HP0696
LD 982
Session - 126th Maine Legislature
C "A", Filing Number H-449, Sponsored by
LR 1607
Item 2
Bill Tracking, Additional Documents Chamber Status

Amend the bill by inserting before section 1 the following:

Sec. 1. 8 MRSA §300-B  is enacted to read:

§ 300-B Interception of pari-mutuel winnings to pay child support debt

1 Definitions.   As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings.
A "Child support debt" means child support debt that has been liquidated by judicial or administrative action.
B "Department" means the Department of Health and Human Services.
C "Registry operator" means the department or an entity with whom the department enters into a contract to maintain the registry pursuant to subsection 3.
2 Interception.   A licensee shall intercept pari-mutuel winnings to pay child support debt in accordance with this section.
3 Registry.   The department shall create and maintain, or shall contract with a private entity to create and maintain, a secure, electronically accessible registry containing information regarding individuals with outstanding child support debt. The department shall regularly enter into the registry information including:
A The name and social security number of each individual with outstanding child support debt;
B The account number or identifier assigned by the department to the outstanding child support debt;
C The amount of the outstanding child support debt; and
D Any other information necessary to effectuate the purposes of this section.
4 Electronic access to information; procedures.   A licensee shall electronically access the registry in accordance with this subsection.
A Before making a payout on a winning wager of an amount equal to or greater than the amount for which the licensee is required to file a Form W-2G or substantially equivalent form with the United States Internal Revenue Service, the licensee shall obtain the name, address, date of birth and social security number of the individual who placed the winning wager and shall electronically submit this information to the registry operator.
B Upon receipt of information pursuant to paragraph A, the registry operator shall electronically inform the licensee whether the individual who placed the winning wager is listed in the registry. If the individual is listed in the registry, the registry operator shall inform the licensee of the amount of the individual's outstanding child support debt and the account number or identifier assigned to the outstanding child support debt and shall provide the licensee with a notice of withholding that informs the individual of the right to an administrative hearing.
C If the registry operator informs the licensee that the individual who placed a winning wager is not listed in the registry or if the licensee is unable to obtain information from the registry operator on a real-time basis after attempting in good faith to do so, the licensee may make payment to the individual.
D If the registry operator informs the licensee that the individual who placed a winning wager is listed in the registry, the licensee may not make payment to the individual unless the amount of the payout exceeds the amount of outstanding child support debt, in which case the licensee may make payment to the individual of the amount of winnings that is in excess of the amount of the individual's outstanding child support debt.
5 Lien against winnings.   If the registry operator informs a licensee pursuant to this section that an individual who placed a winning wager is listed in the registry, the department has a valid lien upon and claim of lien against the payout on the winning wager in the amount of the individual's outstanding child support debt.
6 Withholding of winnings.   The licensee shall withhold from any payout on a winning wager an amount equal to the amount of the lien created under subsection 5 and shall provide a notice of withholding to the individual who placed the winning wager. Within 7 days after withholding an amount pursuant to this subsection, the licensee shall transmit the amount withheld to the department together with a report of the name, address and social security number of the individual from whom payment was withheld, the account number or identifier assigned to the debt, the amount withheld, the date of withholding and the name and location of the licensee.
7 Licensee costs.   Notwithstanding subsection 6, the licensee may retain $10 from an amount withheld pursuant to this section to cover the cost of the licensee's compliance with this section.
8 Administrative hearing.   An individual from whom an amount was withheld pursuant to this section has the right, within 15 days of receipt of the notice of withholding, to request from the department an administrative hearing. The hearing is limited to questions of whether the debt is liquidated and whether any postliquidation events have affected the individual's liability. The administrative hearing decision constitutes final agency action.
9 Authorization to provide information.   Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the licensee may provide to the department or registry operator any information necessary to effectuate the intent of this section. The department or registry operator may provide to the licensee any information necessary to effectuate the intent of this section.
10 Confidentiality of information.   The information obtained by the department or registry operator from a licensee pursuant to this section and the information obtained by the licensee from the department or registry operator pursuant to this section are confidential and may be used only for the purposes set forth in this section. An employee or prior employee of the department, the registry operator or a licensee who knowingly or intentionally discloses any such information commits a civil violation for which a fine not to exceed $1,000 may be adjudged.
11 Effect of compliance; noncompliance.   A licensee, the department and the registry operator are not liable for any action taken in good faith to comply with this section. A licensee who fails to make a good faith effort to obtain information from the registry operator or who fails to withhold and transmit the amount of the lien created under subsection 5 is liable to the department for the greater of $500 and the amount the licensee is required to withhold and transmit to the department under this section, together with costs, interest and reasonable attorney's fees.
12 Exemption for agricultural fairs.   This section does not apply to payouts on winning wagers placed on races conducted at agricultural fairs.
13 Biennial review.   The department shall report to the Legislature and the Governor on or before January 31, 2015 and biennially thereafter on:
A The number of names of individuals submitted by licensees to the registry operator pursuant to this section in each of the preceding 2 calendar years;
B The number of individuals who were found to be listed in the registry in each of the preceding 2 calendar years;
C The amount of winnings withheld by licensees pursuant to this section in each of the preceding 2 calendar years; and
D The amount of withheld winnings refunded to individuals as the result of administrative hearings requested pursuant to this section in each of the preceding 2 calendar years.

Amend the bill in section 1 in §1066 in subsection 4 in paragraph C in the 2nd line (page 2, line 4 in L.D.) by inserting after the following: " operator" the following: ' on a real-time basis'

Amend the bill in section 1 in §1066 in subsection 6 in the 3rd line (page 2, line 17 in L.D.) by striking out the following: " 24 hours" and inserting the following: ' 7 days'

Amend the bill in section 1 in §1066 by striking out all of subsection 10 (page 2, lines 36 to 42 in L.D.) and inserting the following:

10 Confidentiality of information.   The information obtained by the department or registry operator from a licensee pursuant to this section and the information obtained by the licensee from the department or registry operator pursuant to this section are confidential and may be used only for the purposes set forth in this section. An employee or prior employee of the department, the registry operator or a licensee who knowingly or intentionally discloses any such information commits a civil violation for which a fine not to exceed $1,000 may be adjudged.

Amend the bill in section 1 in §1066 by striking out all of subsection 11 (page 3, lines 1 and 2 in L.D.) and inserting the following:

11 Effect of compliance; noncompliance.   A licensee, the department and the registry operator are not liable for any action taken in good faith to comply with this section. A licensee who fails to make a good faith effort to obtain information from the registry operator or who fails to withhold and transmit the amount of the lien created under subsection 5 is liable to the department for the greater of $500 and the amount the person was required to withhold and transmit to the department under this section, together with costs, interest and reasonable attorney's fees.

Amend the bill by adding after section 1 the following:

Sec. 2. Appropriations and allocations. The following appropriations and allocations are made.

HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, DEPARTMENT OF (FORMERLY DHS)

Child Support 0100

Initiative: Allocates funds for the one-time technology costs of implementing a registry of individuals with outstanding child support debt.

OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS 2013-14 2014-15
All Other
$102,146 $0
inline graphic sline.gif inline graphic sline.gif
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS TOTAL $102,146 $0

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families 0138

Initiative: Allocates funds for additional child support payments to families.

OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS 2013-14 2014-15
All Other
$121,275 $121,275
inline graphic sline.gif inline graphic sline.gif
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS TOTAL $121,275 $121,275

HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, DEPARTMENT OF (FORMERLY DHS)
DEPARTMENT TOTALS 2013-14 2014-15
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS
$223,421 $121,275
inline graphic sline.gif inline graphic sline.gif
DEPARTMENT TOTAL - ALL FUNDS $223,421 $121,275

Amend the bill by relettering or renumbering any nonconsecutive Part letter or section number to read consecutively.

summary

This amendment requires licensees that conduct pari-mutuel wagering on horse racing in this State, in addition to the licensees that operate slot machines and table games as included in the bill, to intercept the gambling winnings of individuals with outstanding child support debt and requires that those amounts be forwarded to the Department of Health and Human Services.

This amendment clarifies that, if the licensee is unable to obtain the child support obligor information from the registry owner on a real-time basis after attempting in good faith to do so, the licensee may make payment to the individual.

The bill requires the licensee to transmit the amount withheld to the Department of Health and Human Services within 24 hours. This amendment extends the time to transmit the withheld amount to within 7 days.

This amendment clarifies that the information obtained by the department or the registry operator from a licensee and the information obtained by the licensee from the department or the registry operator are confidential. It provides that knowing or intentional disclosure of the information is a civil violation for which a fine not to exceed $1,000 may be adjudged.

This amendment provides that a licensee who fails to make a good faith effort to obtain information from the registry operator or who fails to withhold and transmit the amount of the lien is liable to the department for the greater of $500 and the amount the licensee is required to withhold and transmit to the department, together with costs, interest and reasonable attorney's fees.

The amendment also adds an appropriations and allocations section.

FISCAL NOTE REQUIRED
(See attached)


Top of Page