Social Security Act
.
UIFSA:
The
Uniform Interstate Family
				  Support Act
, (a) wherever in force, and (b) as embodied in
				  19-A M.R.S.
				  §§2801 -
				  3401.
URESA:
The
Revised Uniform Reciprocal
				  Enforcement of Support Act
, (a) wherever in force, and (b) as embodied
				  in former
				  19 M.R.S.
				  §§331 -
				  420.