S. 1383: Strengthen and Vitalize Enforcement of Child Support (SAVE Child Support) Act

112th Congress · introduced 2011-07-19 · Families · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2011-07-19 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Menendez, Robert [D-NJ] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Strengthen and Vitalize Enforcement of Child Support (SAVE Child Support) Act

Plain summary

Strengthen and Vitalize Enforcement of Child Support (SAVE Child Support) Act - Amends part D (Child Support and Establishment of Paternity) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) to require states to adopt the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act, including any amendments officially adopted by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws. Amends the federal judicial code with regard to full faith and credit for a child support order and continuing, exclusive jurisdiction over the order. Declares that a court of a state that has made a child support order has continuing, exclusive jurisdiction to modify it, if the order is the controlling order and the state is the child's state or the residence of any individual contestant, or the contestants consent in a record or open court that the court may continue to exercise jurisdiction to modify its order. Denies such jurisdiction to the first state after the court of another state has made a modification of the order pursuant to established guidelines. Amends SSA title IV part D to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to: (1) utilize federal and state enforcement mechanisms in furtherance of the U.S. national policy to comply fully with the obligations of any multilateral child support convention to which the United States is a party, and (2) take necessary steps to ensure compliance with the U.S. treaty obligations under such convention in the event that a state child support enforcement plan does not comply. Authorizes access to the Federal Parent Locator Service for any entity designated as a Central Authority for child support enforcement in a foreign reciprocating country or a foreign treaty country. Requires a state to establish a centralized registry for liens that arise by operation of law against real and personal property for amounts of overdue support owed by a noncustodial parent who resides or owns property in the state. Requires the Secretary (who, under current law, is merely authorized), through the Federal Parent Locator Service, to compare information concerning individuals owing past-due support with information maintained by insurers (or their agents) concerning insurance claims, settlements, awards, and payments. Requires a state to establish a registry of payments made on property and casualty insurance claims for purposes of matching individuals with overdue child support. Modifies passport denial procedures in cases of individuals with arrearages of overdue child support. Establishes an expedited process to withhold or suspend driver's or other licenses for nonpayment of such arrearages. Provides for a data match system, using automated data exchanges for the names of incarcerated individuals who have child support orders, in order to increase coordination between the state agency and corrections agencies. Amends the Consumer Credit Protection Act, with respect to preventing deceptive and harassing practices by debt collection agencies, to subject to its coverage private child support collection agencies and any debt arising from a child support order. Requires a state plan for child and spousal support to provide for a process for including in mandatory annual reviews and reports on the state program information on the policies and practices the state has implemented or plans to implement to facilitate access to and visitation of children by noncustodial parents. Requires the Attorney General to report annually to Congress on the number of individuals prosecuted for failure to pay child support obligations. Requires all child and spousal support application fees to be recovered from the absent parent. Repeals the requirement that such fees be paid by the individual applying for child support collection services.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

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If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Strengthen and Vitalize Enforcement of Child Support (SAVE Child Support) Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

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The strongest published arguments

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Menendez, Robert [D-NJ] · 1 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Chuck Grassley (R-IA)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (4)

Authorization: A law that creates or continues a government program and says what it may do, often with a suggested spending ceiling. An authorization alone does not provide money; a separate appropriation does.
Jurisdiction: The area or the matters a government or court has authority over.
Obligation: A binding promise by a government agency to pay money, for example by signing a contract or awarding a grant. Spending data such as USAspending.gov counts money when it is obligated, which can be before it is actually paid out.
Securities: Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-112s1383.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/112/s>

Record fed-us-cong112-s1383 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong112 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong112