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Senate Bill 595 History
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ENROLLED
Senate Bill No. 595
(By Senators Prezioso, Deem, Plymale and Kessler)
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[Passed April 9, 2009; in effect ninety days from passage.]
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AN ACT to amend and reenact §9-3-4 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to the assignment of child support;
and replacing antiquated language.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §9-3-4 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be
amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. APPLICATION FOR AND GRANTING OF ASSISTANCE.
§9-3-4. Assignment of support obligations.
Any recipient of financial assistance under the program of
state and federal assistance established by Title IV of the federal
Social Security Act of 1965, as amended, or any successor act
thereto, shall, as a condition of receiving assistance funded under
this part, assign to the Department of Health and Human Resources
any right the family member may have (on behalf of the family
member or of any other person for whom the family member has
applied for or is receiving such assistance) to support from any
other person, not exceeding the total amount of assistance so paid
to the family, which accrues during the period that the family receives assistance under the program.
Each applicant for assistance subject to the assignment
established in this section shall (during the application process)
be informed in writing of the nature of the assignment.
Any payment of federal and state assistance made to or for the
benefit of any child or children or the caretaker of a child or
children creates a debt due and owing to the Department of Health
and Human Resources by the person or persons responsible for the
support and maintenance of the child, children or caretaker in an
amount equal to the amount of assistance money paid: Provided, That
the debt is limited by the amount established in any court order or
final decree of divorce if the amount in the order or decree is
less than the amount of assistance paid.
The assignment under this section shall subrogate the
Department of Health and Human Resources to the rights of the
child, children or caretaker to the prosecution or maintenance of
any action or procedure existing under law providing a remedy
whereby the Department of Health and Human Resources may be
reimbursed for moneys expended on behalf of the child, children or
caretaker. The Department of Health and Human Resources shall
further be subrogated to the debt created by any order or decree
awarding support and maintenance to or for the benefit of any
child, children or caretaker included within the assignment under
this section and shall be empowered to receive money judgments and
endorse any check, draft, note or other negotiable document in
payment thereof.
The assignment created under this section shall be released upon closure of the assistance case and the termination of
assistance payments except for support and maintenance obligations
accrued and owing at the time of closure which are necessary to
reimburse the department for any balance of assistance payments
made.
The Department of Health and Human Resources may, at the
election of the recipient, continue to receive support and
maintenance moneys on behalf of the recipient following closure of
the assistance case and shall distribute the moneys to the
caretaker, child or children.